Each October, the River City gets a little … Eville. From ghostly figures haunting Gothic homes to decaying creatures rising from an operating table, wild imaginations power Evansville’s spookiest season.
Eville J’s Creepy Closet
Facebook and Instagram @evillejs
Jim Brown loves horror movies. He also has an active imagination. Both are apparent from just one look at the shockingly detailed masks and monsters he crafts by hand and sells through Eville J’s Creepy Closet.
Although he took a few art classes before graduating from F.J. Reitz High School in 1989, Brown traces his ghoulish interests to making decorations for his family’s annual Halloween parties. “Back then, it was a lot of clothes hangers, papier-mâché, and duct tape,” he says. Around 1995, another monster maker helped him upgrade his materials. “Then eBay came along, and that gave me an outlet to see if maybe I could make a little money on the side to support this new hobby,” he says.
Social media and conventions — especially Transworld, the nation’s largest Halloween trade show — grew that hobby into Eville J’s Creepy Closet, where Brown uses latex, foam, and silicone to fashion haunted house props, heart-stopping masks, and gruesome-looking monsters. He sells his work on his website and at conventions while also fulfilling custom and commission orders.
“All of my masks are original designs,” he says, noting that ideas usually percolate before he starts sculpting them from clay. Next comes creating a mold with plaster, fiberglass, or silicone, then casting, prepping, and painting in those creepy details. “Campy creepy is my favorite,” he says. “I like to make stuff that has a fun cartoon style but also looks like you might not want to turn your back on.”
He’s dabbled in animatronics and moving monsters but hasn’t yet put those ideas into action — his current inventory keeps him plenty busy. “I’m a very lucky guy. This is a crazy thing that I get to call my job,” he says.
Haunted Historic Evansville Ghost Walks
Oct. 16-17, Riverside Historic District
Another creative brain birthed the idea of ghost walks that leverage grand structures and historic personalities — and attract 400-500 guests.
Introduced in 2017, Haunted Historic Evansville Ghost Walks act as a fundraiser for the Haynie’s Corner Arts District Association, Old Evansville Historic Association, and Evansville Civic Theatre. Tours depart every 90 minutes from First Presbyterian Church and wind through the brick streets of the Riverside Historic District. Thirteen apparitions of long-ago residents — who might resemble current-day Civic Theatre actors — appear and share stories about strange occurrences. New this year is a puppet Bride of Frankenstein built and performed by local artist Warren Hayes. Event organizer Rachel Wambach adds that “a towering puppet Count Orlock might also greet guests inside and outside the sanctuary, depending on where he feels like lurking.”
Despite the chill factors, the event is appropriate for all ages. “It’s a fun family thing, and a way to continue to contribute to the arts and our neighborhood,” Wambach says.
The Nick Nackery
201 E. Virginia St.
When haunted house actors shop for costumes, they go to The Nick Nackery, self-proclaimed “Indiana’s spookiest secret.” With more than 9,200 square feet stocked with costumes, masks, wigs, accessories, and props, locating the perfect outfit is easy. The Nick Nackery has dressed everything from faux zombies to rock star lookalikes since Larry and Suzanne Blesch opened the shop in 1985. The couple sold the business to Dan and Jana Bean in 2021; Suzanne passed away in November 2025.
Manager Tian Moore-Denk loves “helping find something that people feel happy and confident in.” She says “masks are always popular choices,” including Michael Myers from “Halloween,” Ghostface from “Scream,” and Art the Clown from “Terrifier.” Makeup is a top seller for customers wanting to create their own scary-face looks.
This year, The Nick Nackery is an official sponsor for Haunted Historic Evansville’s ghost walks thanks to new owner Lucas Neuffer, who bought the business in May. “I have partnered with Historic Evansville in previous years with other businesses. This year, with purchasing Nick Nackery, it seemed like a natural fit to sponsor the event again,” Neuffer says.
House of Lecter and Catacombs
Sept. 25-Oct. 31, 325 Main St.
What’s dark, gory, and maniacal at every turn? A visit to “The Nightmare Realm” inside the House of Lecter and Catacombs, Evansville’s long-running pair of haunted houses. Three floors of terror feature disturbing lab scenes, gruesome surgeries, and galling dissections directed by a depraved scientist, who buried the bodies in the basement for your viewing pleasure.
Kevin Stich and Kevin Alvey took on the haunted houses in 2025 after original owner Phillip Wolter died in 2024, the same year that The Catacombs moved into the same Main Street building as House of Lecter after radon remediation forced it out of the Old Courthouse, its home since 1980.
Even after 46 years, House of Lecter and Catacombs’ reputations for scares are still strong: Both were named to social media page The Scare Factor’s 10 must-see haunts in Indiana for 2026.
