Updates on the mural located on the western side of the Slavery and Cotton exhibit at Pope’s Tavern Museum.

This project is made possible by a grant from the Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area.

This project is meant to enhance the historic site at Pope’s Tavern with a creative expression of historical events relevant to the northwest Alabama area. We seek to encourage learning, contemplation, and discovery, while bringing people together through an exploration of the area’s past, present, and future. The completed mural will add to the interpretation at the Museum, which focuses on 19th century history of Florence and Lauderdale County, including domestic life, slavery, and the Civil War. 

The mission of this project is to creatively express local connections between the past and present to enhance community and visitor experience at Pope’s Tavern Museum. 

Artist Robert Bean was selected to create the mural.

Robert Bean is a professional artist and educator at UAH. For many years, he has gone back and forth between teaching and doing studio arts like portraits. He says that he has gotten more interested in murals in the past 15 years or so. Bean shares that he has taught art appreciation as well as drawing and design courses. He says he has always had an interest in both the historic and technical aspects of art.

Bean outlines his idea to start with more structured quilt patterns at the top, and with the bottom area, focusing more on the narrative elements specific to the history of the museum and the area in a sort of crazy quilt design.

The mural was completed July-August 2026.

Thank you to everyone who submitted.