When Jefferson Davis arrived in Danville April 3, 1865 after the long, disastrous train ride from the burning Richmond, he was greeted at the station by Major William T. Sutherlin. Major and Mrs. Sutherlin had offered their home to the weary President of the Confederate States as the Confederate Government made Danville the new , and ultimately, the Last Capital of the Confederacy. It was in this house, during the last desperate days of the war, that Davis held his last cabinet meeting, penned the Last Proclamation, and received the news of General Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox.

Today The Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History is located in the former home of Major Sutherlin, quartermaster and entrepreneur. Built in 1857, the Sutherlin Mansion is one of the finest examples of Italianate architecture in the State of Virginia. The Museum boasts a permanent Civil War exhibition as well as three changing art galleries featuring national and regional exhibits.