Bracken County, Kentucky | |
|---|---|
 Bracken County Courthouse in Brooksville | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofKentucky | |
| Coordinates:38°41′N84°05′W / 38.69°N 84.08°W /38.69; -84.08 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Kentucky |
| Founded | 1796 |
| Named after | William Bracken |
| Seat | Brooksville |
| Largest city | Augusta |
| Area | |
• Total | 209 sq mi (540 km2) |
| • Land | 206 sq mi (530 km2) |
| • Water | 3.3 sq mi (8.5 km2) 1.6% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 8,400 |
• Estimate (2024) | 8,497 |
| • Density | 41/sq mi (16/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 4th |
| Website | brackencounty |
Bracken County is acounty located in theU.S. state ofKentucky. As of the2020 census, the population was 8,400.[1] Itscounty seat isBrooksville.[2] The county was formed in 1796.Bracken County is included in theCincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Bracken County was organized as Kentucky's 23rd county in 1796 from parts ofMason andCampbell counties.[3][4] It was named after two creeks, the Big and Little Bracken, which in turn were named forWilliam Bracken, an 18th-century explorer and surveyor who visited the area in 1773.[5] He was later killed by Indians during theNorthwest Indian War. The county originally extended to southernNicholas County, north to theOhio River, west to theLicking River and east to Dover, Kentucky.[6]
Several earlysettlers were veterans of theAmerican Revolutionary War, including Captain Abner Howell, who brought his family fromPennsylvania. He died in Bracken County in 1797.
The county government moved from Augusta toWoodward's Crossing (nowBrooksville) in 1833.
Bracken was the birthplace ofJohn Gregg Fee, founder ofBerea College and Kentucky's most notedabolitionist. He was a graduate of Augusta College andLane Theological Seminary. In 1822Augusta College was founded as the firstMethodist college in the world.
Anti-slavery activists in Bracken County played a major role in the movement known as theUnderground Railroad. There are several Underground Railroad sites in theAugusta area. A network of citizens sympathetic to escaping slaves helped them cross theOhio River to nearbyRipley, Ohio and other points north.[7]
Bracken County's economy was largely agricultural. Its chief crops before theCivil War weretobacco and corn. Whiteburley tobacco, a light, adaptable leaf that revolutionized the industry, was first sold at the 1867St. Louis Fair by the farmer Mr. Webb fromHigginsport, Ohio. He had produced it in 1864 from Bracken County seed and developed the type.[8] It became a major product of central Kentucky and central Tennessee.
Agriculture remains vital to the economy, with farms occupying 83.8 percent of the land area in 1982. Commodities include wheat, hay, and milk. Burley tobacco production in 1988 amounted to 5,406,000 pounds. Agricultural receipts in 1986 totaled $19,158,000 (~$46.4 million in 2024).[9]
Augusta:
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 693 | 29.18% | 1,315 | 55.37% | 367 | 15.45% |
| 1916 | 1,082 | 38.33% | 1,676 | 59.37% | 65 | 2.30% |
| 1920 | 1,791 | 40.09% | 2,621 | 58.66% | 56 | 1.25% |
| 1924 | 1,779 | 51.67% | 1,485 | 43.13% | 179 | 5.20% |
| 1928 | 2,820 | 69.98% | 1,201 | 29.80% | 9 | 0.22% |
| 1932 | 1,471 | 37.52% | 2,407 | 61.39% | 43 | 1.10% |
| 1936 | 1,436 | 41.70% | 1,956 | 56.79% | 52 | 1.51% |
| 1940 | 1,551 | 44.05% | 1,961 | 55.69% | 9 | 0.26% |
| 1944 | 1,483 | 43.40% | 1,915 | 56.04% | 19 | 0.56% |
| 1948 | 1,239 | 39.13% | 1,863 | 58.84% | 64 | 2.02% |
| 1952 | 1,690 | 49.07% | 1,753 | 50.90% | 1 | 0.03% |
| 1956 | 1,754 | 53.54% | 1,515 | 46.25% | 7 | 0.21% |
| 1960 | 2,002 | 60.16% | 1,326 | 39.84% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 861 | 30.54% | 1,958 | 69.46% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 1,115 | 40.81% | 1,067 | 39.06% | 550 | 20.13% |
| 1972 | 1,628 | 64.30% | 873 | 34.48% | 31 | 1.22% |
| 1976 | 879 | 35.23% | 1,577 | 63.21% | 39 | 1.56% |
| 1980 | 1,154 | 43.65% | 1,420 | 53.71% | 70 | 2.65% |
| 1984 | 1,812 | 60.89% | 1,136 | 38.17% | 28 | 0.94% |
| 1988 | 1,630 | 57.72% | 1,176 | 41.64% | 18 | 0.64% |
| 1992 | 1,162 | 39.63% | 1,259 | 42.94% | 511 | 17.43% |
| 1996 | 1,371 | 50.40% | 1,055 | 38.79% | 294 | 10.81% |
| 2000 | 2,065 | 68.40% | 888 | 29.41% | 66 | 2.19% |
| 2004 | 2,363 | 65.46% | 1,213 | 33.60% | 34 | 0.94% |
| 2008 | 2,066 | 60.78% | 1,241 | 36.51% | 92 | 2.71% |
| 2012 | 2,029 | 62.78% | 1,147 | 35.49% | 56 | 1.73% |
| 2016 | 2,711 | 76.86% | 705 | 19.99% | 111 | 3.15% |
| 2020 | 3,398 | 80.03% | 800 | 18.84% | 48 | 1.13% |
| 2024 | 3,399 | 81.84% | 702 | 16.90% | 52 | 1.25% |
| Elected officials as of January 3, 2025[11][12] | ||
| U.S. House | Thomas Massie (R) | KY 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Ky. Senate | Shelley Funke Frommeyer (R) | 24 |
| Ky. House | William Lawrence (R) | 70 |
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 209 square miles (540 km2), of which 206 square miles (530 km2) is land and 3.3 square miles (8.5 km2) (1.6%) is water.[13]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1800 | 2,606 | — | |
| 1810 | 3,706 | 42.2% | |
| 1820 | 5,280 | 42.5% | |
| 1830 | 6,518 | 23.4% | |
| 1840 | 7,053 | 8.2% | |
| 1850 | 8,903 | 26.2% | |
| 1860 | 11,021 | 23.8% | |
| 1870 | 11,409 | 3.5% | |
| 1880 | 13,509 | 18.4% | |
| 1890 | 12,369 | −8.4% | |
| 1900 | 12,137 | −1.9% | |
| 1910 | 10,308 | −15.1% | |
| 1920 | 10,210 | −1.0% | |
| 1930 | 9,616 | −5.8% | |
| 1940 | 9,389 | −2.4% | |
| 1950 | 8,424 | −10.3% | |
| 1960 | 7,422 | −11.9% | |
| 1970 | 7,227 | −2.6% | |
| 1980 | 7,738 | 7.1% | |
| 1990 | 7,766 | 0.4% | |
| 2000 | 8,279 | 6.6% | |
| 2010 | 8,488 | 2.5% | |
| 2020 | 8,400 | −1.0% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 8,497 | [14] | 1.2% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[15] 1790-1960[16] 1900-1990[17] 1990-2000[18] 2010-2021[19] | |||
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 8,400. The median age was 41.8 years. 24.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 17.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 99.6 males age 18 and over.[20][21]
The racial makeup of the county was 95.2% White, 0.6%Black or African American, 0.2%American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Asian, 0.0%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 0.4% from some other race, and 3.5% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.1% of the population.[21]
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[22]
There were 3,329 households in the county, of which 30.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 23.0% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[20]
There were 3,839 housing units, of which 13.3% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 75.0% were owner-occupied and 25.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.0%.[20]
As of thecensus[23] of 2000, there were 8,279 people, 3,228 households, and 2,346 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 41 per square mile (16/km2). There were 3,715 housing units at an average density of 18 per square mile (6.9/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.48%White, 0.62%Black orAfrican American, 0.25%Native American, 0.06%Asian, 0.04%Pacific Islander, 0.21% fromother races, and 0.35% from two or more races. 0.47% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race.
There were 3,228 households, out of which 33.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.30% weremarried couples living together, 10.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.30% were non-families. 23.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.50% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 29.50% from 25 to 44, 23.00% from 45 to 64, and 13.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $34,823, and the median income for a family was $40,469. Males had a median income of $31,503 versus $21,139 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $16,478. About 7.60% of families and 10.80% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 10.50% of those under age 18 and 17.30% of those age 65 or over.
School districts include:[24]
Private schools:
Municipalities and communities ofBracken County, Kentucky,United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cities |  | |
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
