Explore Alabama’s Mural Trail: A Journey through Art, History and Community

Alabama’s Mural Trail has become a significant attraction, drawing tourists who embark on road trips across the state to discover these artistic gems. The trail offers a unique way to explore Alabama blending journeys off the beaten path with a cultural education. The trail features a diverse set of murals in both urban and rural areas. When exploring the trail, travelers might find depictions of everything from a historical display of the civil rights movement to a scene from To Kill a Mockingbird to a set of angel wings.  The Alabama Mural Trail website lists all of the murals that are across the state categorized by region through the organization Public Art Archive. 

Central: 

Under the Central Alabama category, you will find listings for all of the murals found in the five counties that make up this region. These public art pieces will depict the historical, artistic and human-interest spirit of each location, from the Wilson Spottedbird in Clanton to the Vulcan Mural in Birmingham to the Dream Big, the Sky's Limit mural in Montevallo. 

North:

There are a plethora of murals that can be explored in North Alabama. There are 16 counties with murals in this region. Perhaps one of the most Instagrammed murals is Morgan County’s One Tribe, One Day mural in Decatur. There are 18 murals in Madison County, 22 in Cullman County and 24 in Blount County. 

East:

In the East Alabama region, there are nine counties that have listings for murals. There are 18 murals in Calhoun County including the famous Civil Rights era, Freedom Riders Greyhound Bus mural in Anniston.

MidSouth:

MidSouth is another region for beautiful public art pieces. There are five counties that have murals in this area. Music lovers can see the Eddie Kendricks and the Hank Williams murals in Union Springs, and in Montgomery, the Jazzman and the Unforgettable, Nat King Cole murals are a must for anyone’s bucket list. 

Southeast:

Eleven counties make up the Southeast mural region. Houston County has 19 murals spread throughout the county. Visitors can see the Chief Eufaula and the Cherry Street A.M.E. Church murals in Dothan.

Southwest:

There are 13 counties in the Southwest region of Alabama’s Mural trail. In Monroeville, there is a mural dedicated to Harper Lee’s book To Kill A Mockingbird. Dallas County, where there is a lot of civil rights history, there is a Civil Rights Memorial mural. 

West:

You will find seven counties listed in the West region of the mural trail. There, visitors can snap photos in front of the Golden Eagle Syrup Company mural in Fayette and in front of the Bryant Denny Stadium mural in Tuscaloosa. 

Gulf Coast:

The last region in the state is Gulf Coast Alabama with two counties listed on the Alabama Mural Trails website. There are 18 works of art in Baldwin County and 13 in Mobile. Mural enthusiasts can see the Fairhope Public Library mural in Fairhope and the Faces of Alabama mural in Mobile.

Which one of Alabama’s murals is on your bucket list?

Note: The Alabama Mural Trail is a project of The University of Alabama Center for Economic Development in partnership with the Alabama Association of RC&Ds, Ala-Tom RC&D, Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourist Association, Alabama Black Belt Adventures and the Alabama Tourism Department