City of Danville
Common Nighthawk, © Alex Shipherd
Located on the Dan River at the southern edge of Virginia along the North Carolina border, the independent city of Danville encompasses approximately 44 square miles and hosts a population of about 43,000. Historically an important center for tobacco processing and textile production, Danville still bears signs of these industries in the historic warehouses that dot the downtown, some of which have been repurposed for businesses and residences. During the Civil War, Danville held strategic importance for the Confederacy due to its industry as well as its location on the Richmond & Danville Railroad. The railroad was the main line of supplies for Confederate forces in Petersburg until Union troops under General George Stoneman dismantled the tracks, an event that was recounted in The Band’s iconic song “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.” After Richmond fell in 1865, the Confederate government briefly relocated to Danville, making it the last Capitol of the Confederacy. In 1903, Danville was the site of another event immortalized in song, the infamous train wreck of the Old 97. The song inspired by the wreck has become a standard in country and bluegrass music, recorded by a veritable “who’s who” of performers including Roy Acuff, Flatt & Scruggs, Johnny Cash, Hank Snow, Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and John Mellencamp.
During the late 1800s, Danville continued to grow as an industrial center. In the 1880s, a group of entrepreneurs founded the Riverside Cotton Mills, later known as Dan River Inc., which was the largest single-unit textile mill in the world in its day, and once among the largest employers in the city. Unfortunately, this era in Danville’s history was also marred by racial strife, culminating in the “Danville Riot” on November 3, 1883, resulting in the death of five people and marking the effective end of Reconstruction in Virginia. During the 1960s, Danville was a major site for Civil Rights activism in Virginia, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered a speech there in 1963.
While the decline of its industries hit Danville hard in the late 20th century, the city has worked hard to revitalize its downtown and redirect its economy. Many of the historic industrial buildings downtown, including the train station, have been redesigned to attract new businesses or repurposed as apartments and office space. Among the attractions Danville can boast of today are the Danville Braves baseball team, a minor league affiliate of the Atlanta Braves.
As a birding destination, Danville has much to offer, with 190 species reported to eBird as of July 2019. The Riverwalk Trail provides a scenic walking trail that traverses much of the city and includes several hotspots: Dan Daniel Memorial Park; Angler’s Park; and the Main Street Bridge. The full trail is seven miles long and extends from the Robertson St. bridge on the west end to Angler’s Park on the east end. Along the river is a great place to look for riparian species such as Double-crested Cormorant, Osprey, Prothonotary Warbler, and Warbling Vireo, among others. Cliff Swallows can sometimes be seen at the Main Street Bridge, while Angler’s Park has great wetlands where Sora has been heard. In recent years, a handful of summer reports of Common Nighthawk suggest that they could still be breeding locally, and birders should keep their eyes and ears peeled for this species.
The Riverwalk Trail behind Biscuitville on Riverside Drive is one of the best places to see ducks in the winter. Windsor Crest Lake, a private lake found in the neighborhood at the end of Shoreham Drive, is another good spot to look for waterfowl and boasts of an impressive species list that includes such local notables as Northern Pintail, Canvasback, Redhead, Common Goldeneye, and Red-breasted Merganser. For woodland and edge species, a good spot to check is Ballou Park which claims Red-headed Woodpecker and Brown-headed Nuthatch among its highlights. While walking downtown, be sure to watch for Common Ravens exploring potential nest sites among the vacant industrial buildings. For open country birds, the best spot in the city is the Danville Regional Airport, which has relatively unrestricted viewing and in the proper seasons has turned up such notables as American Golden-Plover, Upland and Buff-breasted Sandpipers, and Vesper Sparrow alongside more expected field birds including Eastern Meadowlark and Grasshopper Sparrow.
Along with the regionally notable waterfowl and shorebirds mentioned above, Danville has a record of Clay-colored Sparrow from the Main Street Bridge. By far the most remarkable record from the city is a Piping Plover from 1986.
—Mary Foster & Matt Anthony
Hotspots
christmas bird counts
The Danville Christmas Bird Count, begun in 1970, centers on Ballou Park. The compiler is Laura Meder, Professor of Biology at Averett University.