The City of Brent was founded in 1898 in the southern portion of Bibb County along the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Rail line and was named for Mr. Brent H. Armstrong, a surveyor for the railroad. Brent was incorporated in 1913, and the mayor-council form of government began under Mayor A.J. Hardin with original council members H.V. Faucett, W.E. Hobson, Jr., John T. Martin, J.W. Thompson, and J.S. Yeager. From an original census of 250 citizens, the city grew to more than 3,500 people, becoming the largest municipality in the county in 2009. The people of Brent were forever changed by a devastating tornado on May 27, 1973, in which five lives were lost: Birdie Mae Doolittle, Tom Green, Bertha Ann Hill, Robert Tildon Hobson, and Andrew Mitchell, and during that night many heroes were made.