Colbert County Industrial Park

Eliza Coffee Memorial Hospital

Florence Hospital

Helen Keller Hospital

Medical Center Shoals

Norfolk Southern Railyard

Northwest Alabama Regional Airport

Port of Florence

Renaissance Tower

Shoals Entreprenurial Center

Shoals Industrial Park

Tennessee Valley Authority

Wilson Lock & Dam

One of the most distinctive features of the Shoals is its soil. The rich, fertile land of northwest Alabama supports cotton and soybean crops, cattle, timber, and many other agricultural industries, but is most remarkable to those who visit here because of it's color. The soil here is red.

That iron-rich red soil has allowed the Shoals to develop a diverse business community. Supported by an Entreprenurial Center which fosters young businesses and helps them get on their feet, and supplemented by industrial parks and business centers, the business climate is positive and growing. A mix of manufacturing, service industries, retail, medical and financial institutions give the Shoals stability and strength. This is a shopping and medical hub for the tri-state area.

Medical facilities are state of the art. Anchored by Eliza Coffee Memorial and Helen Keller Hospitals, the Shoals offers care usally not found in metropolitan areas of this size.

Look at a map and you'll see that the red lines that indicate highways leading into the Shoals. An efficient highway system allows Shoals residents to travel to Nashville, Birmingham, Memphis and Atlanta in a matter of hours. The Northwest Alabama Regional Airport links us to the rest of the world. Rail transportation and river traffic make the Shoals ideal for businesses who ship their products elsewhere.

Many people think of the color red when they think of the Shoals. Beautiful red sunsets. A red-hot business climate. And cotton fields in full bloom against the rich red earth.

I traveled a lot in my business. I love flying into the Muscle Shoals airport and looking out the window to see the beautiful, red farmland. That's when I know I'm home again.

-Nolan Richards
Retired research scientist manager and Florence resident