Monroeville, Alabama | |
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![]() Historic buildings in Downtown Monroeville | |
Nickname: The Literary Capital of Alabama | |
Motto: "Moving the Past Forward" | |
![]() Location of Monroeville in Monroe County, Alabama. | |
Coordinates: 31°31′5″N 87°19′39″W / 31.51806°N 87.32750°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Alabama |
County | Monroe |
Area | |
• Total | 13.36 sq mi (34.61 km2) |
• Land | 13.35 sq mi (34.59 km2) |
• Water | 0.01 sq mi (0.02 km2) |
Elevation | 413 ft (126 m) |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 5,951 |
• Density | 445.63/sq mi (172.06/km2) |
Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
ZIP codes | 36460–36462 |
Area codes | 251 |
FIPS code | 01-50192 |
GNIS feature ID | 0152359 |
Website | www |
Monroeville is the county seat of Monroe County, Alabama, United States.[2] At the 2020 census its population was 5,951.[3]
Monroeville is known as the hometown of two writers, Truman Capote and Harper Lee, who were childhood friends in the 1930s. Lee's 1960 novel To Kill a Mockingbird earned her the Pulitzer Prize and became a tourist draw for the town. In 1997, the Alabama Legislature designated Monroeville the "Literary Capital of Alabama". Monroeville is also the home of Walter McMillian, who was defended by Bryan Stevenson in overturning a wrongful conviction and featured in his memoir Just Mercy (2014), as well as the 2019 eponymous movie adaptation. Monroeville is also the birthplace of Cynthia Tucker, born March 13, 1955, an American journalist whose weekly column is syndicated by Universal Uclick. She received a Pulitzer Prize for Commentary in 2007 for her work at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where she served as editorial page editor. She was also a Pulitzer finalist in 2004 and 2006.