1. A glimpse into the city’s past 125 years ago
Evansville 1888
A glimpse into the city’s past 125 years ago
Joe Engler
HistoricEvansville.com

2. Evansville 1888
Prosperity of the Gilded Age after Civil War/Reconstruction
Tremendous growth in population and size
City limits were roughly St. Joseph Ave., Garvin St., and Morgan Ave.
Street cars provided easy access around town and the suburbs were expanding rapidly.
Dirt roads, first paved 1889
Electricity and telephone were becoming more prevalent
Prosperity – people had money for construction and time for social activities
Street cars pulled by horses, 1892 electric trolleys
Most homes used gas though
Telephone needed a subscription

3. Evansville 1888 (cont’d) Civic buildings Railroads Five daily papers
Court house (Main St. and 3rd St.); new one under construction
City Hall (3rd St. and Walnut St.)
Post Office (2nd St between Vine and Sycamore)
Railroads
Evansville & Terre Haute (E&TH), later Central & Eastern Illinois (C&EI)
Peoria Decatur & Evansville (PD&E), later Illinois Central (IC)
Louisville & Nashville (L&N) - built Henderson Bridge 1885
Evansville Belt RR
Five daily papers
Corner saloons and grocery stores anchored city blocks
40+ churches of many denominations
Schools were separated by color
Courthouse nice but outgrown; new courthouse cornerstone laid
Railroads strength of city
L & N Shops established the city of Howell
E & TH Depot at 8th and Main, PD&E depot at Franklin and Sixth, L&N Fulton near 2nd
Like the ones near here Ricks 718 Bar, Sam’s Food Market & Smoke Shop, Kwik Stop Liquors, and one across street where dentist is compared to today’s CVS
Columbia School ( ) was just up the street from St. Anthony’s. Third Ave Colored School ( ) was at the north end of the street. Fulton ( ) and Baker Schools ( ) were also nearby.

4. Big players in town Metal works/foundries
Heilman Plow Co. (later Vulcan Plow)
George L. Mesker and Co.
Orr Iron Co.
J. H. Roelker foundry
George Koch Sons metalworking
Breweries
F. W. Cook Brewing Co.
Fulton Ave. Brewery (Sterling)
Saw/planing mills
Jacob Meyers & Bro. planing mill
Rechtin Planing Mill
Helfrich Saw and Planing Mill
Furniture
Armstrong Bros. furniture
Karges Furniture
Evansville Furniture Co.
Schelosky & Co tables
Banks
Old National Bank
Citizens National Bank (5/3)
National City Bank (Integra)
News/print
Evansville Courier
Evansville Journal
Keller-Crescent advertising
Smith & Butterfield
Other
Lensing Wholesale
Bernardin Bottle Cap Co.
John Ingle coal dealers
Igleheart Bros. flour mill
Strouse & Bros. fine clothing
Boetticher Kellogg & Co. hardware
Mention Heilman Plow and Boetticher Kellogg

5. Lamasco Separate town northwest of Evansville Founded 1836
First Ave. eastward to St.
Joseph Ave., from river to Maryland St.
Named after founders Law, McCall, and Scott
Streets on cardinal directions, as opposed to downtown parallel to the river
Merged with Evansville in 1857
Primarily German immigrants
John & William Law, James McCall and Lucious Scott
Shared similar interests, lost the name war

6. Lamasco and the “North Side”
Growing North Side of town
Street cars went up Third and Second Avenues and turned west at Columbia Street
Fire station No. 8 built 1878
St. Mary’s Hospital bought property across First Ave in 1885; didn’t build until 1894
Elite homes along First and Fulton Avenues
Willard Library recently completed
Present fire station built 1908

7. First Ave Taken from 1888 panoramic map Willard Library
Crescent Furniture
Emanuel Lutheran, Trinity Lutheran, and First Ave. Presbyterian
Columbia School
Hose House No. 8
Heilman Home / St. Vincent Day Care
Reis Home / Future St Anthony Site

8. Willard Library Begun 1877; opened 1885 Donated by Willard Carpenter
Oldest library building in Indiana
Downturn in economy delayed construction and scale (originally planned as a college)
Carpenter House is now WNIN building

9. Reis Residence Built 1872 for Anthony Reis
Tannery (leather) business located at Fifth and Michigan
Designed by Henry Mursinna same architect as Reitz Home
Occupied the entire block
Died 1884 and land donated by widow 1885 for a church
Became St. Anthony rectory c1910 after Mrs. Reis died
Relocated from Cincinnati
horse collar harness saddle
near lewis bakery/fulton school
1104 First Ave old number on steps now 704 N First

10. Heilman Residence
611 N First Ave, opposite Iowa St
Built 1869 for former Evansville mayor William Heilman
Heilman Plow and Heilman Machine Works (later Vulcan Plow)
1931 becomes St. Vincent day care

11. Boetticher Residence Built c1877 for Edward Boetticher
407 N First Ave ne corner Michigan
Built c1877 for Edward Boetticher
Co-founder of Boetticher Kellogg
Converted to Owl’s Home in the 1920s
Razed last month

12. Straub and Blomer Residences
820 N First Ave sw corner of Maryland St
816 W Franklin St se corner Second Ave
Fred P. Straub c1872
Hardware dealer on Main St
HR Connects office space
Frank Blomer c1874
Blomer, Schulte, & Reitman furniture
Reich & Assoc insurance

13. Other First Ave Mansions
Other grand homes along First Ave built around the same time
Counterclockwise from top left
801 W Virginia – 1891 – William F Hartig
408 N First Ave – 1891 – L F Elmendorf
624 N First Ave – c1905 – Benjamin Bosse (Ziemer’s Funeral Home)
503 N First Ave – 1906 – Dr. Paul C Rietz
419 N First Ave – 1899 – William Boetticher

14. Crescent Furniture Co Old furniture factory dates back to 1870s
NE corner of Franklin St.
Used as WPA headquarters c1940
Razed 1968, strip mall now on old site

15. Melzer Soap Works Soap factory dates back to 1860s
Third Ave & Maryland St
Closed by 1940
Later miscellaneous companies (laundry, filter plant, and body shop)

16. Nearby churches Trinity Lutheran 1841/1870 Emanuel Lutheran 1856
Churches predominately Lutheran but some other denominations expanded beyond downtown (mission churches)
Trinity Lutheran Illinois St between Third and Fourth Aves – German, rebuilt
First Avenue Presbyterian corner of Virginia St – later expanded
Emanuel Lutheran Franklin St and First Ave – German, later expanded
First Avenue Presbyterian 1875/1876

17. Catholic Churches Assumption (1836 – 1965) Holy Trinity* (1851)
St. Mary* (1866)
St. Boniface* (1880)
Sacred Heart (1885)
St. Anthony* (1888)
* - German speaking parish
Assumption originally on 2nd St (Grein Building/BMA), new Assumption church built 1872
Trinity burned 1950, rebuilt later
St Boniface completed its church 1881
Sacred Heart located near St. Boniface, too far to English-speaking Assumption
Sacred Heart’s present church moved 1914 into old school. Church built later 1928

18. St. Anthony Catholic Established 1888 German-speaking
Split from Holy Trinity
Present church built 1894