Florence, Alabama

Florence, Alabama
City
Downtown Florence Historic District
Nickname: 
"Alabama's Renaissance City"
Location of Florence, Alabama
Coordinates: 34°49′49.26″N 87°39′55.51″W / 34.8303500°N 87.6654194°W / 34.8303500; -87.6654194
CountryUnited States
StateAlabama
CountyLauderdale
FoundedMarch 12, 1818
IncorporatedJanuary 7, 1826
Named afterFlorence, Tuscany, Italy
Government
  TypeMayor–Council (Since 1984)
  MayorAndrew Betterton
  CouncilmembersDistrict 1: Kaytrina P. Simmons
District 2: William (Dick) Jordan
District 3: Bill Griffin
District 4: Michelle Rupe Eubanks
District 5: Blake Edwards
District 6: Jimmy Oliver
Area
  City
27.293 sq mi (70.689 km2)
  Land27.084 sq mi (70.147 km2)
  Water0.209 sq mi (0.541 km2)
Elevation
604 ft (184 m)
Population
 (2020)
  City
40,184
  Estimate 
(2023)
42,437
  RankUS: 954th
AL: 11th
  Density1,596.99/sq mi (616.61/km2)
  Urban
78,925 (US: 360th)
  Metro
155,175 (US: 280th)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central (CST))
  Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
ZIP Codes
35630, 35631, 35632, 35633, 35634
Area code(s)256 and 938
FIPS code01-26896
GNIS feature ID2403619
Sales tax9.5%
Websiteflorenceal.org

Florence is a city in, and the county seat of, Lauderdale County, Alabama, United States, in the state's northwestern corner, and had a population of 40,184 in the 2020 census. Florence is located along the Tennessee River and is home to the University of North Alabama, the oldest public college in the state. Florence is located about 70 miles west of Huntsville, Alabama, via US-72, and about 115 miles northwest of Birmingham, Alabama.

Florence is the largest and principal city of the "Quad Cities," more commonly known as "The Shoals," which also includes the cities of Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia in Colbert County and had a population of 148,779 as of the 2020 census. 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, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was constructed by indigenous people between 400 BCE and 100 BCE in the Woodland period and is the largest surviving earthen mound in the state.