Danville (Montgomery County with ties to Walker County)
Danville, an East Texas settlement four miles west of New Waverly on the
old Houston road in northern Montgomery County, was reported to be
flourishing as early as 1838 and again in 1850. Danville was on the
lower Coushatta Trace and was perhaps named by Samuel and Joseph Lindley,
who moved their families to this area from Danville, Illinois, in 1830.
At its height in the mid-1800s, the community had about 1,000
residents, 600 of whom were slaves. It had fourteen businesses,
including two blacksmith shops, two mercantile stores, and an inn, as
well as a cotton gin, general store, saloon, saddle shop, hotel, and
grocery store. The town hosted Sam Houston
at a barbecue on September 11, 1858. Most of Danville's businesses and
many of its residents moved to the new railroad town of Willis in 1870.
When the old Houston road (later U.S. Highway 75) was rerouted through
New Waverly, the Danville economy was further damaged. This area of
northern Montgomery County and southern Walker County was the scene of
substantial Polish settlement in the late 1800s (see POLES).
In 1872 Father Orzechowski led the effort to establish Sts. Peter and
Paul Catholic Church in Danville. Though this church was abandoned in
the 1920s, its site is commemorated by a bell and a historical marker in
Danville, while the original church building serves as a hay barn on a
nearby ranch. The loss of the church and highway led to the decline of
Danville. In the 1980s it was a small, quiet, rural community. TSHA
Peak Period and Community Life:
At its height in the mid-1800s, Danville
had an estimated population of about 1,000, including around 600
enslaved people, and boasted 14 to 15 businesses such as blacksmith
shops, mercantile stores, a cotton gin, general store, saloon, saddle
shop, hotel, grocery store, inn, and a tanning yard. It featured good
schools, several churches (including the Danville
Baptist Church, established by November 1851, and Sts. Peter and Paul
Catholic Church, built in 1872 under Father Orzechowski), and a post
office. A notable event was a barbecue on September 11, 1858, where Sam
Houston spoke. Key families and citizens included the Lindleys, Redings
(e.g.,
Iredell, George B., John Baker), McCalebs (e.g., Zill, Jesse, George
W.), Irvines (e.g., Benjamin Franklin, Peter Belles), Alstons (e.g.,
Henry), Beards (e.g., Samuel M.), Collards (e.g., Elijah Jr., Lemuel),
and many others involved in farming, road maintenance, church
leadership, and military service, as documented in censuses (1850 and
1860 Montgomery County), tax lists (1851-1854), and church minutes. The
economy was agrarian, with cotton and other crops prominent, supported
by enslaved labor before the Civil War.
Decline and Current Status:
Danville's decline began in the 1870s when
residents opposed the Houston & Great Northern Railway routing
through the town, leading most businesses and many people to relocate
to the new railroad town of Willis. The rerouting of the old Houston
road through New Waverly further isolated the community. The Catholic
church was abandoned in the 1920s, with its building
repurposed as a hay barn on a nearby ranch, though a bell and
historical marker commemorate the site. By the 1980s, Danville had
dwindled to a small, quiet rural community. Today, it is considered a
ghost town, with little remaining beyond the
Shepperd Hill Cemetery (also known as Old Danville Family Cemetery),
scattered ruins, and a Texas Historical Marker noting its founding
around 1840. The nearby New Danville community, which supports adults
with
intellectual and developmental disabilities, is named in honor of the
original settlement. The area remains rural and unincorporated, part of
Montgomery County's
broader history of settlements that flourished around sawmills,
railroads, and agriculture but faded over time.
Texas State Historical Association
https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/danville-tx-montgomery-county
Ghosttowns.com
https://www.ghosttowns.com/states/tx/danville.html
Texas Almanac
https://www.texasalmanac.com/places/danville-2