Danville Museum
of Fine Arts and History
of Fine Arts and History
The Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History organization traces its history to the 1950s when Dr. James Jennings organized the Danville Art Association. In 1963, the Danville Art Association merged with the Danville Chapter of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. The Chapter held many cultural events, workshops, lectures, plays, exhibits, and programs in different places in Danville, including Stratford College, Averett, George Washington High School, and the Wednesday Club.
The museum signed a lease with the city in 1973 and began a restoration project of the Sutherlin Mansion. The museum officially opened to the public in the Sutherlin Mansion on October 15, 1974.
In addition to rotating art exhibits, the museum showcases four permanent exhibits:
With a rich collection of paintings, photographs, sculpture, pottery, furniture and historic objects, combined with the unique history of the Sutherlin Mansion, the Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History tells compelling stories of the people and events that shaped the Dan River Region and beyond.
The museum is housed in the historic Sutherlin Mansion, an Italian Villa-style estate built 1857-1859. Designated as a Virginia Historic Landmark and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the mansion has played a significant role in local, state, and national history.
During the closing days of the Civil War, Jefferson Davis and the Confederate cabinet fled Richmond to Danville. From April 3-10, 1865, they lodged and met in the Sutherlin Mansion. Davis and the cabinet members learned of Lee’s surrender to Grant while in Danville, and Jefferson Davis wrote the Last Proclamation of the Confederacy at the Sutherlin Mansion. These events at the end of the war led to the Sutherlin Mansion’s title, “Last Capital of the Confederacy.”
From 1928-1972, the mansion housed Danville’s Whites-only public library. In 1960, it was the site of one of the first protests against segregation policies in Danville. See DMFAH’s YouTube channel for videos about the history of the Sutherlin Mansion.
The museum is a designated site on the Civil War Trails and the United States Civil Rights Trail, connecting it to broader narratives of American history.
The Sutherlin property was an urban plantation, built on 4 acres in ca. 1857-59. It included the main, 2-story, Italian Villa-style house, a separate kitchen, a laundry/dwelling for enslaved people, a carriage house, stables, and other accessory buildings. The house holds a significant amount of Danville history including tobacco production, railroad history, the Civil War, and the Civil Rights Era.
At the close of the Civil War, Jefferson Davis and the Confederate cabinet fled Richmond to Danville by train and stayed in the Sutherlin Mansion for eight days (April 3-10, 1865). While in Danville, the cabinet learned that Lee had surrendered to Grant and the Civil War had ended. It was at the Sutherlin mansion that the last Confederate cabinet meeting was held, and Jefferson Davis wrote the last Confederate proclamation. These events led to the mansion’s nickname, the “Last Capital of the Confederacy.”
The city purchased the mansion from the Confederate Memorial Association in 1915. From 1918-1919, the Sutherlin Mansion was used as a temporary hospital for Spanish Influenza victims.
From 1928-1972 (44 years), the house served as Danville’s public, Whites-only library. In 1960, a group of local Black students held a sit-in at the library to protest the city’s segregation policies. In response, a public referendum was held, and public officials chose to close the library rather than allow it to be integrated. Due to its location in the “Last Capital of the Confederacy,” the sit-in was a symbolic event and a precursor to the nationally known Civil Rights protests of 1963 in Danville, which led Martin Luther King, Jr. to state that the Danville Police were the most violent in the nation.
Today, the museum is part of both the Civil War Trails and the U.S. Civil Rights Trail, connecting it to broader themes of American history.
DMFAH’s collections include an impressive group of 19th and 20th-century artworks by outstanding American artists such as Maud Gatewood, Thomas Hart Benton, Carson Davenport, Howard Finster, Emmet Gowin, and William Garl Browne, Jr. Also included in the museum’s collections are the Kennedy-Revell Collection— a collection of 15th-century European paintings, furniture, textiles, China, silver, and sculpture and the Camilla Williams Collection—a significant collection of Camilla Williams’ opera costumes, memorabilia, and personal items.
The museum’s collections also include important documents and objects relating to the Sutherlin Family, local Civil Rights history, Civil War history, and local industrial (Tobacco and Textiles) history.
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Sonja is responsible for coordinating and directing all museum operations and programming. Before joining DMFAH, Sonja worked for Preservation Virginia from 2008 to 2023 assisting individuals and organizations across the Commonwealth to preserve important historic places. She has a graduate degree in historic preservation from the University of Maryland.
During her time at Preservation Virginia, Sonja managed Preservation Virginia’s Most Endangered Historic Places List, the Preservation Academy, Preservation Awards, Preservation Virginia’s Rosenwald Schools Program, and Preservation Virginia’s Tobacco Barns Program.
Before joining Preservation Virginia, Sonja was the Assistant Director for the Archaeological Conservancy’s Eastern Regional Office in Frederick, Maryland. She also worked as a historic preservation planner for Frederick City government, and as a land preservationist for Loudoun County and Frederick County governments. Her archaeological experience also includes working for the National Forestry Service, Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest, and cultural resource management firms in the southern United States, Mid-Atlantic, and Puerto Rico.
Sonja serves on several nonprofit advisory boards including the Southside African American Cemetery Preservation Society, the Pittsylvania Historical Society, Literacy Interactives, Inc., and Friends of the Old West End.
Casey Smith is a versatile management professional based in Chatham, Virginia, specializing in bridging creative vision within financial, digital and practical execution. With extensive experience in management and finance, Casey excels in the administration of large-scale budgets, cross-functional technical teams, and complex project lifecycles. Casey handles the daily accounts management for the bookkeeping as well as client management.
Berkley Pritchett is the museum’s Research Specialist. His duties involve performing research for programs and exhibits, assisting the Collections Manager, and providing first-rate customer service to museum visitors and members.
Berkley has always had an interest in history and the arts. Working at the Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History allows him to combine both of his interests. His job has also allowed him to learn more about his hometown and the surrounding area. In his free time, he likes to listen to music, watch movies, read, and write fiction.
As a museum services specialist, Heidi’s duties involve providing first-rate customer service to museum visitors and members, and supporting the public-facing aspects of museum operations such as the welcome desk, tours, programs, exhibits, events, and the gift shop.
As the museum’s registrar and collection manager, Angela is responsible for the research, preservation, stewardship, and security of the museum’s history and art collections, as well as creating and maintaining records and documents relating to the museum’s permanent collection and loans. Angela also assists with research, creation, and installation of the museum’s exhibits.
As the museum’s education manager, Karan is responsible for Art Smart and other education programs in collaboration with the Danville and Pittsylvania County Head Start offices. These programs welcome hundreds of children each year. Karan also teaches art-themed summer camps each year.
Join a collaborative and creative team where your skills and enthusiasm will contribute to the growth of the museum and of you.
