7 Best Courthouse Squares In Alabama

Alabama’s courthouse squares blend history, festivals, and small-town life in spaces where the past and present meet. In Monroeville, the Old Monroe County Courthouse connects visitors to Harper Lee’s "To Kill a Mockingbird" and the Monroeville Literary Festival, while Selma’s Dallas County Courthouse anchors the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail and the Bridge Crossing Jubilee. Florence livens its courthouse area with the W.C. Handy Music Festival, and Athens pairs the Limestone County Courthouse with Big Spring Park and the Athens Farmers Market. Greenville’s Butler County Fair, Andalusia’s ‘Christmas in Candyland,’ and Marion’s Christmas Tour of Homes each fill their squares with activity. Together, they offer travelers cultural, historic, and seasonal reasons to explore Alabama’s most distinctive courthouse squares.

Monroeville

The Old Monroe County Courthouse anchors Monroeville’s square and has served as a civic center since the early 20th century. It inspired the courtroom in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird and was restored to its 1930s appearance when converted into the Monroe County Museum. The courthouse hosts the annual Monroeville Literary Festival, a multi-day celebration of Southern writers that fills the square and courtroom with panels and readings each February. Inside the old courthouse, visitors find the Monroe County Museum and see permanent exhibits on Harper Lee and Truman Capote. For a culinary stop, take a quick walk to Cherry Street Bar-B-Q for a counter-service style barbecue house that specializes in authentic smoked meats cooked over live oak fires. Then finish with a stroll past the Literary Capital Sculpture Trail, where bronze statues celebrate local authors like Cynthia Tucker and Truman Capote.

Marion

The Perry County Courthouse stands at the center of Marion’s Court Square and dates back to the nineteenth century. The Marion Courthouse Square Historic District was recognized on the National Register of Historic Places for its distinctive Greek and Gothic Revival architecture and its significant ties to the town’s civic and educational history.

For those looking to really delve into the town’s architecture, just a five-minute walk away is another Greek Revival gem, the historic mansion Reverie. Visitors can explore the Marion Female Seminary nearby, which displays paintings, photographs, clothing, and textiles depicting early Perry County life. The Marion Military Institute campus offers guided walks of its historic buildings. The local Main Street Alabama program presents seasonal sidewalk concerts in front of courthouse businesses and mounts rotating art exhibits in restored storefronts on the square.

Greenville

Greenville’s downtown places the Butler County Courthouse adjacent to retail blocks and to seasonal programming that activates the square. The courthouse was built in 1903 and is actually the fourth courthouse to be constructed on the same site, following the town's designation as the county seat in 1822. The city operates a long-running Butler County Farmers Market on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday during the spring, summer, and fall, where local growers sell produce, honey, and prepared foods. Just down East Commerce Street is Alabama Grill, a Greenville institution serving the community since 1947. Its menu includes steak, pizza, and chicken sandwiches.

The fairgrounds for the town’s Butler County Fair, which has happened every October for the last 71 years, are a short drive away and attract visitors from all around the region. Downtown businesses host live music at The Ritz Theater, while the courthouse lawn serves as a stage for summer concerts and the city’s Christmas parade. The Butler County Historical Society museum, located just a short walk away, features exhibits that provide an in-depth look at the county’s agricultural and industrial past.

Selma

The Dallas County Courthouse in Selma has stood as a focal point since its Victorian construction around 1900, and it later became a destination for participants in the 1965 voting rights marches. The courthouse and nearby civic buildings appear along the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail. The city hosts the Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee on the first full weekend of March, featuring commemorations, public forums, and a memorial march centered on the courthouse and the Edmund Pettus Bridge.

Nearby attractions include the Selma Interpretive Center, the National Voting Rights Museum and Institute, and the Old Depot Museum. Local tour groups offer guided driving and walking tours of the 54-mile National Historic Trail. The courthouse lawn often hosts civic events and the Bridge Crossing Jubilee, featuring a schedule of talks and concerts.

Andalusia

Andalusia Court Square centers on the Covington County Courthouse, a granite and marble Beaux-Arts structure designed by Frank Lockwood and completed in 1916. The current building replaced earlier courthouses that burned in the 19th century, and both the courthouse and the adjacent jail are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The square hosts major seasonal events such as Christmas in Candyland, which brings light displays and family activities to the courthouse lawn. The Andalusia Pilot Club’s Tour of Homes is an annual event held every December, providing an excellent complement to Christmas in Candyland. Visitors enjoy a self-guided tour of beautifully decorated homes, including the Covington County Courthouse. Daytime visitors can follow a series of murals by artist Wes Hardin throughout downtown, creating a self-guided public art walk that tells local history.

Athens

Athens positions the Limestone County Courthouse on a well-kept square that anchors a commercial historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places; the present courthouse building dates to 1919 and displays Neoclassical influences. Locally known as "The Square," the courthouse lawn frames Big Spring Memorial Park, a short walk where seasonal planting beds, a springhead, and a bandstand host outdoor events. Athens Main Street runs the Farmers Market on Green Street each Tuesday and Saturday.

Food vendors, musicians, and craft stalls spill toward the courthouse in summer. Guided walking tours include the Old Post Office, the courthouse district, and the Alabama Veterans Museum. Restaurants along Market and Jefferson Streets, such as The Southern Table, serve a mix of Southern and international dishes for lunch in the courthouse square.

Florence

Florence’s courthouse sits within the greater downtown area that links the Lauderdale County Courthouse to parks and music-industry landmarks in the Shoals region; the county seat role and courthouse functions date back across successive courthouse buildings, and the present courthouse structure was built in 1965. Music defines downtown life, highlighted by the W.C. Handy Music Festival in July. Concerts fill stages across downtown, including Mobile Plaza near the courthouse.

The Alabama Renaissance Faire draws families and performers to the nearby Wilson Park each October. Fans of architecture and recording history can visit FAME Studios and the W.C. Handy Birthplace, Museum & Library, both just a few miles from the courthouse. The University of North Alabama campus is also nearby, offering tours, lectures, sporting events, and a variety of other events open to the broader Florence community.

Step Onto Alabama’s Squares Today

Each courthouse square functions as a living crossroads where preservation meets public life. Monroeville warmly invites book lovers to the old courtroom stage, Greenville’s market and fair put food and tradition within sight of the courthouse, Selma proudly stages the Bridge Crossing Jubilee by the Edmund Pettus Bridge, Athens hosts its lively Farmers Market beside Big Spring Park, and Florence fills its courthouse area with the spirited W.C. Handy Music Festival.