Danville, Kentucky

Danville is a city in and the county seat of Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 16,218 at the 2010 census. Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Boyle and Lincoln counties.

In 2001, Danville received a Great American Main Street Award from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

History
Danville is called the "City of Firsts".
 * It housed the first courthouse in Kentucky.
 * It had the first U.S. Post Office west of the Allegheny Mountains.
 * It hosts the first state-supported school for the deaf.
 * In it, Ephraim McDowell became the first physician in the world to successfully remove an ovarian tumor.
 * It is home to the oldest college administration building and campus west of the Allegheny Mountains at Centre College.

Danville was part of the Great Settlement Area around Harrod's Fort (now Harrodsburg), which was first settled in 1774. Walker Daniel, Kentucky's first District Attorney, bought 76 acre from settler John Crow on the Wilderness Road and had it surveyed for a town in 1783-1784. The city was probably named for Daniel. The Virginia legislature officially established Danville on December 4, 1787.

Between 1784 and 1792, ten conventions were held in Danville to petition for better governance and ultimately to secure independence from Virginia. In 1786 the Danville Political Club was organized. It met each Saturday night at Grayson’s Tavern to discuss the political, economic, and social concerns. After a state constitution was adopted and separation was confirmed in 1792, the town ceased to be of statewide importance and its leading citizens moved to elsewhere.

Transylvania University was founded in Danville in 1783. It moved to Lexington, Kentucky in 1789. Centre College was founded in 1819. Danville Theological Seminary was founded in 1853; in 1901 it became part of the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. The Caldwell Institute for Young Ladies was founded in 1860. It became Caldwell Female College in 1876, Caldwell College in 1904, Kentucky College for Women in 1913, and merged into Centre College in 1926.

In November 1806, Meriwether Lewis, co-leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, visited Danville while traveling the Wilderness Road to Washington DC to report on the expedition. In December 1806, William Clark visited his nephews in school in Danville before following Lewis to Washington.

In 1842, Boyle County was formed from southern Mercer County and northern Lincoln County. Danville became its county seat.

In 1850, Danville and Boyle County backed construction of the Lexington and Danville Railroad. Money ran out when the railroad reached Nicholasville, Kentucky and John A. Roebling had built towers for a suspension bridge over the Kentucky River (Roebling lived in Danville during the construction). Despite the lack of a railroad to Danville, the county still owed $150,000; it completed payment on time in 1884.

In 1860, a fire devastated the city, destroying 64 buildings and causing over $300,000 in damages. Boyle County's courthouse was among the destroyed buildings; its replacement was completed in 1862. After the Battle of Perryville in the American Civil War on October 8, 1862, the courthouse was appropriated by Union forces for use as a hospital. On October 11, a Union force drove Confederate forces from the county fairgrounds through Danville.

In 1775, Archibald McNeill planted Kentucky's first recorded hemp crop at Clark's Run Creek near Danville. Boyle County became one of ten Kentucky counties which together produced over 90% of the US yield in 1889. It was the state's largest cash crop until 1915 when it lost its market to imported jute.

On October 5, 2000, Dick Cheney and Senator Joe Lieberman, candidates for Vice President of the United States, debated at Centre College during the 2000 presidential election.

Geography
Danville is located at 37.6456°N, -84.7698°W.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.8 sqmi, of which, 15.65 sqmi of it is land.

Transportation
Bus -  Dan Tran provides bus service inside Danville. Other bus lines connect Danville with Lexington, Stanford, Junction City, and Lancaster.


 * Road
 * [[Image:US 127.svg|25px]] U.S. Route 127 bisects Danville northwest (Harrodsburg) to south (Liberty).
 * [[Image:US 150.svg|25px]] U.S. Route 150 bisects Danville west (Perryville, Springfield) to southeast (Stanford).
 * [[Image:US 127.svg|25px]] U.S. Route 127 and [[Image:US 150.svg|25px]] U.S. Route 150 also bypass Danville on the west and south.
 * [[Image:Elongated circle 33.svg|20px]] Kentucky Route 33 enters Danville from north (Burgin, Versailles).
 * [[Image:Elongated circle 34.svg|20px]] Kentucky Route 34 connects Danville northeast to U.S. Route 27 and on to Lexington.
 * [[Image:Elongated circle 52.svg|20px]] Kentucky Route 52 connects Danville east to Lancaster.

Air -  Stuart Powell Field (DVK), 3 mi from downtown, serves as Danville's general aviation airport. Blue Grass Airport (LEX) in Lexington, Kentucky, 35 mi away, provides the closest commercial service. More extensive commercial service is available from Louisville International Airport (SDF) in Louisville, Kentucky, 82 mi away, and Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) near Cincinnati, Ohio, 127 mi away.

Rail -  Norfolk Southern Railway operates a freight rail yard and crew-change station in Danville; the crew-change station is moving to Somerset, Kentucky. Its Louisville-Chattanooga line meets its Cincinnati-Chattanooga line in Danville.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 15,477 people, 6,223 households, and 4,013 families residing in the city. The population density was 378.4 /sqkm. There were 6,734 housing units at an average density of 164.7 /sqkm. The racial makeup of the city was 83.67% White, 13.02% African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.82% from other races, and 1.38% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 1.48% of the population.

Of the 6,223 households, 29.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were married couples living together, 14.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.5% were non-families. 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.82.

22.4% of the population was under the age of 18, 13.3% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 86.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.2 males.

The median income for a household was US $32,938, and the median income for a family was $40,528. Males had a median income of $35,327 versus $24,542 for females. The per capita income was $18,906. About 9.4% of families and 12.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.6% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over.

Crime
FBI crime statistics for 2009 list the crime rate (per 100,000 population) for Danville as follows:

Education
Public schools -  Danville Schools operates three elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school for the city of Danville. Boyle County Schools operates three elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school for portions of Danville and the remainder of Boyle County. Kentucky School for the Deaf provides education to Kentucky's deaf and hard-of-hearing children from elementary through high school

Private schools -  Two private schools operate in Danville: Danville Christian Academy and Danville Montessori School.

Colleges and universities -  Centre College, a nationally-recognized liberal arts college is located in Danville. Four other colleges and universities have campuses in Danville: Bluegrass Community and Technical College, Eastern Kentucky University, Midway College, and National College.

Culture
On March 2, 2010, Danville voted to go "wet" (to permit sale of packaged alcohol and sale of alcohol by the drink without restriction by premises size).

Places of interest

 * Centre College is a top liberal arts college; it was host to the 2000 Vice Presidential debates.
 * Central Kentucky Wildlife Refuge is a 500 acre nature preserve.
 * Community Arts Center is an historic Beaux Arts building that is a hub for local artist activity.
 * Confederate Monument is an early 20th century statue dedicated to Kentucky's Civil War veterans.
 * Constitution Square is a park containing restored and recreated frontier buildings; the first Kentucky constitution was written and signed here.
 * Crow-Barbee House is the oldest stone structure west of the Allegheny Mountains.
 * Jones Visual Arts Center is a gallery and primary studio for internationally known glass artist Stephen Rolfe Powell.
 * Danville National Cemetery contains dead from the Battle of Perryville.
 * Ephraim McDowell House Museum is the house where Ephraim McDowell's groundbreaking ovariotomy took place.
 * Great American Dollhouse Museum is a 6000 sqft social history museum in miniature.
 * Perryville Battlefield is a park that preserves a significant Civil War battlefield.

Theater
Three venues for theatrical productions live in Danville. The Norton Center for the Arts is a state-of-the-art host for performing and visual arts events throughout the year. Pioneer Playhouse is the oldest outdoor theater in Kentucky, and the first theater officially designated as Kentucky's state theater. It features summer-stock productions using local and nationally-known artists. West T. Hill Community Theatre is a community theater with an acclaimed company of actors.

Annual events

 * Great American Brass Band Festival (June) is a free, three-day outdoor festival that features performances from brass bands from throughout the country. Other events have joined the festival like picnics, wine festivals, bourbon tastings, and the Great American Balloon Race.
 * Boyle County Fair (June) is a fun-filled county fair.
 * Constitution Square Arts Fest (September) hosts local and regional arts and crafts.
 * Forkland Heritage Festival (October) celebrates the culture of an historic community.
 * Perryville Battle Reenactment (October) is an authentic reliving of one of Kentucky's most significant Civil War battles.

Media
The Advocate-Messenger, a daily (except Saturday) newspaper, serves Danville and surrounding counties. Local radio stations include three AM stations: WDFB-AM (1170), WHBN (1420), WHIR (1230) and three FM stations: WDFB-FM (88.1), WLAI (107.1), WRNZ (105.1).

Films Shot in Danville

 * Raintree County (1957) is a big-budget, epic film set during the Civil War. A short film, Operation Raintree, was shot to promote Raintree County.
 * Treasure of Matecumbe (1976) is a Walt Disney Productions family adventure film.
 * Child of Glass (1978) is a made-for-TV movie distributed by Walt Disney Pictures.
 * ''Lawn Dogs (1997) is a drama film released by Rank Organisation
 * Summerstock (2002), by Robby Henson, chronicled a year in the busy, eccentric life of Pioneer Playhouse.

Sister cities
Danville has one sister city, as designated by Sister Cities International: Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom

Notable residents
The following are highly noted people from Danville. For a more complete list see List of people from Danville, Kentucky
 * John Boyle (1774-1834) U.S. federal judge and U.S. Representative. Boyle County, Kentucky was named after him
 * John C. Breckinridge (1821-1875) U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Kentucky, Vice President of the United States, U.S. presidential candidate, Confederate States Secretary of War
 * John Marshall Harlan (1833-1911) U.S. Supreme Court Justice. "The Great Dissenter"
 * Ephraim McDowell (1771-1830) American physician, first to successfully remove an ovarian tumor.
 * Theodore O'Hara (1820-1867) Poet and soldier.
 * Hugh L. Scott (1853-1934) Superintendent of West Point, Chief of Staff of the U.S, Army in World War I
 * Isaac Shelby (1750-1826) First and fifth Governor of Kentucky

Major Employers
Major employers in Danville include


 * AdMart International (Custom-made signs)
 * The Advocate-Messenger (Newspaper publishing and printing)
 * The Allen Co. (Mixed asphalt)
 * American Greetings (Distribution and packaging)
 * Berry Plastics formerly Pliant Corporation
 * Burkmann Feeds (Feed manufacturing)
 * Caterpillar Inc. (Tractor parts)
 * Centre College (Education)
 * Dana Corporation (Engine gaskets)
 * Denyo Manufacturing Corp. (Generators)
 * Ephraim McDowell Health (Health care)
 * Hobart Corporation (Commercial dishwashers)


 * Intelligrated formerly FKI Logistex (Conveyor equipment)
 * National Danville (Furniture)
 * Meggitt (Aircraft braking systems)
 * Panasonic (Vacuum cleaners)
 * Perfection Components (Plastics injection)
 * Philips (Glass products)
 * Pioneer Vocational Industrial Services (Sheltered workshop)
 * Red Wing Shoes (Leather boots)
 * RR Donnelley (Offset printing)
 * Self Refind (Drug treatment clinics)
 * Sellers Engineering Co. (Industrial boilers)
 * The Timberland Company (Distribution center)