Bracken County, Kentucky

Bracken County is a county in Kentucky, United States, on the Ohio River across from Brown County and Clermont County, Ohio. It had a population of 8,400 at the 2020 census and covers 209 square miles (540 km2) centred near 38°41′N 84°05′W.

Brooksville is the county seat, and its postal code is 41004. The county has three incorporated cities and about two dozen unincorporated communities; Kentucky counties do not have civil townships. Bracken County lies in the Eastern time zone and forms part of the Cincinnati–Middletown, OH-KY-IN metropolitan statistical area.

Towns & Villages in Bracken County

Bracken County has three incorporated cities — Augusta, Brooksville and Germantown — and about two dozen unincorporated communities scattered along the Ohio River and the county’s back roads. “Unincorp.” below means the place has no city government of its own.

Augusta and South Higginsport sit almost opposite each other on the Ohio River, and Augusta’s ferry — one of the few remaining public ferries on the Ohio — crosses to Higginsport in Brown County, Ohio, not to South Higginsport. Willow and Willow Grove are distinct settlements a few miles apart in the county’s south end.

ZIP Codes

• 41002 — Augusta
• 41004 — Brooksville (also serves most of the surrounding rural county)
• 41043 — Foster (also serves the Ohio River communities near the Pendleton County line)
• 41044 — Germantown (also serves the county’s southeast corner toward Mason County)

Most of the smaller unincorporated communities listed above share one of these four ZIP codes depending on which mail route serves them.

Geography

The Ohio River forms Bracken County’s entire northern boundary, and the land rises quickly from the river into the steep, wooded hills of the Outer Bluegrass and Knobs region. Bracken Creek and its Big Bracken and Little Bracken forks drain most of the county south toward the river, cutting the narrow ridges and hollows that shape the local road network. The county has little flat ground outside the river bottoms at Augusta and Foster.

Bracken County borders Mason County to the east, Robertson County to the south, Harrison County to the southwest, Pendleton County to the west, and across the Ohio River, Brown County and Clermont County in Ohio to the north.

Demographics

Bracken County had 8,400 residents at the 2020 census, a density of about 41 people per square mile. Augusta (1,096) and Brooksville (654) are the county’s two largest communities; nearly all other residents live in unincorporated areas along the river and in the surrounding farmland. Bracken County’s household incomes run below the Kentucky median of $61,118, consistent with a small, agriculture-based rural economy with limited local wage employment.

Economy & Local Life

Agriculture anchors the local economy, historically led by white burley tobacco — the crop that was first sold at the 1867 St. Louis fair and went on to dominate the regional leaf market — alongside cattle and grain farming on the county’s ridgetops. Bracken County Schools (based in Brooksville) and Augusta Independent Schools are separate districts serving different parts of the county. Augusta’s historic river-front downtown, with its 19th-century brick storefronts and the Augusta Ferry, draws visitors and Ohio River boat traffic, and many residents commute north across the river or east to Maysville for other work.

History

Bracken County was organized in 1796, Kentucky’s 23rd county, formed from parts of Campbell, Mason and Woodford counties. It takes its name from Big Bracken Creek and Little Bracken Creek, themselves named for an early hunter and explorer in the area. Augusta, founded in 1786 as a river trading post, briefly served as the original county seat before Brooksville took over that role. The county’s river towns were active stops on the Underground Railroad in the decades before the Civil War, owing to their position directly across the Ohio from free-state Ohio. In the 20th century Bracken County became best known as the boyhood and family home of entertainer Rosemary Clooney and her nephew, actor George Clooney, who grew up in and around Augusta.

Getting There

Local state routes connect the river towns to US 62 and US 68 in neighboring Mason County. Nearest anchor points:

• Maysville, Kentucky — about 15 miles east
• Cincinnati, Ohio — about 45 miles northwest
• Falmouth, Kentucky (Pendleton County seat) — about 20 miles west
• Cynthiana, Kentucky (Harrison County seat) — about 25 miles southwest

The nearest commercial airport is Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, roughly 40 miles to the northwest.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Bracken County, Kentucky?
It sits in the northeastern part of the state on the Ohio River, across from Brown and Clermont counties in Ohio, between Maysville and Cincinnati.

What is the population of Bracken County?
8,400 people, per the 2020 census.

How big is Bracken County?
209 square miles (540 km2), of which about 3.3 square miles is water in the Ohio River.

What is the county seat of Bracken County?
Brooksville, a city of 654 people near the county’s center.

How many towns are in Bracken County?
Three incorporated cities — Augusta, Brooksville and Germantown — plus about two dozen unincorporated communities.

What ZIP codes are in Bracken County?
41002 (Augusta), 41004 (Brooksville), 41043 (Foster) and 41044 (Germantown).

Is there a ferry across the Ohio River in Bracken County?
Yes. The Augusta Ferry has run between Augusta and Higginsport, Brown County, Ohio, for more than two centuries and is one of the last public ferries still operating on the Ohio River.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Kentucky.