Florence is a coastal city in Lane County, in the U.S. state of Oregon.

It lies at the mouth of the Siuslaw River on the Pacific Ocean and about midway between Newport to the north and Coos Bay to the south along U.S. Route 101.

[6][7] The Florence area was originally inhabited by the Siuslaw tribe of Native Americans.

[8] On November 12, 1970, Florence was the site of a famous scene when the Oregon Department of Transportation used 20 cases of explosives to try to blow up a dead beached whale, with unintended consequences.

According to the United Press International report that followed days later, "City officials said they would not enforce the new ordinance until it could be amended.

It is situated at nearly the same latitude as Eugene, and is located roughly midway between the other main central-coast cities of Newport and Coos Bay.

Florence annexed Driftwood Shores Hotel and Conference Center, north of town, in Heceta Beach, in 2008.

[15] To the south of Florence, the unincorporated community of Glenada lies just across the Siuslaw River on U.S. Route 101; the city of Yachats is 23 miles (37 km) to the north.

The former mainstays of Florence's economy were logging, commercial fishing, and agriculture,[22] but today tourism is increasingly significant.

[23] Some local businesses include Sand Master Park, Mo's Restaurants and Three Rivers Casino Resort, which is run by the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians.

[25] Florence has held an annual Rhododendron festival, flower and garden show since 1908.

According to the group's Facebook page, the event is a "proclaimed city-wide day dedicated to volunteering and giving back".

Historic buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in the Florence area include the Edwin E. Benedict House, a deteriorating house on the Siuslaw River that is said to have been Ken Kesey's inspiration for the Stamper House in his novel Sometimes a Great Notion,[citation needed] Heceta Head Lighthouse and Keepers Quarters, Jessie M. Honeyman Memorial State Park Historic District, the Siuslaw River Bridge, and the William Kyle and Sons Building in Old Town.