Doswell is located in Hanover County and in the Central Region of the state of Virginia. Doswell occurs as little unincorporated town. Originally known as Hanover Junction, it was placed on the Virginia Central Railroad, which later became section of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad (C&O) at a crossing of the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad, a busy north-south route. Two railroads come nowadays owned by CSX Transportation, although the previous Virginithe Central line is leased to a short-line host, Buckingham Branch Railroad. A metropolitan area touching a Doswell railroad station occurs as popular train-watching places for railfans.

Once consisting primarily of farmland, now numerous Doswell residents commute to their jobs inside Richmond, Virginia.

Paramount's Kings Dominion is located at Doswell, Virginia.