Fort Towson

For other uses, see Dan River (disambiguation).

The Dan River flows 214 miles (344 km)[5] in the U.S. states of North Carolina and Virginia. It rises in Patrick County, Virginia, and crosses the state border into Stokes County, North Carolina. It then flows into Rockingham County. From there it flows back into Virginia through Pittsylvania County before reentering North Carolina near the border between Caswell County and Rockingham County. It flows into northern Caswell County and then back into southern Virginia (briefly Pittsylvania County, then into Halifax County) and finally into Kerr Reservoir on the Roanoke River.

The name of the river was first recorded by William Byrd II in 1728, during an expedition to survey the Virginia border, though Byrd did not explain the reason for the name.[6] A variant name is "South Branch Roanoke River".[7]

In 2014, a large amount of coal ash, a byproduct of coal combustion, spilled into the lower Dan River in Rockingham County, near Eden, North Carolina , prompting a cleanup process costing an estimated $300 million.[8]

Dan River is also the name of the southeastern political district of Pittsylvania County, where a small section of the river serves as the boundary between Pittsylvania County and the city of Danville.

On June 25, 2021, the North Carolina General Assembly passed a law adding the river's paddle trail in Stokes and Rockingham Counties as its eleventh State Trail.[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "GNIS Detail - Dan River". geonames.usgs.gov. US Geological Survey. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  2. ^ "Danville Historic District Topo Map, Danville (city) County VA (Danville Area)". TopoZone. Locality, LLC. Archived from the original on 20 July 2019. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  3. ^ a b "General Info - Dan River Basin Association - Dan River Basin Association". www.danriver.org. Dan River Basin Association. Archived from the original on 20 July 2019. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  4. ^ "Dan River Watershed Report". Waters Geoviewer. US EPA. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  5. ^ "The National Map". U.S. Geological Survey. Archived from the original on March 29, 2012. Retrieved Feb 14, 2011.
  6. ^ "Early Danville History". Danville Historical Society. Archived from the original on 19 September 2015. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  7. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Dan River
  8. ^ Jarvis, Craig (November 26, 2014). "Dan River coal ash spill damage could top $300 million". News & Observer. Archived from the original on December 28, 2014.
  9. ^ "Session Law 2021-55". Raleigh, North Carolina: General Assembly of North Carolina. June 25, 2021. Retrieved June 28, 2021.

External links

source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_River