About Mechanicsville Historic District
Historic, Historical Places, Interesting Places, Historic Districts
The Mechanicsville Historic District encompasses a small and cohesive working-class neighborhood west of downtown Danville, Virginia. The district is bounded by Upper Street on the northwest; North Floyd Street on the northeast; High Street on the southeast; and North Ridge Street on the southwest. This area was developed beginning roughly in 1880 as a residential district catering to workers in the nearby tobacco-processing facilities. The houses in the district are in a blend of styles, but are characterized by similar lot sizes and setbacks. The district includes two churches, and a building that originally served as a tobacco prizery (a building where tobacco leaves are packed into barrels). The neighborhood was a center of civil rights activism during the 1960s, playing host to Martin Luther King, Jr. It was once somewhat larger; areas to the west and north were razed during urban redevelopment efforts.
