The independent city of Danville lying within the Commonwealth of Virginia, is bound on both sides by the Pittsylvania county of Virginia and the Caswell county of North Carolina.
Although, white settlement penetrated Danville as late as 1792, the city had gained its name as far back as 1728 when William Byrd had developed a fascination for the place and later people decided to call the place “Dan”.Danville played the most significant part in American history when the states had entered into a war and used Danville as the deadliest battlefield of all. The position Danville had then acquired as a center of activity, resulted in the development of infrastructure in the place. During the war years, Danville had served as the capital of the Confederacy of America.
Ever since, European settlement had infiltrated into Danville, the economy of the place has remained totally dependent on the tobacco industry. Even today, the tobacco industry of Danville, is one of the most developed in the world. The tobacco industry became commercially successful with the establishment of General Assembly for the numerous tobacco warehouses at Wynne’s Falls. The flourishing industry of Danville gained a significant boost with the establishment of the Riverside Cotton Mills on July 22, 1882. The company has now become popular worldwide as the Dan River Inc., the largest textile industry in the world. Besides the tobacco industry, Danville is also extremely popular as the “city of Churches”, the streets of Danville quite justify this name of the city.
Danville has also remained witness to the greatest tragedy in American rail history in 1903 when the Old 97, a locomotive fell off a ridge and killed about 9 people. The most appealing and interesting tourist destinations, dotting Danville’s skyline, are its numerous galleries and museums. Basketball and motor sports are the major sports that make Danville famous on the US map.
