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Bryan Hale and the J.H. Griggs House
“How on Earth did you end up in Danville?” It’s a question many of us have heard, having spent our lives elsewhere and, somehow, landing by chance or design (or a combination of both) in Danville, Virginia. The question is equally familiar to Bryan Hale, the most recent owner of the J.H. Griggs House at 808 Green Street. Bryan started out on a dairy farm in Northern California about 40 miles north of San Francisco. While in college, he became interested in vineyards and subsequently found himself, after leaving school, learning about the wine industry while working on a vineyard in Sonoma County. During his time there, he became acquainted…
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The Cherry House, 912 Main Street
The impressive Queen Anne Style home standing at 912 Main Street was built in 1889 by William Allen Cherry. The property was acquired by his wife from the auction of the estate of John R. Pace. The Pace family occupied the home next door at 904 Main Street from 1870 to 1897. The property was once part of the estate of Algernon Sidney Buford who built a large home nestled amidst a two-acre grove of oak trees. (One of the last of those oaks fell last summer after a lightning strike killed it.) On the property, beneath the tree, once stood a building used by Mr. Buford for his business affairs.…
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Whitmell Pugh Tunstall
Whitmell Pugh Tunstall was the youngest of eight children born to William and Sarah Winifred Pugh Tunstall. He was born at the family plantation of Belle Grove, near Tightsqueeze, Virginia in 1810 and was educated at Danville Academy before going on to study at the University of North Carolina. After being admitted to the bar in 1832, Mr. Tunstall went into politics. He was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1836, following which he served in the state senate. Mr. Tunstall was first married to Celetia Gomeke in 1831. Their union produced no children, as she passed away not long after their marriage (not quite two years later).…
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The Copeland House, 145 Holbrook Avenue
The uniquely gabled and turreted Queen Anne style house at 145 Holbrook Avenue was built in 1889 for Mary C. Copeland as a gift from her husband. Mr. W.S. Copeland, in cooperation with eight other investors, purchased nine lots on Holbrook Avenue at the time Major Sutherlin began dividing off the rear portions of his land. The Copelands no doubt built the house as investment for there is no record to indicate they ever lived here. The property was sold in 1894, just five years after its construction, and the new owners, Harrison Robertson, Jr., the son of wealthy estate owner Harrison Robertson, Sr., who possessed a large tract of…
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The Chaney House, 124 Chestnut Street
The development of Chestnut Street begins with the enterprising real estate mogul and tobacco manufacturer, Weldon E. Williamson, who owned the property on which the Presbyterian Church now stands on the corner of Main Street and Sutherlin Avenue. When he acquired that land is not entirely clear but his property is shown on the Beers map of 1877. A widower, he and his daughter Dora Dean Williamson, set up a booming real estate business, buying up and selling land in Danville, as well as in Greensboro and Asheville. When Dora married Thomas Doe, the enterprise expanded and Dora established her own independent enterprise, taking the name Dora Doe & Co.…
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House Hunting in the Old West End
The Gazette recently had the opportunity of accompanying a volunteer from Friends of the Old West End neighborhood organization while showing several of the homes currently available in the neighborhood. It was quite an adventure walking through these century-old homes—some of whose history we’ve recorded here. Names like Carrington, James, Talley, and Lumpkin were mentioned during the tour, as well as a few whose histories we have yet to uncover and record (Don’t worry, we’ve made a list!). No doubt you’re already aware of the city’s decision to lower the prices on many of these houses, which has led to an immediate increase in interest, particularly by those outside the…
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Andrew Jackson Montague
Andrew Jackson Montague was the son of Robert Latane’ Montague and Gay Eubank. Robert Montague was a well-known political figure in Virginia, having served in many leadership roles including commonwealth’s attorney and lieutenant governor of Virginia. In 1861 he was a member of the Secession convention, where he acted as presiding officer. After the war he served as a member of the house of delegates from Middlesex county and in 1875 he was chosen judge of the eighth judicial circuit of Virginia, which position he held until his death in 1880. Andrew, born in 1862, inherited his father’s political aspirations. As a young man he loved to learn. He read…
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The Montague House, 249 West Main Street
The Montague House at 249 West Main Street was built in 1891 by local lawyer and state politician Andrew Jackson Montague. Montague, as mentioned in the companion post, came to Danville in 1885 from Middlesex County. He and his wife Elizabeth lived in the house for about seven years and it was here two of their three children were born. The house at the time of construction, and during the Montague’s residence, was smaller than it is presently and was built in an “L” shape. When Mr. Montague accepted his appointment to the office of attorney general, at which time, the family moved to Richmond. It was several years later,…
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P.H. Boisseau, Danville’s Executioner
For a short time, between the years of 1896 and 1904, the city of Danville, Virginia was responsible for conducting its own executions. For the entire span of that time, one man held that position. Patrick Henry Boisseau was born October 17, 1850 in Dinwiddie county, a descendant of French Huguenots who settled that part of the state in the late 1700’s. He was educated at Wingfield Academy before joining up to fight in the Civil War at the age of 15. Mr. Boisseau first arrived in Danville with his brother, William, on July 1st 1870. William acquired the position of city sergeant and hired his younger brother as assistant.…
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The Albert Gerst House, 234 Jefferson Avenue
The home at 234 Jefferson Avenue was built in 1885 for newlyweds Albert and Sabina Guckenheimer Gerst. Albert was born in Danville in 1854 to parents of German Jewish descent. He first worked in the manufacturing of sash doors and blinds in a plant located on the old canal. Later he was a principle in Stultz, Lisberger & Co., tobacco. The couple lived here for approximately fifteen years and sold the house in 1899 before relocating to Norfolk, Virginia. Jefferson Avenue was a popular residential location for the city’s Jewish inhabitants, as it was close to both Temple Beth Sholem on Sutherlin Avenue and Aetz Chayim Synagogue on Wilson Street.…
