Florence, Alabama

The city of Florence is located in the northwest corner of Alabama about 15 miles east of the Natchez Trace Parkway.

Photo Credit: Mary Carton
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Florence is the largest and principal city of the Florence-Muscle Shoals Metropolitan Statistical Area (which also includes Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia metropolitan areas in Colbert and Lauderdale counties). The area is often referred to as "The Shoals".

Annual tourism events include the W.C. Handy Music Festival in the summer and the Renaissance Faire in the fall. Landmarks in Florence include the Rosenbaum House, the only Frank Lloyd Wright-designed home located in Alabama, W.C. Handy Museum and Library and the University of North Alabama.

According to the 2010 census, the city's population was 39,319.

Things to See and Do

• Colbert Ferry - milepost 327.3 - Picnic Area, Indian History, Old Trace, Restroom, Top 30 Favorite Site
• Pope's Tavern Museum - Located in downtown Florence, Pope's Tavern Museum preserves and interprets the site of a historic inn and stagecoach stop.
• Rock Spring - milepost 330.2 - Hiking Trail, Top 30 Favorite Site
• Rosenbaum House - Built in 1939 by Frank Lloyd Wright for Stanley and Mildred Rosenbaum. The downtown home is open to the public.
• Sacred Way Sanctuary - A research, education, and preservation facility dedicated to honoring the history of the horse in the Americas and its relationship with the Indigenous Peoples.
• W.C. Handy Home and Museum - Known to the world as the “Father of the Blues”, W.C. Handy was born in a simple log cabin that is now a museum.
• Wichahpi Commemorative Stone Wall - 150 yards east of milepost 338 - Indian History, Top 30 Favorite Site

Places to Stay

• Directions, Map, Dining and Area Attractions
• Florence Restaurants
• Natchez Trace - Florence Access / Exit Roads:
  • Alabama Highway 20
  • Lauderdale County Road 14