On September 15, 6 pm, to accompany the Heny van Der Weyde exhibit, local historian Jarred Marlowe will give a presentation entitled 1,323 Graves in the Tobacco Soil: The Civil War Atrocities of Danville’s Warehouse Prisons, which will explore Danville’s transformation from a prosperous tobacco hub into a crowded Confederate prison town during the Civil War.

Given by local historian Jarred Marlowe, the presentation will dive into the brutal realities faced by the prisoners, who endured freezing winters, starvation rations, and a devastating smallpox epidemic that quickly spread from the compounds into the local community. Attendees will learn about the severe conditions inside the barren factories—including Prison No. 6, where captured Black Union soldiers faced the harshest treatments—as well as the unique interdependence between the prisoners and the struggling townspeople who shared their daily deprivations.

Despite the horrors of the camps, the presentation will also highlight profound moments of humanity. Stories include paroled Federal prisoners staffing a makeshift riverfront hospital, and Danville’s beloved Episcopal minister, Rev. George Washington Dame, who risked his own safety to bring food, books, and spiritual comfort to the captives daily. The event is free, open to the public, and concludes with a Q&A session.