Over 160 years ago, the Danville Female Academy was a very important business in the town of Danville.

Founded by the Reverend James H. Robinson, the Female Academy was one of the first female colleges west of the Mississippi River.

Now, Danville residents Red Niswonger and Justin Traughber are working on making improvements on the historic two-floor building that is located off Highway 161. For the last couple of months, they have been painting the building and fixing up both floors.

“We had to do all of this because it was so bad in shape,” said Niswonger, who owns Red’s Gas Station that is located west of the building. “We had to tear the floor out, so what we did was tear the floor out and pour us a concrete floor. I can at least put a book trailer in there or whatever down the road. Right now, we just put hay in there. But that’s going to change.”

Niswonger said he also considered putting his antique collection in the building.

“I got enough antiques to fill it up,” Niswonger said. “I was thinking about that, but I don’t know what I’m going to do yet. It depends on how pretty it is and what my daughters want.”

Niswonger said he and Traughber hope to be finished with the renovation project by the fall. But he knows that the building will not be in perfect shape like it was in the 19th century.

“You can’t put it back together like it was,” Niswonger said. “It will take a million dollars.”

The Female Academy was founded in 1853. It was during a time when Danville was an important stop along Boonslick Road.

The Female Academy survived during a raid that happened in Danville – which once had 1,800 residents but now has about 25 – on Oct. 14, 1864. Confederate guerillas such as “Bloody” Bill Anderson led the raid that killed several residents, including 12-year-old Ira Chinn.

Students from the Academy found a way to prevent the building from being torched. One of them hung a petticoat on the staff over the front door as a sign of truce. Some of the students claimed to be Southern girls and requested that the building should not be destroyed. The second floor included a congregation area and sleeping quarters.

The building was a Methodist Church until the 1950s. Today, it is still standing with a pair of Civil War markers on the right.

Niswonger said he doesn’t know exactly the last time the building was worked on.

“Matt Harris was the last one to paint it,” he said. “I don’t know how many years ago. Tony Bethel kept it up. He did all of the mowing.”

Niswonger, who lived in Jonesburg and went to school in the Montgomery County R-II School District, said he simply wanted to preserve the building.

“I knew that whoever bought it was going to tear it down,” Niswonger said. “This ground is too expensive for this building to be here.”