| Brandon, Mississippi | |
| Official Name: | City of Brandon |
| Settlement Type: | City |
| Nickname: | "City of Red Hills Laden with Golden Opportunities" |
| Motto: | "Growth and Stability" |
| Image Blank Emblem: | Logo of Brandon, Mississippi.png |
| Blank Emblem Type: | Wordmark |
| Blank Emblem Link: | List of U.S. county and city insignia |
| Mapsize: | 250x200px |
| Pushpin Map: | Mississippi#USA |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in the United States |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Mississippi |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Rankin |
| Named For: | Gerard Chittocque Brandon |
| Population Demonym: | Brandonite |
| Government Type: | Mayor-Council |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Butch Lee (R) |
| Leader Title1: | Board of Aldermen |
| Leader Name1: | Alderman at Large- James Morris Ward 1- Monica Corley Ward 2- Cris Vinson Ward 3- Harry Williams Ward 4- Lu Coker Ward 5- Dwight Middleton Ward 6- Tahya Dobbs |
| Established Date: | December 19, 1831 |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 66.70 |
| Area Land Km2: | 66.47 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.23 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 25.75 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 25.66 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.09 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 25138 |
| Population Density Km2: | 298.6 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 773.2--> |
| Timezone: | Central (CST) |
| Utc Offset: | -6 |
| Timezone Dst: | CDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -5 |
| Elevation M: | 147 |
| Elevation Ft: | 482 |
| Coordinates: | 32.2803°N -89.9983°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP codes |
| Postal Code: | 39042, 39043, 39047 |
| Area Code: | 601, 769 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 28-08300 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 0667519 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 979.54 |
| Population Density Km2: | 378.20 |
Brandon is a city in and the county seat of Rankin County, Mississippi, United States.[2] It was incorporated on December 19, 1831. The population was 25,138 as of the 2020 census. A suburb of Jackson, Brandon is part of the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area, and is located east of the state capital.
The city is named for Gerard Brandon, Governor of Mississippi during the early 1800s. A newspaper, The News, was established in 1892. The Brandon Bank was established in 1900, and The Rankin County Bank was established in 1906. In 1900, Brandon had a school, a telephone and telegraph office, a saw mill, two livery stables, two cotton gins, two hotels, six churches, and fifteen or twenty stores. The population was 775.[3]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.3 square miles (55.3 km), of which 21.3 square miles (55.1 km) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.2 km) (0.37%) is water.
| White (non-Hispanic) | 18,552 | 73.8% | |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 5,034 | 20.03% | |
| Native American | 51 | 0.2% | |
| Asian | 235 | 0.93% | |
| Pacific Islander | 2 | 0.01% | |
| Other/Mixed | 729 | 2.9% | |
| Hispanic or Latino | 535 | 2.13% |
As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 16,436 people, 6,295 households, and 4,595 families residing in the city. The population density was 773.2sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 6,540 housing units at an average density of 307.7sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the city was 86.61% White, 11.89% Black, 0.10% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.30% from other races, and 0.47% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.30% of the population.
There were 6,295 households, out of which 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.0% were married couples living together, 11.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.0% were non-families. 23.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.2% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $53,246, and the median income for a family was $63,098. Males had a median income of $42,414 versus $28,128 for females. The per capita income for the city was $24,020. About 4.1% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.7% of those under age 18 and 10.7% of those age 65 or over.
The Mississippi Department of Corrections operates the Brandon Probation & Parole Office in Brandon.[6] The Central Mississippi Correctional Facility, located in unincorporated Rankin County,[7] is in proximity to Brandon.[8]
The Downtown Brandon Historic District is located within the city. Brandon is the location of the Black Rose Theatre Company.
Buildings on the National Register of Historic Places, including:[9]
The City of Brandon has a city mayor as the chief executive officer and a board of aldermen, with six elected from single-member districts and one elected at-large.[10] The current city officials are Mayor Butch Lee; Alderman, At-Large member Sharon Womack; Alderman, Ward 1 Jarrad Craine; Alderman, Ward 2 Cris Vinson; Alderman, Ward 3 Harry Williams; Alderman, Ward 4 Lu Coker; Alderman, Ward 5 Dwight Middleton; and Alderman, Ward 6 David Farris. The city's attorney is Mark C. Baker.
The City of Brandon is served by the Rankin County School District.
The city of Brandon is served by five fire stations and one administrative central station under the direction of Fire Chief Terry Wages. In 2015, the city established an independent EMS district that provides ambulance services through a private provider, Pafford EMS. The city has one police station under the direction of Police Chief Wayne Dearman.[11] [12]
The town was mentioned in the 1986 film Platoon by Chris Taylor, a character played by Charlie Sheen.[15]