Rustburg was named after Jeremiah Rust, who patented land here in 1780. Rust donated 50 acres of land, known as Rust Meadows, in 1784 for the county seat of Campbell County. A temporary courthouse and other public buildings were constructed starting in 1783, and a village grew around them. A new Classical Revival courthouse was built about 1848. In 1786, Henry Finch started an inn at his nearby home that evolved into the Fountain Hotel about 1795. It became a favorite stopping and meeting place that operated into the 20th century.