Florence, Alabama
Florence is a city in, and the county seat of, Lauderdale County, Alabama, United States, in the state's northwestern corner. It is situated along the Tennessee River and is home to the University of North Alabama, the oldest college in the state.
Florence, Alabama | |
|---|---|
City | |
 Downtown Florence Historic District | |
| Nickname: "Alabama's Renaissance City" | |
 Location of Florence in Lauderdale County, Alabama. | |
| Coordinates: 34°49′13″N 87°39′46″W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alabama |
| County | Lauderdale |
| Incorporated | January 7, 1826[1] |
| Named for | Florence, Tuscany, Italy |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor/Council (Since 1984) |
| • Mayor | Andrew Betterton |
| Area | |
| • City | 26.73 sq mi (69.23 km2) |
| • Land | 26.52 sq mi (68.68 km2) |
| • Water | 0.21 sq mi (0.55 km2) |
| Elevation | 607 ft (185 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
| • City | 40,184 |
| • Density | 1,515.35/sq mi (585.08/km2) |
| • Metro | 147,317 (US: 281st) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP codes | 35630-35634 |
| Area codes | 256, 938 |
| FIPS code | 01-26896 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2403619[3] |
| Website | www |
Florence is the largest and principal city of the Florence-Muscle Shoals Metropolitan Statistical Area commonly known as "The Shoals" (which also includes the cities of Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia in Colbert County).[4][5] Florence is considered northwestern Alabama's primary economic hub.
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 20th-century Rosenbaum House, the only Frank Lloyd Wright-designed home located in Alabama. The Florence Indian Mound, constructed by indigenous people between 100 BCE and 400 BCE in the Woodland period, is the largest surviving earthen mound in the state and is 43 feet high. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It has been protected by the city since 1945. In 2017 a new, expanded museum was built to replace one built in 1968 that displays artifacts and interprets the ancient and historic cultures of all the indigenous peoples in the area.[6]
The type of municipal government is a mayor-council system.