Florence sits on the north bank of the Tennessee River in the Shoals area of northwest Alabama, a cluster of four towns -- Florence, Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia -- that punch well above their weight culturally.
The city is the birthplace of W.C. Handy, the father of the blues, and his restored log cabin is now a museum housing his trumpet, personal piano, and original manuscripts. The annual W.C. Handy Music Festival in late July draws jazz and blues lovers from across the country.
Florence also has the only Frank Lloyd Wright-designed house in Alabama -- the Rosenbaum House, a Usonian-style home built in 1939-40 and beautifully restored. The Florence Indian Mound, a large ceremonial earthwork near the river, is among the oldest structures in the Tennessee Valley.
The city has a thriving downtown with art galleries, boutiques, and restaurants that spill onto the sidewalks in warmer months. The Kennedy-Douglass Center for the Arts hosts rotating exhibitions, and the University of North Alabama adds a youthful energy. Across the river in Sheffield is the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, where the Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, and dozens of others recorded landmark tracks. For a small city, Florence has a remarkable cultural life.