Danville, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Danville Canal

Photographed by C. Ryan Dodson, July 3, 2026

1. Danville Canal Marker

Inscription. John Barnett built a canal here in 1794 that evolved from a millrace into a linchpin of the region’s transportation network. The Roanoke Navigation Company, a joint effort by Virginia and North Carolina to promote commerce by improving waterways, enhanced the 3/4-mile-long canal in the mid-1820s. Fifty enslaved laborers built three lower locks with basins and a stone upper lock and wing dam, facilitating travel around the falls of the Dan River and making coastal markets more accessible to the interior. Goods were transported on batteaux operated primarily by free and enslaved African Americans. The canal was repurposed in the 1880s to power Danville’s booming textile industry.

Erected 2025 by Virginia Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number Q 71.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Agriculture • Industry & Commerce • Waterways & Vessels. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1794.

Location. 36° 35.427′ N, 79° 23.62′ W. Marker is in

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Danville, Virginia. It can be reached from Memorial Drive (Virginia Route 413) 0.2 miles west of Main Street, on the right when traveling west. The Marker is located on the grounds of Dan River Falls, a mixed-use development occupying a former textile mill along the Dan River. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 424 Memorial Drive, Danville VA 24541, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southside Virginia

and specifically in Central Virginia.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: This Trough (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Centennial Celebration of the Danville Tobacco Association (about 300 feet away); First State Bank (about

Photographed by C. Ryan Dodson, July 3, 2026

2. Danville Canal Marker

600 feet away); Danville's Streetcars (approx. 0.2 miles away); Home of Dan River Fabrics (approx. 0.2 miles away); Two Centuries of Hotels (approx. 0.2 miles away); Millionaires’ Row (approx. 0.2 miles away); Danville's Civil Rights Movement (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Danville.

Also see . . . Danville remembers old canal with historic marker - [Chatham Star-Tribune]. (Submitted on July 8, 2026, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.)

Photographed by C. Ryan Dodson, July 3, 2026

3. Danville Canal Marker

Photographed by C. Ryan Dodson, July 3, 2026

4. Danville Canal Marker

Prior to its unveiling on July 3, 2026.

Danville Canal image. Click for full size.

Photographed by C. Ryan Dodson, May 19, 2025

5. Danville Canal

Dan River Falls, a former textile mill, can be seen in the background.

Photographed by C. Ryan Dodson, December 7, 2024

6. Danville Canal

As seen from the Union Street Bridge.

Photographed by C. Ryan Dodson, February 5, 2026

7. Danville Canal

Danville Canal Bridge image. Click for full size.

Photographed by C. Ryan Dodson, May 19, 2025

8. Danville Canal Bridge

This pedestrian bridge, built in 1927, is still in use for crossing over the canal.

Credits. This page was last revised on July 16, 2026. It was originally submitted on July 3, 2026, by C. Ryan Dodson of Danville, Virginia. This page has been viewed 38 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on July 3, 2026, by C. Ryan Dodson of Danville, Virginia. 7, 8. submitted on July 15, 2026, by C. Ryan Dodson of Danville, Virginia. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.