Florence–Muscle Shoals metropolitan area in the context of Lauderdale County, Alabama

Cherokee is a town in west Colbert County, Alabama, United States. Located near the Tennessee River, it is part of the Florence–Muscle Shoals metropolitan area, known as "The Shoals". As of the 2010 census, the population of the town was 1,048.

Florence is a city in and the county seat of Lauderdale County, Alabama, United States, in the state's northwestern corner, and had a population of 40,184 in the 2020 census. Florence is located along the Tennessee River and is home to the University of North Alabama, the oldest public college in the state. Florence is located about 70 miles (110 km) west of Huntsville, Alabama, via US-72, and about 115 miles (185 km) northwest of Birmingham, Alabama.

Florence is the largest and principal city of the "Quad Cities," more commonly known as "The Shoals," which also includes the cities of Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia in Colbert County and had a population of 148,779 as of the 2020 census. Florence is considered northwestern Alabama's primary economic hub.