Danville was part of the Great Settlement Area around Harrod’s Fort (present-day Harrodsburg), which was first settled in 1774.
The site was originally known as Crow’s Station for settler John Crow, but the town was surveyed and platted by Walker Daniel, who bought 76 acres near the Wilderness Road off of Crow in 1783. The city was named for Daniel. The Virginia legislature officially established Danville on December 4, 1787.