MAYOR RON SMITH WELCOMES JUDGE STONE TO UNION SPRINGS

 

City Embraces Role as Setting for Landmark Patterson-Davis Novel UNION SPRINGS, Alabama-March 24, 2026

 

On behalf of the City of Union Springs and the citizens of Bullock County, I am proud to welcome the world to our community.

James Patterson and Viola Davis did not choose Union Springs by accident. They chose it because this place – our courthouse, our streets, our people, our history-captures something true about the American South. When two of the most celebrated storytellers of our time look at a map and say, “this is where the story happens,” that is a testament to the character and significance of this community.

Judge Stone tells a story about law, conscience, and the courage to do what is right when the world is watching. Union Springs is a community of people who show up for one another-in churches, on farms, and in courtrooms. We have always believed that honest conversation is a sign of strength.

As Mayor, I see this moment as far more than literary recognition. This is an economic development opportunity, a cultural tourism opportunity, and an invitation for the nation to rediscover the beauty, the warmth, and the complexity of the Alabama Black Belt.

We invite the authors, the publishers, filmmakers, journalists, educators, and readers everywhere to come see the real Union Springs. Walk the grounds of our historic courthouse. Meet the people who call this place home-the farmers, the families, the folks who wave from their porches and mean it.

Union Springs is open, proud, and ready.