Birthplace of W.C. Handy

William Christopher Handy, acclaimed worldwide as the “Father of the Blues,” was born on November 16, 1873, in his grandfather’s two-room log cabin at this site. All structures in this area were removed in 1954 to make way for the Handy Homes Project. W.C. Handy received 20,000 for this site and returned it to the City of Florence to be used for the restoration of his boyhood home. In 1970, the cabin was restored at its present location, 620 West College Street, as part of the W.C. Handy Home and Museum.

Florence, Alabama · United States