For pre-formatted natality & mortality data please see Vital Statistics Reports (VSR).

For other health data resources please see the Health Data & Info section.

Health Care
Brooks County had 11.8 licensed nursing home beds per 100 persons in 1999, compared with the state average of 5.5 per 100 persons. In 1999, the number of physicians in the county per 10,000 persons was 1.9, compared to the state average of 19.3. For more community indicators, please go to OASIS .

History*

Brooks County was formed in 1858 from parts of Lowndes and Thomas counties and was named for Preston Brooks, a member of Congress prior to the Civil War and an avid defender of states' rights. He caned Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts for a speech that was considered offensive to the South. (The attack was of such savagery that Sumner could not return to his Senate seat for three years.)

Brooks County is home to several endangered plant and animal species including, the Pond Spicebush, the Wood Stork, and the Eastern Indigo snake.