Phenix City Unveils Albert Patterson Statue Near Downtown

PHENIX CITY, AL: A new piece of Phenix City's rapidly changing riverfront and the downtown area was unveiled on Friday, June 26, 2020, just feet away from where the sacrifice of one man changed the course of the East Alabama city.

A new statue was unveiled on Fifth Avenue near the Phenix City parking garage on Friday. The statue if of Albert L. Patterson, a prominent attorney who was assassinated just feet away from the statue across the street at his office in 1954.

Patterson was assassinated on June 18, 1954, shortly after receiving the Democratic nominee for Alabama State Attorney General. Patterson promised to "clean up" Phenix City, which at the time was largely run by institutionalized organized crime, giving the city the nickname, "Sin City".

Albert Patterson statue in Phenix City.

Patterson's murder shocked many across the State of Alabama and resulted in swift action including the National Guard assuming law enforcement duties in Phenix City. The city was cleaned up in only a matter of months after Patterson's assassination.

The new statue is situated on a bench about 20 feet from the front of Patterson's former office. A plaque attached to the bench encourages passerby's to sit with Albert Patterson and reflect on the sacrifice he made to free the community from the grips of organized crime.

Patterson's former office in Phenix City.

The project is part of the Alabama Bicentennial in Downtown Phenix City.