The first Aiken Jewish Merchants: 1890 – 1910

 Harris Louis (HL) Polier (1848-1921) is the first known Jewish Merchant in Aiken and his arrival was a catalyst for the arrival of other Jewish merchants here. HL came to America from Russia in 1878, living first in Cleveland and then Augusta before coming to Aiken in the late 1880s where he decided to stay & open a dry goods store by 1888. He was soon joined by his brother Morris Samuel (MS) Polier (1860-1935). MS opened a barber shop by 1891 as well as a dry goods store.

The Poliers were soon followed by other Jewish families, some of whom were related by marriage. These newcomers often started as peddlers serving the Mill workers of the Midland Valley. Many of these peddlers went on to open retail stores in Aiken, especially after the opening of the Augusta-Aiken Railway (electric trolley) in 1902 allowed residents of towns like Graniteville to have easier access to shops in Aiken.

The archives of the Aiken County Historical Museum include the peddler licenses of several of these early Aiken Jewish Merchants, including:

· The Poliakoffs: three Poliakoff cousins (Samuel, Jacob & Moses) operated as peddlers in Aiken County beginning in the 1890s. It’s believed they first immigrated from Belarus Russia to Augusta where their cousin Abraham (AJ) Poliakoff had established himself as a Rabbi – and then fanned out in search of opportunity. Each of these Poliakoff cousins went on to open retail stores in Aiken – with Jacob Poliakoff’s store (JR Poliakoff Dry Goods) operating here until the late 1930s

· The Suraskys: BM Surasky (the oldest of five Surasky brothers) came to Aiken from Poland in the early 1890s to work in the store of his brother in law HL Polier. He was soon followed by his younger brothers – including Sam & Hiram Surasky, who were operating as peddlers in Aiken County as early as 1900. In time, the Surasky brothers would become a fixture among Aiken Merchants operating multiple stores in town, with BM Surasky’s store operating until the 1960s

· The Wolfs: Sam Wolf was operating as a peddler in Aiken County by 1901. Sam was the younger brother of Jacob Wolf who immigrated to the US around 1895 from Russia and who was living in Graniteville around the time of the 1900 Census. Sam moved on to become a merchant in Edgefield while Jacob took over the dry goods store of MS Polier in Aiken. Jacob & his wife Julia would go on to become fixtures in the Aiken retail scene operating two of Aiken’s longest lasting and successful stores – The Leader (men’s clothing) & Julia’s Dress Shop (women’s clothing)

Aiken County Peddlar Licenses

(courtesy of the Aiken County Historical Museum)