Danville Historic District (Boundary Increase)

Danville's historic district covers roughly 110 acres around Main Street and West Main Street, with quieter residential streets to the east. It contains houses, churches, a hospital and a college, built from the early nineteenth century through the early twentieth century. Two early houses, at 770 Main Street and 225 Jefferson Avenue, are probably the city's oldest. The district is notable for Victorian and Edwardian architecture, including Italianate, Gothic Revival, Romanesque, Eastlake, Queen Anne and Beaux Arts examples. Much of it was built when Danville prospered from tobacco auctions and textile mills while the rest of Virginia struggled after the Civil War. The Penn-Wyatt house of 1876 at 862 Main Street and the Schoolfield-Compson House at 844 Main Street reflect that wealth. The Sutherlin Mansion, the last official residence of Jefferson Davis in 1865, anchors the area. Buildings are mostly two to two and a half stories, and many homes remain lived in by the builders' families. Historic district zoning now protects the area.