City charters and land purchases. War industry and shopping malls. River floods and plane crashes. In its more than 200-year history, Evansville has seen its fair share of events. Like any other city, we’ve had our triumphs and tragedies. In the following pages, take a look at moments that have shaped who we are as a city, both past and present.
John Mills began home brewing in the early 1990s with an IPA-style beer called Sister Star of the Sun. He didn’t know much about brewing then, but the experience gave him a small taste of what would come. “I remember drinking the last bottle of that batch and thinking how good it was,” says Mills. “I was just following somebody else’s recipe that was on the Internet. I didn’t know anything about beer recipes. But reviewing that recipe now — that thing had a lot of hops in it.”
The modern home sitting along Riverview Court in Downtown Evansville wasn’t exactly the style MaryAnn and Dr. Max Lingo were used to, nor did it fit their planned aesthetic. But the view couldn’t be ignored.
Do it all Downtown. It’s a phrase David Oldham, Lisa Murphy, and Brett Lyon have to come to practice every day at the new location of Elements Design Resource Studio, opened in July on the ground floor of Innovation Pointe. The new space allows the group to not only continue offering design services, but also expand to a boutique retail space with unique items.
We define ourselves by how we drink our coffee or tea. When it comes to the cup, however, it’s what is on the outside that counts. Cozy up with one of these unique mugs. 1. Crossword puzzle mug Outside The Gift Box. 327 Main St., 812-746-0808, $15.95.
When planning a winter trip, there is an ultimate decision to make — take advantage of snowy weather or escape the cold. An hour-and-a-half drive northeast of Evansville to Orange County, however, will take you to the best of both options.
The New Year offers a fresh start, a clean slate, and a chance to craft a brand-new list of resolutions. As 2019 starts, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwestern Indiana is celebrating more than just New Year aspirations — the organization will mark five decades in the region. In 1904 Ernest Coulter, a New York court clerk, noticed the same boys repeatedly coming in and out of the court room. He thought compassionate adults could guide these kids on the right path, and so the Big Brothers movement was born.
What started as a small manufacturing business turned into an iconic American image — the Ball mason jar. The Ball brothers — Edmund, Frank, George, Lucius, and William — founded the company in Buffalo, New York, in 1880 with a $200 loan from their uncle. The brothers initially began constructing tin cans encased in wooden jackets to store kerosene, varnish, or paint.
Eighteen years ago, Pat and Lori Schulz welcomed their first child, Sophie. While the pregnancy was healthy, Sophie was born without any skin on her left leg and other areas of her body. That night, she was diagnosed with epidermolysis bullosa, a rare genetic skin disease that causes fragile and blistered skin. Pat and Lori learned they are rare carriers of the disease. Their second child Sadie and youngest Simon both are healthy, but Sam, the couple’s third child, also was born with EB.
Racing is a balance, says Scott Hyatt. “You want to go as fast as you can, but you don’t want to be reckless about it,” says the commercial real estate agent and Evansville resident. For Hyatt, his foray into racing is all thanks to his 1974 260Z Datsun racecar. In 2007, a friend passed along to Hyatt that a man in Owensboro, Kentucky, had the car sitting in his junkyard. The car sported a rough gray undercoat that wasn’t aesthetically pleasing; however, the bad paint job helped save the Datsun from rusting terribly.
With each passing year, we mourn and celebrate the lives lost of members of the community who made a difference in their places of work, to civic organizations, and to their families and others. We pored through death records and obituaries to find notable men and women who helped shape the Tri-State through their contributions.
To everything there is a season, a time to be silent, and a time to speak. For Ross Chapman, it was time to be silent, get to know Evansville, and listen to what people had to say about the community.
Katelyn Freimiller was a student at the University of Evansville, playing soccer and studying physical therapy, when she fractured her back and had to leave behind her sporting passion. “That sort of made me reevaluate what I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” says Freimiller. “I realized I wanted to do something that not only brought me happiness, but brought others happiness and brought people together.”
Cooking has been a part of the Edwards family for three generations — and it’s a legacy Chef Adam Edwards enjoys carrying on. “It’s huge for me to continue what (my grandfather and father, Walter Edwards Sr. and Jr.) started. People come up to me and tell me how my grandfather was the reason they started eating sushi or they had my dad’s food when he was at A La Carte,” says the 35-year-old.
You could say Jane Owen has a bubbly personality. At a party, she’s the center of attention, holding a perfectly chilled champagne bottle in one hand and wielding a saber with the other. Guests stand back as she swings her saber along the bottle’s neck, slicing off the cork that shoots off like a rocket. It’s an impressive production — like a magician performing a trick that leaves the audience wide-eyed.
The adage “There’s no place like home” resonates strongly with Richard Needham. He no longer lives in Evansville, but the Hoosier city nestled along the Ohio River always will be home to him. “I just love Evansville,” he says. Needham spent his younger years in Evansville during the 1940s and 50s, raised by his foster parents Charles and Gladys Tinsley. Today, the Woodlands, Texas, resident talks fondly of childhood friends; Sundays at the Izaac Walton League in Chandler, Indiana; and perusing the shops of Downtown Evansville.
Whether you’re hosting a Super Bowl party, attending as a guest, or watching at home, you’ll need a super snack. Nabbing the sporting event’s classic favorite chicken wings ensures no fuss so you can focus on the game (and we won’t tell anyone they aren’t homemade). Buffalo Wild Wings
A tense overtime game on Sunday, Jan. 20 in New Orleans saw the Los Angeles Rams defeat the home team Saints by only a three-point margin. The victory not only nabbed the NFC Championship for the West Coast team, but also secured them a spot in the sport’s most coveted game — Super Bowl LIII. Many locals may find themselves rooting for the Rams against the New England Patriots on Feb. 3 for various reasons — but the Fuchs family will cheer for Los Angeles due to family ties.
Doo-wop isn’t just for the 1950s, man. In Evansville, the well-known music group The Duke Boys has been treating River City residents to cool tracks for almost 40 years. This weekend (Jan. 11 and 12), the group returns to Tropicana Evansville for a two-night performance featuring their signature moves, look, and music.
