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Across the Savannah River in Augusta, the winner of the 2025 Masters Tournament will soon be crowned, donning the world-renowned green jacket. Scottie Scheffler is the most recent in a long legacy of green jacket holders—and the only one with the right to wear the green jacket beyond the boundaries of the Augusta National Golf Club. On Sunday, April 13, he will continue the tradition, either by presenting one to the next winner or receiving his first winning jacket again from the club chairman and continuing his reign as champion.

Now in the green jacket’s 75th anniversary year, its history can be traced among all the golfing greats: from Tiger Woods to Arnold Palmer to the very first recipient, Sam Snead.

In 1949, the Masters Tournament was only fifteen years old. Members of the Augusta National Golf Club wore green jackets to stand out from the crowd during the Masters, marking themselves as locals ready to answer travelers’ questions. When Sam Snead won the tournament, co-founder Bobby Jones decided to start a tradition in Augusta he first experienced in England. Jones had won the British Open nearly twenty years beforehand, earning a red jacket from the Royal Liverpool Golf Club. By bringing that tradition to the Masters, he created a signifier for tournament winners now recognized worldwide.

Over the past 76 years, the coveted green jackets have at times featured shoulder pads, varied button placements, and other small changes as popular fashion ebbed and flowed. But one thing will never change: the Masters green jacket is the mark of a champion.

Inside the Antiques Community of Aiken: A Conversation with Lisa Castles from York Cottage

 

Aiken has long been a hub for antiques, with vintage boutiques becoming beloved destinations along our downtown streets and beyond. The 25th anniversary of the Aiken Antique Show took place earlier this year at the Aiken Center for the Arts, raising funds for the center while giving antique enthusiasts a chance to expand their collections and learn from the experts. Here, twenty-one antique dealers from across the Southeast and over two thousand attendees gathered to buy and sell eclectic wares and hear presentations on interior design and 18th century gardening.

“The antique show is my favorite time of the year,” Lisa Castles, Chair of the Aiken Antique Show, says. “The entire weekend is full of contagious energy.” No one knows the show better than Lisa, who was brought on board when she first moved to Aiken in the show’s inaugural year.

Since then, it has grown to encompass a whole community of locals, travelers, and volunteers who carve out time for the event every year. Because the show is relatively small, Lisa says she and her team of 100 volunteers have the time and energy to focus on hospitality and the little details that make the event unique, from a homemade café to the dealer hospitality suite.

This attention to detail translates to Lisa’s own antique shop, York Cottage Antiques. Located on Hayne Avenue, the shop features a curated selection of goods Lisa collects on her travels. There, among the garden decorations, tablesettings, and sporting antiques, you’ll find quality silver pieces, a remnant of her early career working in an antique silver store in Atlanta.

Attached to every object she sells, Lisa writes about the history and original purpose of the piece, as well as what it can be used for today— honoring the past while appreciating modern-day functionality.

Given one word to describe the Aiken Antique Show, Lisa chose community: both for her volunteers and the local businesses who come together to support this longstanding event. As the love of antiques continues to thrive in Aiken, we want to take this opportunity to highlight two special shops within walking distance from The Willcox where the belongings of our past are preserved for new generations.

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York Cottage Antiques

The trailing limbs of a live oak, the bristling needles of an evergreen, the soft southern bloom of a magnolia—Aiken’s trees are a defining mark of our city, stretching far beyond Hitchcock Woods into our neighborhoods, parkways, and South Boundary’s beautiful Avenue of Oaks. In addition to their beauty, our trees purify the air, removing certain pollutants, cooling the overall temperature in more developed areas, and absorbing excess stormwater to help mitigate the risk of floods.

The Arbor Day Foundation has designated Aiken as a “Tree City” for nearly forty consecutive years, but the city’s legacy of urban trees began over a century ago. In 1904, Mayor Julian Salley brought South Boundary’s two hundred live oaks from the banks of the Savannah River with the help of funds from a private citizen, Henry Dibble. This example of public-private partnership for preservation and beautification inspired Rob and Pam Johnston to launch Aiken Streetscapes in 2017.

The Johnstons recognized that Aiken’s trees, just like any other expansive resource, required a comprehensive management plan to help them flourish successively and safely. We had the pleasure of sitting down with Dacre Stoker, executive director of Aiken Streetscapes, to learn the many ways the organization is enacting their mission.

He first mentioned the concept of proactive pruning, a process of aesthetically pruning growing limbs before they run into powerlines, hang too low over roads, or become too heavy—thereby decreasing the potential damage if the tree were to fall. This preservation method can also help protect trees during storms; Dacre partially credits the survival of all South Boundary’s live oaks during Hurricane Helene to the proactive pruning made possible by Aiken Streetscapes.

In addition, the organization has partnered with Dominion Energy, the City of Aiken, and Aiken Land Conservancy to move utility powerlines underground on South Boundary—allowing trees to grow more fully without an additional concern for safety. Aiken Streetscapes preserves trees across the city and throughout our downtown parkways.

Hear more about this wonderful organization and the role it plays in naturally beautifying our city in this video, or visit aikenstreetscapes.org  to learn how to get involved.

As the winter season envelopes this southern city, we invite you to visit the warm hearths of Aiken’s living room, where you can always find hearty dinners, fine wine, and holiday cheer.

 

 

Travel + Leisure 2025 World’s Best Awards

We have been nominated for Travel + Leisure’s 2025 World’s Best Awards! With gratitude, we ask for your vote as we pursue this great distinction.

VOTE NOW

 

The Lobby Bar is serving up something special! Stop by and explore our refreshing cocktail creations, including our brand new Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Menu featuring Little Saints Cocktails. Unwind with these mushroom-fueled, mood-boosting drinks—crafted with zero sugar and only natural ingredients. Your favorite cocktails, including palomas, margheritas, and mules, are now available alcohol-free at The Lobby Bar.

Leslie Blankenship Restaurant Manager

 

For children, the magic of the holidays is pure enchantment—a time when the world feels full of wonder and possibility. In their imaginations, elves are hard at work in the North Pole, putting the finishing touches on toys crafted just for them. Santa is busy preparing his reindeer for an extraordinary all-night journey to deliver a special gift beneath their tree. Fires glow warmly in the hearth, hot chocolate seems sweeter than ever, and little ones hold onto the hope that maybe—just maybe—this year will bring a blanket of snow.

At The Willcox, we embraced this holiday spirit by introducing a new tradition designed to fill hearts with joy and create lasting memories for families and children alike. Every Saturday leading up to Christmas, we hosted the Teddy Bear Tea: a magical event that brought the holidays to life for our youngest guests.

Surrounded by festive decorations that transformed The Willcox into a holiday wonderland, children delighted in a whimsical tea menu featuring fairy bread, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, miniature scones, gingerbread men, and more. The excitement didn’t stop there—Santa Claus himself made a special appearance, taking the time to speak with each child about their Christmas wishes. The sparkle in their eyes and the joy on their faces were truly unforgettable.

Teddy Bear Tea made its debut this holiday season, and it has already become a cherished event for everyone involved. Seeing the joy it brought to our young guests and their families was truly heartwarming. While this was our first year hosting the event, we’re excited to continue the tradition in the years to come, creating more magical memories that will last a lifetime.

Full of folktales, new ideas, and reminiscences, these new reads are the perfect thing to warm you up on the chilly days and nights of winter. Curl up with one of our recommendations, and uncover new worlds from the comfort of your home.

 

The Bog Wife by Kay Chronister In this Southern Gothic novel set in Appalachian West Virginia, a woman is brought to life from vegetation each generation to carry on the family line—a “bog wife”. But when the bog fails to honor the bargain, the Haddesley family faces an unknown future.

 

What the Chicken Knows: A New Appreciation of the World’s Most Familiar Bird by Sy Montgomery An exploration of the special relationships between chickens and humans, this short book takes the reader inside the flock and illuminates what makes these seemingly common creatures so remarkable.

 

The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer This pocket-sized book is choc-full of environmental wisdom, teaching us about reciprocity in the natural world and how it relates to the world we humans make for ourselves.

 

There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension by Hanif Abdurraqib From poet and author Abdurraqib comes another poignant look at culture at large through the lens of a basketball fan growing up in Columbus, OH in the 1990s.

 

Eleanore of Avignon by Elizabeth DeLozier With a teaser of “the story of a woman who is unwilling to bend to the limitations her society places upon her when she becomes the unlikely apprentice to the pope’s physician at the most challenging and dangerous moment in medieval European history,” what more could you ask for from a historical fiction novel?

 

Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa, Alison Watts (Translator) Beloved in Japan, this special novel follows aimless sweet-shop worker Sentaro as he meets an elderly woman with disfigured hands and a troubled past, and as she teaches him her craft, they find an unexpected friendship.

The Willcox’s tradition of Thursday Night Jazz began, as most great things do, with a conversation. Talented musician and vocalist Scott Ferguson was at The Willcox Restaurant one night in October 2009 when he told owners Geoff and Shannon Ellis, “You know, what this place could use is some jazz!”

From there, it all unfolded smoothly with the world premier of 4 Cats in the Doghouse the Thursday before Christmas. Scott, who plays the saxophone, trumpet, and guitar, served as the lead singer, joined by David Brown on piano, Bud Pabst on the drums, and David Culp on the bass. This first Thursday Night Jazz wowed the crowd, kickstarting a beloved tradition everyone in Aiken is welcome to enjoy!

With only rare exceptions, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, 4 Cats in the Doghouse has played for diners every single Thursday night over the last fifteen years—ever since Geoff and Shannon have owned The Willcox. An indelible part of the hotel’s history, 4 Cats in the Doghouse has gone through its own chapters over the years. For a time, they played without drums, before returning with a bang once The Restaurant reopened after the pandemic.

Numerous local musicians have played in 4 Cats in the Doghouse since this founding group, substituting for traveling members and joining the group for longer stays. Today, Scott and David Brown are joined by bassist George Sykes and drummer Edwin Hamilton.

As we mark fifteen years of Thursday Night Jazz, we invite everyone to come by The Restaurant from 7 to 9 p.m. on Thursday evenings and celebrate great music and local musicians with us at The Willcox!
Throughout the month of December, 4 Cats in the Doghouse brings a holiday charm to their setlist, playing festive songs alongside their signature set favorites. And on special occasions like The Willcox’s annual New Year’s Eve party, the group plays on other nights of the week.

The Willcox Catering Department has long offered culinary catering services offsite as well as onsite. Under the leadership of the Director of Sales Katherine Grantham, we have seen a deep need for expanding our offsite catering services as well as providing a more simplistic client experience in the process. To help achieve this process Katherine is spearheading a new venture for the catering department- The Willcox Mobile Kitchen.

“After planning and executing offsite catered events at The Willcox for the past 10 years, I have seen the beauty in creating a simplified process for clients when planning an event. When The Willcox caters your event, we work with you on everything from creating custom menus, handling all event rentals, creating a timeline, and now also providing a fully commercial kitchen that ensures culinary excellence that can’t be found anywhere else,” said Katherine.

Some of the aspects that our clients have enjoyed the most about The Willcox Mobile Kitchen is the ability to provide any style of menu with no culinary restrictions. By having a fully commercial kitchen this gives us the ability to cook lobster onsite, grill steaks to specific temperatures, or provide a plated dinner for 500 guests at your farm or favorite polo field. We can also do this with all food safety protocols in place. Another benefit our clients have enjoyed is having full functionality of their own kitchen, as well as not having to worry about any clean up concluding the event.

The Willcox Mobile Kitchen was created with a vision: to make the high-end experience of dining at The Restaurant available beyond the hotel. The Willcox catering team goes the extra mile to not only provide exceptional food but to create an immersive experience- from assorted stations serving southern comfort foods and artisan olive oils, to seafood towers and late-night Chicago dogs to conclude an unforgettable night with your guests. From intimate dinner parties to grand weddings, galas, and corporate events, this new off-site catering endeavor serves events of all sizes.

Hitchcock Woods, one of Aiken’s most beloved natural spaces, has officially reopened after suffering extensive damage from Hurricane Helene! The storm dumped nearly 7 inches of rain over a 12-hour period and brought sustained winds of 90 mph—the combined force of wind and rain downed hundreds, possibly thousands, of trees across the 2,100-acre property, leaving the area’s 71 miles of iconic trails severely damaged.

Unlike the ice storm of 2014, where ice accumulation brought down limbs and branches, Helene’s impact was far more destructive. With the ground saturated by heavy rainfall, the powerful winds uprooted entire trees, while “widow makers” —branches or trees precariously leaning in the canopy—created dangerous aerial hazards.

Despite the overwhelming destruction, the Hitchcock Woods Foundation has labored to clear the trails to make the Woods accessible to the public. Under the leadership of Woods Superintendent Bennett Tucker and Executive Director Mary Katherine Philipp, the Foundation’s team worked tirelessly along with professional contractors under hazardous conditions to clear the debris.

Phase I of the restoration is now complete, with major obstacles, including fallen trees and obvious aerial hazards, cleared from the main trails. The Woods officially reopened to pedestrians and equestrians at dawn on Saturday, December 21st. This milestone marks a significant step in the ongoing recovery process, though full restoration remains a long-term effort. The storm’s effects have left widespread debris and devastated areas, especially in the bottomlands, which will require years of work to restore, including massive debris removal and replanting.

The Hitchcock Woods Foundation has expressed deep gratitude for the community’s patience and support during this challenging period. The closure of the Woods has been felt by many, as it is a cherished local treasure. As recovery continues, the Foundation is calling for continued financial support from donors to help restore the Woods to its full splendor. The generosity of the community will be crucial to ensuring the long-term health and safety of this vital resource.

“The reopening of Hitchcock Woods is a symbol of resilience—both for the Woods and the Aiken community that values them,” says Joanna Dunn Samson, the Chairman of the Hitchcock Woods Foundation. “The Hitchcock Woods is the largest, privately owned, urban forest in the country, home to 1500 acres of restored longleaf pine ecosystem and a healthy, thriving population of the federally endangered Red-cockaded Woodpeckers. We hope visitors returning to the Woods will enjoy the beauty of this extraordinary natural resource, but also remain mindful of the importance of preserving this special space for future generations.”

So, whether you’re an avid equestrian, an enthusiastic hiker, or simply someone who enjoys a walk with their dog, Hitchcock Woods is ready to welcome you back. As always, remember to stay safe, respect the boundaries, and enjoy the peace and tranquility that this remarkable place has to offer.