As the saying goes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but a home truly shines via the stories behind it. Evansville’s neighborhoods burst with historic residences, edgy designs, and classic styles that harbor tales of love at first sight, elbow grease, and dreams come true. Read about 11 homes that captured our attention — this year, enjoy a bonus property!
Newburgh Road (at top)
Location: East Side
Designer: H.G. McCullough Designers, Inc.
Year Built: 1957
Style: Traditional
Significant Stats: 4,540 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: After 24 years, Bruce and Katrina Stallings are moving out of the site of many forever memories. It’s a standout property, defined by a large bay window, inglenook fireplace, and attractive wooden beams dating to before 1957. The builder, who lived next door, claimed the beams from an old lodge and incorporated them into the house. The Stallings even have a name for the house: Seven Oaks. “That’s because there are seven very large oak trees on the property, but hundreds more trees beyond those,” Katrina says. The property boasts “a park-like setting,” Katrina says, with large front and back yards. Although she and Bruce are retiring to Indianapolis, they have reason to visit often: Their son, Connor, and his wife are moving from Houston, Texas, to Connor’s childhood home. “He enjoyed those big yards growing up,” Katrina says. “We just have always really loved the house. … We all are pleased it’s staying in the family.”
Plaza Drive
Location: East Side
Builder: Homes by Robert Cook
Year Built: 2007-08
Style: Craftsman
Significant Stats: 4,400 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: Randy and Cheryl Alsman knew what they wanted in their dream home: good flow, little maintenance, and connection with neighbors and nature, among other details. “We knew there weren’t any houses that combined them all, including a specific location,” Cheryl says. “If we wanted these features, the only way to get them was to build them.” Fans of the “Not So Big House” philosophy, the Alsmans found an architect to design a bungalow with spaces that could serve more than one purpose. Inspiration came from the couple’s love of national parks and lodges: real stone veneer, hardie board, and deep porches — one of their main focuses — designed by Greg Mullen at H.G. McCullough Designers, Inc. Surrounded by bubbling water features, roses, crepe myrtle, and at least 12 varieties of trees, and with rain tapping a melody on the metal porch roof, it’s become the Alsmans’ slice of paradise. “We wanted the porch to be big, open, and inviting so we could neighbor with our neighbors,” Randy says.
East Chandler Avenue
Location: Lincolnshire Historic District
Architect: Anderson & Veatch
Year Built: 1931-37
Style: French Eclectic
Significant Stats: About 2,460 square feet, 3 bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms, 2 half bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: As Jake and Janell Bessler shared in a 2018 Evansville Living feature story, it didn’t take them long to decide they were meant to live at this symmetrical property. They toured it in 2014 and noticed that the house’s original blueprints from 1931 were dated on April 30, the couple’s anniversary. “Since it was built in the 1930s, it needed some TLC,” Jake says. “We have repainted the brick and trim and tuckpointed all the exposed mortar. We have tried to maintain the house and keep it beautiful for years to come.” Other projects included redoing a screened-in porch with features such as a swing bed enjoyed by the Besslers’ daughters, Violet, 9, and Nora, 6, who ride their bicycles to school. “We loved the neighborhood,” Janell says. “We actually lived about a block away when we first got married, and we would run this area when we would train for particular events. We just loved the character of the area and this house.”
Spyglass Court
Location: Newburgh, Indiana
Designer and Builder: Andy and Nicky Spurling
Year Built: 2020
Style: Modern Prairie-meets-Traditional
Significant Stats: 7,800 square feet, 5 bedrooms, 5.5 bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: Building is second nature to Andy and Nicky Spurling — not only did they design and construct their prior home in Newburgh’s Lakeridge Crossing subdivision, but Andy works in real estate development every day as owner of Spurling Properties. For their forever home, they melded together all the design elements they love, including open concepts, maximum natural light, and gorgeous outdoor views. With an eye toward accommodating their large extended families and visiting adult children — and future grandchildren — the couple designed a home with Prairie style details, large overhangs, a back deck perfect for spotting wildlife, and an airy interior with 8-foot doors and 10-12-foot ceilings. The exterior features full bed natural stone, a metal hipped roof over the windows, and recontoured landscaping with maple, dogwood, redbud, willow, river birch, magnolia, weeping cedars, and weeping pines. “I was most excited about seeing the front yard. It was really satisfying to feel like, wow, it’s complete,” Nicky says. The ultimate compliment? “A neighbor said, ‘It looks like it’s been there forever,’” she shares.
South Willow Road
Location: Lincolnshire Historic District
Designer: Anderson & Veatch
Year Built: 1924-25
Style: Georgian Revival
Significant Stats: 3,109 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: “Is your house ever really done?” former interior designer Sharon Bosler asks about the red brick home she and her handy husband, Bruce, share, along with a Chihuahua, Carmen. Prior owners ran a dental practice in the basement, which now serves as Bruce’s space to pursue his hobbies, including collecting vinyl records. The Boslers moved in 2007 from Nashville, Tennessee, to be closer to family. “We liked the house. We liked the symmetry of a Georgian Revival. We liked that there was a screen porch on one side and a sunroom on the other. The rooms flow nicely,” Sharon says. “We’ve kept the integrity of the house.” The couple has made the space their own, stripping wallpaper and painting rooms, strategically landscaping to enclose the backyard, and consistently updating. Sharon says the house stands out in spring and autumn when “everything is blooming,” including crepe myrtle, evergreens, bonsai trees, and Nellie Stevens Holly. “We love having company,” Sharon, says. “It’s a good house for entertaining.”
Southeast First Street
Location: Riverside Historic District
Designer: Frank Schlotter
Year Built: 1908
Style: Foursquare
Significant Stats: About 4,000 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: Elmer and Judy Buchta wanted a brick house with a spacious front porch, and Elmer says spying this home was love at first sight. The porch “is a nice place to socialize, and the way it’s built, there’s plenty of ventilation. The air comes through, but you’ve still got some privacy.” The house has original oak woodwork with handcrafted features, and Elmer says one project was staining the ornate front door an oak color after a prior owner had coated it in white. The Buchtas also replaced the house’s original slate roof. The two-story house with an attic packs charm into a small lot, and “it has a spirit that just gives you a hug,” Elmer explains. “From the first day I came in, it just felt so warm and welcoming. It has a loving spirit. If you’re in a bad mood, you can go in another room and get a totally different vibe. … It’s very comfortable, very livable. I can see why people wanted to stay for so many years.”
Jennings Street
Location: Newburgh, Indiana
Designer: H.G. McCullough Designers, Inc.
Builder: Don Jost
Year Built: 2000-02
Style: American Gothic Revival
Significant Stats: 4,300 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: In the late 1990s, this stunning house on a hill overlooking the Ohio River was the dream of Jane Schroeder and her husband, John. It was John’s vision to build a sort of “church house,” Jane told Evansville Living for a 2015 feature story. But John passed away in 2000, two years before the house’s completion. Since 2023, it’s been the home of wife and husband Allison Melton and Michael Holmes, who are well aware of the Schroeder family’s history. “It’s a unique house built with a lot of love, a lot of character,” Allison says. She and Michael were attracted to its proximity to Downtown Newburgh and the Ohio riverfront, plus its “amazing views from every window. You can see the river, the bend of the river, the sunsets — it’s just gorgeous.” Allison and Michael are converting a side yard, covering two acres or so, into a National Wildlife Federation-certified habitat.
Lincoln Avenue
Location: East Side
Builder: Unknown
Year Built: 1940
Style: Colonial Revival
Significant Stats: 3,270 square feet, 3 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: Two-story white pillars frame a wide, elegant front door and seal the deal for this L-shaped residence to be a head-turner. Drew and Jen Meyer had admired the stately red brick home while on their evening walks. It had been vacant for years when they looked at buying it in 2018. Drew says they negotiated “knowing that we were going to come in and put a lot of work into it.” The home’s best original features include a winding staircase, arched doorways, moldings, and built-ins among them, and the Meyers replaced its tiny kitchen by extending into the original dining room. Outside, they have needed to address the property’s trees. “(We’ve taken) out trees that have come down in storms and various things,” Drew shares, including a large catalpa tree with low-hanging branches that nearly swept the ground. The couple continues honoring the home’s curb appeal: “We do big decorations for Fourth of July and for Christmas. It’s our fun thing to do,” Drew says.
Bellemeade Avenue
Location: East Side
Designer: H.G. McCullough Designers, Inc.
Builder: Weinzapfel Custom Homes, Inc.
Year Built: 2023
Style: Contemporary Italianate
Significant Stats: 4,647 square feet, 3 bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms, 2 half bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: To build a home for herself and her husband, John, Cynthia Fehrenbacher had to twist the arms of her brother, Anthony Funke, and his wife, Bonnie, to purchase part of their property located behind their notable Lincoln Avenue home. The Mater Dei High School sweethearts broke ground on their new abode in August 2023 and were moved in by November 2024. “We knew we wanted something contemporary but still traditional,” Cindy says. Maple wood flooring throughout came from the family’s farm in Posey County and was cut down by John, who helped to finish the flooring alongside Wood Specialties by Fehrenbacher, Inc. Cindy’s favorite elements are Fehrenbacher cabinets and a Wood Specialties-supplied custom rod iron staircase. Outside, the landscaping still is young; hydrangeas, azaleas, junipers, boxwoods, and cypress trees are illuminated by outdoor lighting, which Cindy says makes the house “show nicely at night.” Though recently moved in, “we hope to do a lot of entertaining,” Cindy says.
Kenyon Place
Location: East Side
Building: Dan Buck Homes
Year Built: 1986
Style: Mediterranean
Significant Stats: 6,900 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: There’s a reason this home feels like a coastal residence plugged into Southwestern Indiana. Inspired by a residential design former Kenny Kent dealership owner Robbie Kent Sr. saw in Hilton Head, South Carolina, he commissioned this home to be built in Evansville while living next door. It first caught the eye of Kevin and Margaret Koch in 2006, who snapped it up for their family five years later. “We love the open layout, big windows and natural light. It’s very symmetrical,” Kevin says. The Kochs painted the red brick a warm taupe and gave the double-door entrance a necessary facelift — “The front door used to be very much exposed to late afternoon sun and was the hottest place on earth,” Margaret laughs — via a portico designed by H.G. McCullough Designers, Inc., and erected by Loehrlein Carpentry and Concrete. The Kochs relax among the backyard pool, solarium, and multi-level beds featuring pollinator wildflowers. Former residents of the home occasionally drive by and check on it, Margaret says: “They’re very complimentary of it.”
Blue Grass Road
Location: North Side
Builder: Dan Buck Homes
Year Built: 1988
Style: French Country
Significant Stats: 5,000 square feet, 6 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms
Why It Stands Out: Between its rolling hills and forested lanes, McCutchanville feels like it’s carved out of a vivid picture book. That’s what first attracted Andy and Patty Tharp to the Blue Grass Farms subdivision in 2001. This French-style brick home wrapped around a corner lot caught their eye; seeking more space for their family, the additional living quarters above the garage sealed the deal. “We liked the fact that we could have family close to us on one side of the house, or host visiting family onsite,” Patty says. A “charming” scene, as she describes it, is set between its dual chimneys and center walled garden. It’s prime real estate for relaxation, as the forsythia, hydrangeas, star magnolia, tulip magnolia, and evergreen giant arborvitae demonstrate. A little creek in the back became a favorite place for the neighborhood children to play. “We created our own little nature preserve back there,” Patty says. “It’s been a great home for us.”
