Brandenburg was built on a tract of land called Falling Springs, purchased in 1804 by Solomon Brandenburg. He opened a tavern around which the community grew. In 1825, the community became the seat of Meade County, but it wasn't formally incorporated by the state assembly until March 28, 1872. During the Civil War, ConfederateGeneral John Hunt Morgan crossed at Brandenburg to start his raid into Indiana in July, 1863. During the Battle of Brandenburg Crossing, two men on the Indiana side of the river were killed by cannon fire from Brandenburg. A Union gunship was deployed to block the crossing, but it ran out of ammunition and Morgan and his men were able to pass into Indiana. Brandenburg was devastated by an F5tornado during the Super Outbreak of April 3, 1974. Thirty-one residents lost their lives in this city. There was no early warning from tornado sirens or NOAA Weather Wire Service about the storm. About an hour after the storm, the same supercell spawned an F4 tornado that formed in the southwest part of Louisville in Jefferson County near Kosmosdale. Three people lost their lives in this storm, but it also left two hundred and seven injuries. The Brandenburg tornado remains as the only F5/EF5 tornado in Kentucky state history since official record keeping began in 1950, although later that day another F5 that hit Cincinnati, Ohio crossed the Ohio River from Indiana into Kentucky then into Ohio. The Confederate Monument in Louisville was relocated to Brandenburg in late 2017 and rededicated in 2018.
Geography
Brandenburg is located at . According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, all land.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,049 people, 844 households, and 535 families residing in the city. The population density was 518.0 people per square mile. There were 917 housing units at an average density of 231.8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 94.05% White, 3.90% African American, 0.54% Native American, 0.24% from other races, and 1.27% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.83% of the population. There were 844 households out of which 33.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.4% were married couplesliving together, 15.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.5% were non-families. 32.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.92. The age distribution was 26.2% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $36,351, and the median income for a family was $42,950. Males had a median income of $30,565 versus $21,143 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,863. About 14.4% of families and 15.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.3% of those under age 18 and 19.1% of those age 65 or over.
Education
The Meade County Public Library is a tax-supported institution, begun in 1955 and relocated to a new facility in 2011. The library held the Brandenburg stone from the 1960s until 1996, and has again held the stone since 2012.
