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Evansville is a city in, and the
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
of,
Vanderburgh County Vanderburgh County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2010, the population was 179,703. The county seat is in Evansville. While Vanderburgh County was the seventh-largest county in 2010 population with 179,703 people, it is also the ...
,
Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after
Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
and
Fort Wayne Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Censu ...
, the largest city in
Southern Indiana Southern Indiana is a region consisting of the southern third of the state of Indiana. The region's history and geography has led to a blend of Northern and Southern culture distinct from the remainder of Indiana. It is often considered to be p ...
, and the 249th-most populous city in the United States. It is the central city of the
Evansville metropolitan area The Evansville metropolitan area is the 164th largest metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in the United States. The primary city is Evansville, Indiana, the third largest city in Indiana and the largest city in Southern Indiana as well as the h ...
, a hub of commercial, medical, and cultural activity of
southwestern Indiana Southwestern Indiana is an 11-county region of southern Indiana, United States located at the southernmost and westernmost part of the state. As of the 2010 census, the region's combined population is 474,251. Evansville, Indiana's third-largest c ...
and the
Illinois–Indiana–Kentucky tri-state area The Illinois–Indiana–Kentucky tri-state area is a tri-state area where the U.S. states of Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky intersect. The area is defined mainly by the television viewing area and consists of ten Illinois counties, eleven Ind ...
, that is home to over 911,000 people. The 38th parallel crosses the north side of the city and is marked on
Interstate 69 Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of 10 unconnected segments with an original continuous segment from Indianapolis, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, at ...
. Situated on an
oxbow __NOTOC__ An oxbow is a U-shaped metal pole (or larger wooden frame) that fits the underside and the sides of the neck of an ox or bullock. A bow pin holds it in place. The term " oxbow" is widely used to refer to a U-shaped meander in a rive ...
in the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
, the city is often referred to as the "Crescent Valley" or "River City". Early French explorers named it ''La Belle Rivière'' ("The Beautiful River"). The area has been inhabited by various indigenous cultures for millennia, dating back at least 10,000 years.
Angel Mounds Angel Mounds State Historic Site ( 12 VG 1), an expression of the Mississippian culture, is an archaeological site managed by the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites that includes more than of land about southeast of present-day Evansville ...
was a permanent settlement of the
Mississippian culture The Mississippian culture was a Native Americans in the United States, Native American civilization that flourished in what is now the Midwestern United States, Midwestern, Eastern United States, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from appr ...
from 1000 AD to around 1400 AD. The European-American city was founded in 1812. Evansville anchors a regional economic hub based primarily on trade, transportation, and utilities; professional and business services; education and health services; government; leisure and hospitality; and manufacturing. Two
NYSE The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the List of stock exchanges, world's largest s ...
-listed companies ( Berry Global and
OneMain Financial OneMain Holdings, Inc. is an American financial services holding company headquartered in Evansville, Indiana, with central offices throughout the United States. The company wholly owns OneMain Finance Corporation and its subsidiaries, through w ...
) are headquartered in Evansville, and three companies traded on
NASDAQ The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
(
Escalade {{Unreferenced, date=May 2007 Escalade is the act of scaling defensive walls or ramparts with the aid of ladders. Escalade was a prominent feature of sieges in ancient and medieval warfare, and though it is no longer common in modern warfare, ...
,
Old National Bank Old National Bank is an American regional bank with nearly 200 retail branches operated by Old National Bancorp and based in Chicago, Illinois and Evansville, Indiana. With assets at $23.0 billion and 162 banking centers, Old National Bancorp i ...
, and
Shoe Carnival Shoe Carnival Inc. is an American retailer of family footwear. The company operates 377 stores throughout the midwest, south, and southeast regions. It was founded by David Russell in 1978 and is headquartered in Evansville, Indiana. The company ...
) are also headquartered in Evansville. Evansville is home to Bally's Evansville, the state's first casino;
Mesker Park Zoo and Botanic Garden The Mesker Park Zoo and Botanic Garden is a zoo that opened in 1928 in Evansville, Indiana, United States. It is located in Mesker Park on Evansville's northwest side and is run by the City of Evansville. The Mesker Park Zoo and Botanic Garden ...
, one of the state's oldest and largest zoos; and sports tourism industry. The city has several notable educational institutions. The
University of Evansville The University of Evansville (UE) is a private university in Evansville, Indiana. It was founded in 1854 as Moores Hill College. The university operates a satellite center, Harlaxton College, in Grantham, England. UE offers more than 80 differ ...
is a private school on the city's east side, while the
University of Southern Indiana The University of Southern Indiana (USI) is a public university just outside of Evansville, Indiana. Founded in 1965, USI enrolls 9,750 dual credit, undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students in more than 130 areas of study. USI offers program ...
is a larger public institution just outside the city's westside limits. The
Indiana University School of Medicine The Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM) is a major multi-campus medical school in the state of Indiana. There are nine campuses throughout the state; the principal research and medical center is located on the Indiana University–Purd ...
also maintains a campus in Evansville. Other local educational institutions include the nationally ranked Signature School, the
Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library The Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library (EVPL) is a public library system serving Evansville and Vanderburgh County in Indiana, USA. The EVPL also supplements the services provided by the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation and has the a ...
, and the
Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation The Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation (EVSC) is a public school corporation serving Evansville, Indiana and Vanderburgh County; its boundary includes the entire county. It is the third largest school district in the state of Indiana, beh ...
.


History

:''See main article: History of Evansville, Indiana''. There has been a continuous human presence in the area that became Evansville from at least 8,000 BC by Paleo-Indians. Archaeologists have identified several archaic and ancient sites in and near Evansville, with the most complex at
Angel Mounds Angel Mounds State Historic Site ( 12 VG 1), an expression of the Mississippian culture, is an archaeological site managed by the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites that includes more than of land about southeast of present-day Evansville ...
. This was built and occupied from about 900 A.D. to about 1600 A.D., just before the arrival of Europeans to North America. Following the abandonment of Angel Mounds between the years 1400 and 1450, tribes of the historic
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
,
Shawnee The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...
,
Piankeshaw The Piankeshaw, Piankashaw or Pianguichia were members of the Miami tribe who lived apart from the rest of the Miami nation, therefore they were known as Peeyankihšiaki ("splitting off" from the others, Sing.: ''Peeyankihšia'' - "Piankeshaw Pers ...
,
Wyandot Wyandot may refer to: Native American ethnography * Wyandot people, also known as the Huron * Wyandot language * Wyandot religion Places * Wyandot, Ohio, an unincorporated community * Wyandot County, Ohio * Camp Wyandot, a Camp Fire Boys and ...
,
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
and other Native American peoples were known to be in the area. French hunters and trappers were among the first Europeans to come to the area, using
Vincennes Vincennes (, ) is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. It is next to but does not include the Château de Vincennes and Bois de Vincennes, which are attached ...
as a base of operations for fur trading. As a testament to the Ohio River's grandeur, early French explorers named it ''La Belle Rivière'' ("The Beautiful River"). The land encompassing Evansville was formally relinquished by the
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
in 1805 to General William Henry Harrison, then governor of the
Indiana Territory The Indiana Territory, officially the Territory of Indiana, was created by a United States Congress, congressional act that President of the United States, President John Adams signed into law on May 7, 1800, to form an Historic regions of the U ...
. The city of Evansville, Indiana was founded in 1812 and incorporated in 1817. It is situated on an
oxbow __NOTOC__ An oxbow is a U-shaped metal pole (or larger wooden frame) that fits the underside and the sides of the neck of an ox or bullock. A bow pin holds it in place. The term " oxbow" is widely used to refer to a U-shaped meander in a rive ...
in the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
, and is often referred to as the "Crescent Valley" or "River City". On March 27, 1812,
Hugh McGary Jr. Hugh McGary Jr. was the founder of Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city ...
purchased about 441 acres and named it "McGary's Landing". In 1814, to attract more people, McGary renamed his village "Evansville" in honor of Colonel Robert Morgan Evans. Evansville incorporated in 1817 and was designated as the county seat on January 7, 1818. The county was named for Henry Vanderburgh, a deceased chief judge of the Indiana Territorial Supreme Court. Evansville became a thriving commercial town with a river trade, and the town began to expand outside of its original footprint. Evansville's west side was for many years cut off from the city's main part by Pigeon Creek and the factories that developed along it, making the creek an industrial corridor. The land comprising the former town of
Lamasco Lamasco is a former town, and current district, in Evansville, Indiana originally bounded by the present day streets of St. Joseph Avenue on the west, First Avenue on the east, Maryland on the north and the Ohio River on the south to Fulton (mea ...
was platted in 1837 and was annexed in 1870. Evansville's economy received a boost in the early 1830s when Indiana unveiled plans to build the longest canal in the world, a 400-mile ditch to connect the Great Lakes at
Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...
with the inland rivers at Evansville. The project was intended to open Indiana to commerce and improve transportation from
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
to
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. The project bankrupted the state and was so poorly engineered that it would not hold water. By the time the
Wabash and Erie Canal The Wabash and Erie Canal was a shipping canal that linked the Great Lakes to the Ohio River via an artificial waterway. The canal provided traders with access from the Great Lakes all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. Over 460 miles long, it was th ...
was finished in 1853, Evansville's first railroad, Evansville & Crawfordsville Railroad, was opened to Terre Haute. The expansion of railroads in this territory had made the canal obsolete. Only two flat barges ever made the entire trip. The canal basin at Fifth and Court street in downtown Evansville became the site of a new courthouse in 1891. The era of Evansville's greatest growth occurred in the second half of the 19th century, following the disruptions of the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
. The city was a major stop for steamboats along the Ohio River, and it was the home port for a number of companies engaged in trade via the river. Coal mining, manufacturing, and hardwood lumber was a major source of economic activity. By 1900, Evansville was one of the world's largest hardwood furniture centers, with 41 factories employing approximately 2,000 workers. Railroads eventually became more important and in 1887 the
L&N Railroad The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of the ...
constructed a bridge across the Ohio River. Along with a major rail yard southwest of Evansville in Howell, which was annexed in 1916 and completed the city's counterclockwise march around the horseshoe bend. Throughout this period, Evansville's main ethnic groups consisted of Protestant Scotch-Irish from the South, Catholic Irish coming for canal or railroad work, New England businessmen, Germans fleeing Europe after the 1848 revolutions, and
freedmen A freedman or freedwoman is a formerly enslaved person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, enslaved people were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their captor-owners), abolitionism, emancipation (gra ...
from western Kentucky. By the 1890 census, Evansville ranked as the 56th-largest urban area in America, but it was surpassed in population by other cities in the early 1900s. As the new century began, the city continued to develop to its eastern areas. Manufacturing also took off, particularly in the automobile and refrigeration industries. The Graham brothers, Ray, Robert, and Joseph, got their start with a successful glass factory in Evansville. After they sold it in 1907, the glass factory became Libbey-Owens-Ford. In 1916, seeing the need for a dependable truck, the Graham brothers entered the truck chassis business. Evansville was home to Graham Brothers Trucks from then until 1929. The dependability of Graham trucks was due in part to their use of Torbensen internal gear drive rear axles. In 1921, after the death of both Dodge brothers, Graham Brothers started selling 1.5 ton pickups through Dodge dealers. (Dodge did not manufacture trucks at the time). These vehicles had Graham chassis and some Dodge parts. Dodge Brothers bought a controlling interest in Graham Brothers in 1925, picking up the rest in 1926. The city saw exponential growth in the early twentieth century with the production of lumber and the manufacturing of furniture. By 1920, Evansville had more than two dozen furniture companies. In the decades of the 1920s and 1930s, city leaders attempted to improve Evansville's transportation position and successfully lobbied to be on the Chicago-to-Miami "Dixie Bee Highway" ( U.S. Highway 41). A bridge was built across the Ohio River in 1932 and in that same decade steps were taken to develop an airport. But the
Ohio River flood of 1937 The Ohio River flood of 1937 took place in late January and February 1937. With damage stretching from Pittsburgh to Cairo, Illinois, 385 people died, one million people were left homeless and property losses reached $500 million ($10.2 billion ...
covered 500 city blocks in Evansville, resulting in a major crisis. With steamboats less necessary to the local economy, city and federal officials responded to the flood and its destruction by constructing more and higher levees: construction that penned and hid the Ohio River behind a barrier of earthen berms and concrete walls. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Evansville was a major center of industrial production which helped revive the regional economy after the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
. A huge, 45-acre shipyard complex was constructed on the riverfront east of St. Joseph Avenue for the production of oceangoing LSTs ( Landing Ship-Tanks). The Evansville Shipyard was the nation's largest inland producer of LSTs. The Plymouth factory was converted into a plant which turned out "bullets by the billions," and many other companies switched over to the manufacture of war material. In 1942, the city acquired a factory adjacent to the airport north of the city for the manufacture of the
P-47 Thunderbolt The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt is a World War II-era fighter aircraft produced by the American company Republic Aviation from 1941 through 1945. It was a successful high-altitude fighter and it also served as the foremost American fighter-bombe ...
fighter aircraft, known as the P-47Ds. Evansville produced a total of 6,242 P-47s, almost half of the P-47s made nationally during the war. After the war, Evansville's manufacturing base of automobiles, household appliances, and farm equipment benefited from growing post-war demand. A growing housing demand also caused residential development to leap north and east of the city. However, between 1955 and 1963, a nationwide recession hit Evansville. Among other closures, Servel (which produced refrigerators) went out of business and Chrysler ended its local operations. The economy was saved from near total collapse by 28 businesses that moved into the area, including
Whirlpool A whirlpool is a body of rotating water produced by opposing currents or a current running into an obstacle. Small whirlpools form when a bath or a sink is draining. More powerful ones formed in seas or oceans may be called maelstroms ( ). ''Vo ...
,
Alcoa Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primary ...
, and
General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable energ ...
. During the final third of the 20th century, Evansville became the hub of the tri-state region's commercial, medical, and service industries. A 1990s economic spurt was fueled by the growth of the
University of Southern Indiana The University of Southern Indiana (USI) is a public university just outside of Evansville, Indiana. Founded in 1965, USI enrolls 9,750 dual credit, undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students in more than 130 areas of study. USI offers program ...
. The arrival of giant
Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
and
AK Steel AK Steel Holdings Corporation was a steelmaking company headquartered in West Chester Township, Butler County, Ohio. The company, whose name was derived from the initials of Armco, its predecessor company, and Kawasaki Steel Corporation, was a ...
manufacturing plants, as well as Casino Aztar (now Bally's), Indiana's first gaming boat, also contributed to the growth of jobs. As the twenty-first century began, Evansville continued in a steady pace of economic diversification and stability.


Geography

The
Evansville metropolitan area The Evansville metropolitan area is the 164th largest metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in the United States. The primary city is Evansville, Indiana, the third largest city in Indiana and the largest city in Southern Indiana as well as the h ...
, the 142nd largest in the United States, includes three
Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
counties A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
( Posey, Vanderburgh, and Warrick) and two
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
counties (
Henderson Henderson may refer to: People *Henderson (surname), description of the surname, and a list of people with the surname *Clan Henderson, a Scottish clan Places Argentina *Henderson, Buenos Aires Australia *Henderson, Western Australia Canada * H ...
, and
Webster Webster may refer to: People *Webster (surname), including a list of people with the surname *Webster (given name), including a list of people with the given name Places Canada *Webster, Alberta *Webster's Falls, Hamilton, Ontario United State ...
). The metropolitan area does not include
Owensboro, Kentucky Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...
, which is an adjacent metropolitan area about southeast of Evansville. This area is sometimes referred to as "
Kentuckiana Kentuckiana, a portmanteau of Kentucky and Indiana, is the area in the Upland South region of the United States containing metropolitan areas with counties in both Kentucky and Indiana. Kentuckiana is primarily the Louisville metropolitan area, in ...
", although it is usually referred to as the “tri-state" by the local media. Evansville is at 37°58'38" north, 87°33'2" west (37.977166, −87.550566). According to the 2010 census, Evansville has an area of , of which (or 98.94%) is land and (or 1.06%) is water.


Topography

The city's southern boundary lies on an oxbow in the Ohio River. Most of the city lies in a shallow valley surrounded by low rolling hills. The city's west side is built on these rolling hills and is home to
Burdette Park Burdette Park is a recreational facility in Vanderburgh County, Indiana. It is the only municipal park in Vanderburgh County not operated by the City of Evansville. Burdette Park provides a recreational and educational environment consisting of ...
,
Mesker Amphitheatre Mesker Amphitheatre was a historic 8,500-seat amphitheater, located in Evansville, Indiana, United States. It contained 5,500 chair back seats before they were removed and 3,000 lawn seats and is located at Mesker Park, near the Mesker Park Zoo. ...
, and
Mesker Park Zoo The Mesker Park Zoo and Botanic Garden is a zoo that opened in 1928 in Evansville, Indiana, United States. It is located in Mesker Park on Evansville's northwest side and is run by the City of Evansville. The Mesker Park Zoo and Botanic Garden ...
. The eastern portion developed in the valley and is protected by a series of levees that closely follow the path of
I-69 Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of 10 unconnected segments with an original continuous segment from Indianapolis, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, at ...
. Notable landmarks on the east side are the
Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve is a nature preserve located in Evansville, Indiana. It is a National Natural Landmark and a State Nature Preserve owned by the City of Evansville and operated by the non-profit Wesselman Nature Society. The prese ...
and the Angel Mounds State Historic Site, just southeast of Evansville, between Evansville and Newburgh.


Cityscape

''For more details on this topic, see
List of tallest buildings in Evansville File:EvansvilleSkyline.jpg, 600px, The 2018 Evansville skyline as seen from Dreier Boulevard (Use cursor to identify buildings) poly 586 493 615 493 619 476 681 470 681 447 712 443 714 346 594 342 420 Main poly 936 350 1070 352 1070 474 1025 4 ...
'' Evansville's original downtown plat was made on about 200 acres, with streets running parallel to the river from northwest to southeast. Other streets nearby were later laid out on the cardinal points, due north-south, and east-west. Thus, anyone entering or leaving downtown finds the street makes a confusing oblique-angle turn in one direction or another. In the 1970s, the city suffered from problems such as decreased economic activity and suburban flight, but city-sponsored revitalization has improved downtown conditions. The business district and riverfront feature land-based casino gambling, restaurants, bars, and shops that attract tens of thousands of visitors each year. Although much of the outer city's architecture is typical suburban design, the city's downtown district retains early twentieth-century architecture. A few blocks east of the main business district is the Riverside district, featuring tree-lined brick streets full of turn of the twentieth-century homes. The
Reitz Home Museum The Reitz Home Museum is a Victorian house museum located in the Riverside Historic District in downtown Evansville, Indiana. The museum offers year-round guided tours. An authentic restoration offers visitors a step back in time with silk da ...
is one of the finest examples of French
second empire Second Empire may refer to: * Second British Empire, used by some historians to describe the British Empire after 1783 * Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1396) * Second French Empire (1852–1870) ** Second Empire architecture, an architectural styl ...
architecture in the United States. Other homes nearby feature similar character and design and include
Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian R ...
,
Colonial Revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archi ...
, and
Renaissance Revival Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range o ...
styles.


Neighborhoods

Evansville has thirteen neighborhoods that have qualified as historic districts and are listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
. File:East_Branch_Library.jpg, Bayard Park File:Rathbone Home, Culver.jpg,
Culver Culver may refer to: Places United Kingdom *Culver Down, Isle of Wight United States *Culver, Indiana, a town in northern Indiana * Culver, Kansas, a city in north-central Kansas * Culver, Kentucky, an unincorporated community * Culver, Misso ...
File:Central_Union_Bank.jpg,
Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...
File:Alhambra Theatorium.jpg, Haynie's Corner File:Willow Road in the Lincolnshire Historic District.jpg,
Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...
File:Riverside_Historic_District_in_Evansville.jpg,
Riverside Riverside may refer to: Places Australia * Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania Canada * Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon * Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta * Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...
File:Parrett Street near Washington.jpg,
Washington Avenue Washington Avenue may refer to: United States * Washington Avenue (Miami Beach) in Miami Beach, Florida * Washington Avenue (Milford Mill, Maryland) * Washington Avenue (Towson, Maryland) * Washington Avenue (Minneapolis), a major street in Minne ...
File:Independence Historic District in Evansville.jpg, West Franklin Street


Climate

Evansville lies within the northern limits of the
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''Cfa''), and straddles the border between
USDA plant hardiness zones A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...
6b and 7a. Summers are hot and humid, winters are cold to cool. Average temperatures range from in January to in July. Annual precipitation averages , including an average seasonal snowfall of . Evansville winters can range from just of snowfall in 2011–12, up to in 1969–70. On average, there are 41 days annually with a maximum temperature of or above and 17 days with a maximum at or below freezing; the mean first and last freeze dates are October 26 and April 7, resulting in a frost-free period of 201 days. Extreme temperatures range from on February 2, 1951 up to on July 28, 1930; the record cold maximum of was set on January 20, 1985 and December 22, 1989, while, conversely, the record warm minimum of was last reached July 8, 1980.


Pollution

In August 2018, the mayor of Evansville sent a letter to the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORVWSO) opposing a proposal to eliminate pollution control standards for the Ohio River. Evansville is located downstream from the river's origin. Sources of pollution that affect water quality include
agricultural runoff Agricultural pollution refers to biotic and abiotic byproducts of farming practices that result in contamination or degradation of the environment and surrounding ecosystems, and/or cause injury to humans and their economic interests. The pol ...
, raw sewage discharges from combined sewer overflows, and toxic chemicals released by companies with water pollution permits. The state of Indiana issues a fish consumption advisory for fish from the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
based on
PCB PCB may refer to: Science and technology * Polychlorinated biphenyl, an organic chlorine compound, now recognized as an environmental toxin and classified as a persistent organic pollutant * Printed circuit board, a board used in electronics * ...
contamination. The recommended consumption limit for most fish, including
carp Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish from the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. While carp is consumed in many parts of the world, they are generally considered an invasive species in parts of ...
,
striped bass The striped bass (''Morone saxatilis''), also called the Atlantic striped bass, striper, linesider, rock, or rockfish, is an anadromous perciform fish of the family Moronidae found primarily along the Atlantic coast of North America. It has al ...
and
flathead catfish The flathead catfish (''Pylodictis olivaris''), also called by several common names including mudcat or shovelhead cat, is a large species of North American freshwater catfish in the family Ictaluridae. It is the only species of the genus ''P ...
is no more than 8 oz. per month, but for
channel catfish The channel catfish (''Ictalurus punctatus'') is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States, the ...
, the recommendation is only 8oz every two months. Six very large
coal-fired power plant A coal-fired power station or coal power plant is a thermal power station which burns coal to generate electricity. Worldwide, there are about 8,500 coal-fired power stations totaling over 2,000 gigawatts capacity. They generate about a th ...
complexes operate within 30 miles of Evansville:
Indiana-Michigan Power American Electric Power (AEP), (railcar reporting mark: AEPX) is a major investor-owned electric utility in the United States, delivering electricity to more than five million customers in 11 states. AEP ranks among the nation's largest gen ...
's
Rockport Generating Station Rockport Generating Station is a coal-fired power plant, located along the Ohio River in Ohio Township, Spencer County, Indiana, in the United States, near Rockport. The power plant is located along U.S. Route 231 (segment known as the Abraha ...
, near
Rockport, Indiana Rockport is a city in Ohio Township and the county seat of Spencer County, Indiana, along the Ohio River. The population was 2,270 at the 2010 census. Once the largest community in Spencer County, the city has recently been surpassed by the t ...
,
AES Indiana AES Indiana, formerly known as Indianapolis Power & Light Company (also known as IPL or IPALCO), is an American utility company providing electric service to the city of Indianapolis. It is a subsidiary and largest utility of AES Corporation, wh ...
's
Petersburg Generating Station Petersburg Generating Station is a major coal-fired power plant in Indiana, rated at 2.146- GW nameplate capacity. It is located on the White River near Petersburg in Pike County, Indiana, just upstream from a much smaller coal-fired Frank E. R ...
near Petersburg, and
Duke Energy Duke Energy Corporation is an American electric power and natural gas holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Overview Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Duke Energy owns 58,200 megawatts of base-load and peak generation in ...
's
Gibson Generating Station The Gibson Generating Station is a coal-burning power plant located at the northernmost end of Montgomery Township, Gibson County, Indiana, United States. It is close to the Wabash River, southeast of Mount Carmel, Illinois, south of the m ...
near
Mount Carmel Mount Carmel ( he, הַר הַכַּרְמֶל, Har haKarmel; ar, جبل الكرمل, Jabal al-Karmil), also known in Arabic as Mount Mar Elias ( ar, link=no, جبل مار إلياس, Jabal Mār Ilyās, lit=Mount Saint Elias/Elijah), is a c ...
. Evansville-Based
Vectren Vectren Corporation was a Fortune 1000 energy holding company headquartered in Evansville, Indiana. Through its utility subsidiaries (Vectren North, Vectren South, and Vectren Energy Delivery of Ohio), the company distributed natural gas to appr ...
operates the other two; the A. B. Brown Generating Station, located just west of Evansville, and Warrick County Generating Station/ F. B. Culley Generating Station complex, east of Newburgh, largely owned by
Alcoa Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primary ...
. In addition, another coal fired power plant complex, The R.D. Green Station, operated by
Touchstone Energy Touchstone Energy Cooperatives (also called simply Touchstone) is a cooperative federation composed of more than 750 local, consumer-owned utility cooperatives in 46 of the 50 United States of America. Touchstone Energy co-ops serve more than 30 m ...
's Big Rivers Electric, exists 20 miles south of Evansville, near
Sebree, Kentucky Sebree () is a home rule-class city in Webster County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 1,603 at the 2010 census. History Sebree was founded as a railroad town in 1868, just ahead of the arrival of the Louisville and Nashvi ...
. The levels of fine particles in the air in
Vanderburgh County Vanderburgh County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2010, the population was 179,703. The county seat is in Evansville. While Vanderburgh County was the seventh-largest county in 2010 population with 179,703 people, it is also the ...
were almost as high as in
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. A large portion of the downtown and north side areas were declared contaminated by lead and arsenic because of factory dumping dating back to the Civil War. Contractors have been working for more than 20 years to dig up the lawns of residents to make them safe for children to play. About 18 inches of contaminated dirt is dug up from each yard then dumped in a nearby landfill. The work has many more years to go.


Demographics

As of the 2010 census, there were 117,429 people, 50,588 households, and 28,085 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
was . There were 57,799 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 82.0%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 12.6%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.3% Native American, 1.0%
Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.1%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
, 1.3% from
other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 2.8% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
of any race were 2.6% of the population. There were 50,588 households, of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.8% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...
living together, 15.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 44.5% were non-families. 36.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.91. Median household income was $36,330 (2016), with the per capita income being $21,368 (2016). Poverty level was 21.7%. The median age in the city was 36.5 years. 22.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 11.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26% were from 25 to 44; 25.8% were from 45 to 64, and 14.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.1% male and 51.9% female.


Economy

Evansville is the regional center for a large trade area in
Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
,
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
, and
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
. The largest industry sectors in size in Evansville are healthcare, finance, education, and manufacturing. Other major industries by employment are energy, warehousing and distribution, and retail. Corporate headquarters in Evansville include
Accuride :'' Accuride International (California), an unrelated company, is a manufacturer of drawer slides.'' Accuride Corporation is a diversified manufacturer and supplier of commercial vehicle components in North America. Based in Livonia, Michigan, t ...
, Ameriqual Group, Anchor Industries,
Atlas Van Lines Atlas World Group, Inc. is a privately owned company in the moving and storage industry headquartered in Evansville, Indiana. Founded in 1948, Atlas holds the position as the 11th largest private company in the state. Atlas World Group is the p ...
, Berry Global, Evana Tool & Engineering,
Karges Furniture Karges Furniture is a family-owned furniture company originating in Evansville, Indiana. The company manufactures custom high-end furniture which is sold mostly to designers through wholesale showrooms. After the acquisition of Karges by another ...
, Koch Enterprises, Lewis Bakeries, Metronet,
Old National Bank Old National Bank is an American regional bank with nearly 200 retail branches operated by Old National Bancorp and based in Chicago, Illinois and Evansville, Indiana. With assets at $23.0 billion and 162 banking centers, Old National Bancorp i ...
, Red Spot Paint & Varnish,
Shoe Carnival Shoe Carnival Inc. is an American retailer of family footwear. The company operates 377 stores throughout the midwest, south, and southeast regions. It was founded by David Russell in 1978 and is headquartered in Evansville, Indiana. The company ...
,
OneMain Financial OneMain Holdings, Inc. is an American financial services holding company headquartered in Evansville, Indiana, with central offices throughout the United States. The company wholly owns OneMain Finance Corporation and its subsidiaries, through w ...
, and Traylor Brothers. Major manufacturing operations near the city include
Alcoa Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primary ...
in Newburgh,
AK Steel AK Steel Holdings Corporation was a steelmaking company headquartered in West Chester Township, Butler County, Ohio. The company, whose name was derived from the initials of Armco, its predecessor company, and Kawasaki Steel Corporation, was a ...
in Rockport,
SABIC Saudi Basic Industries Corporation ( ar, الشركة السعودية للصناعات الأساسية), known as SABIC ( ar, سابك), is a Saudi chemical manufacturing company. 70% of SABIC's shares are owned by Saudi Aramco. It is active in ...
in
Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...
, and
Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
in
Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...
. Other major employers with workforces of 500 or more in the area include
AT&T AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile tel ...
,
Bristol-Myers Squibb The Bristol Myers Squibb Company (BMS) is an American multinational pharmaceutical company. Headquartered in New York City, BMS is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and consistently ranks on the ''Fortune'' 500 list of the lar ...
,
SRG Global SRG Global Inc. is one of the largest manufacturers of chrome plated plastic parts for the automotive and commercial truck industries. Headquartered near Detroit in Troy, Michigan, the Tier 1 supplier has manufacturing operations across North A ...
, Industrial Contractors,
Mead Johnson Mead Johnson & Company, LLC is an American company that is a leading manufacturer of infant formula, both domestically and globally, with its flagship product Enfamil. It operates as an independent subsidiary of Reckitt. The company dates back ...
,
Peabody Energy Peabody Energy is a coal mining and energy company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Its primary business consists of the mining, sale, and distribution of coal, which is purchased for use in electricity generation and steelmaking. Peabody ...
, PGW Pittsburgh Glass,
T.J. Maxx TJ Maxx (stylized as T•J•maxx) is an American department store chain, selling at prices generally lower than other major similar stores. It has more than 1,000 stores in the United States, making it one of the largest clothing retailers in ...
, and Bally's Evansville. Evansville has emerged as the tri-state's major center for the healthcare and medical sciences industries.
Deaconess Health System Deaconess Health System is one of the largest health care networks in the Illinois–Indiana–Kentucky tri-state area. It serves a total of 26 counties and consists of 9 hospitals within Southern Indiana and 2 hospitals in Kentucky.It has been ...
and St. Vincent Evansville (formerly
St. Mary's Hospital and Medical Center Ascension St. Vincent Evansville (formerly St. Mary's Hospital and Medical Center) is the flagship hospital of a health system in the Illinois–Indiana–Kentucky tri-state area located in Evansville, Indiana and is a level II trauma center. The ...
), including the
Deaconess Gateway and Women's Hospital Deaconess Gateway Hospital, The Women's Hospital, and The Heart Hospital are all part of the Deaconess Gateway Campus of the Deaconess Health System Located on Gateway Blvd in Newburgh, near Interstate 164, this health care campus offers acute ...
just outside city limits, provide the anchors for a health care system that are among the region's largest employers. Educational institutions such as
Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation The Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation (EVSC) is a public school corporation serving Evansville, Indiana and Vanderburgh County; its boundary includes the entire county. It is the third largest school district in the state of Indiana, beh ...
,
Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana Ivy Tech Community College (Ivy Tech) is a public community college system in the U.S. state of Indiana. It is the state's public community college system and it has more than 40 locations. It is also the state's largest public postsecondary in ...
,
University of Evansville The University of Evansville (UE) is a private university in Evansville, Indiana. It was founded in 1854 as Moores Hill College. The university operates a satellite center, Harlaxton College, in Grantham, England. UE offers more than 80 differ ...
and the
University of Southern Indiana The University of Southern Indiana (USI) is a public university just outside of Evansville, Indiana. Founded in 1965, USI enrolls 9,750 dual credit, undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students in more than 130 areas of study. USI offers program ...
also contribute thousands of jobs to the tri-state annually. Evansville's strategic location on the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
, strong rail and highway infrastructure, and its designation as a U.S. Customs Port of Entry, make it an ideal location for the transfer of cargo, including internationally. Chemicals make up 64% of international exports from the metro area, followed by transportation equipment (18%) and food manufacturing (5%). Evansville is also a regional energy hub because of regional energy-related facilities such as
BWX Technologies BWX Technologies, Inc. (), headquartered in Lynchburg, Virginia is a supplier of nuclear components and fuel to the U.S. On July 1, 2015, BWX Technologies Inc. began trading separately from its former subsidiary Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises Inc ...
Nuclear Operations Group,
coal mines Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...
, Global Blade Technology, several large
ethanol Ethanol (abbr. EtOH; also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound. It is an Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol with the chemical formula . Its formula can be also written as or (an ethyl ...
and
biofuel Biofuel is a fuel that is produced over a short time span from biomass, rather than by the very slow natural processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels, such as oil. According to the United States Energy Information Administration (E ...
facilities, and a network of
gas Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma). A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon), elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g. oxygen), or ...
and
oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...
pipelines. The city of Evansville offers a tax structure for companies locating inside the Evansville urban enterprise zone. Established in 1984 as one of five enterprise zones in the state, the area offers inventory tax credits and other tax credits to eligible businesses.


Arts and culture


Entertainment venues

Historic Bosse Field, a 7,180-seat baseball stadium in Garvin Park, was built in 1915 and is the third-oldest ballpark still in regular use in the United States. It is surpassed only by
Fenway Park Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Base ...
(1912) in Boston and
Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago Wh ...
(1914) in Chicago. The Ford Center is a multi-use
indoor arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...
downtown with a maximum seating capacity of 11,000 connected via Sky Bridge to the
Evansville DoubleTree Hotel DoubleTree by Hilton is an American hotel chain managed by Hilton Worldwide. DoubleTree has been the fastest growing Hilton brand by number of properties since 2007, and by number of rooms from 2007 to 2015. As of December 31, 2019, it has 587 p ...
. It officially opened in 2011 and is used mainly for
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
,
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
, and
music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...
concerts A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or musical band, band. Concerts are held in a w ...
. A wide variety of concerts, plays, conventions, expositions and other special events are held at the 2,500-seat auditorium and convention center at the
Old National Events Plaza The Old National Events Plaza (formerly The Centre) is a convention center and auditorium in Evansville, Indiana, United States, that consists of a 2,500-seat auditorium, a exhibit hall, ballroom, and 12 flexible meeting rooms. The facility ho ...
downtown.
Victory Theatre The Victory Theatre is a 1,950 seat venue in Evansville, Indiana. It is home to the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and also hosts local ballet and modern dance companies, theatre companies, and touring productions. Opened on June 16, 1921 a ...
is a vintage 1,950-seat venue that is home to the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra. Each year, the orchestra presents a seven-concert classics series, four double pops performances, and special event concerts, as well as numerous educational and outreach performances. The theater also hosts local ballet and modern dance companies, theater companies, and touring productions. The
University of Evansville The University of Evansville (UE) is a private university in Evansville, Indiana. It was founded in 1854 as Moores Hill College. The university operates a satellite center, Harlaxton College, in Grantham, England. UE offers more than 80 differ ...
maintains a theater program, which features four mainstage and two studio productions a year. UE has been honored more times at the
Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...
than any other theatre institution. The university is the only institution, along with
Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...
, which has been asked to perform at the Kennedy Center without first going through competition. It leads the nation in the top awards for its students as awarded by the Broadway Theatre Wing and other governing bodies of serious theatre. The Evansville Civic Theatre is southern Indiana's longest-running community theater, dating from the 1920s when the community theater movement swept across the country. From its humble beginnings at the old Central High School auditorium, the theatre has had many homes – Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Coliseum, Bosse High School, the Rose Room of the McCurdy Hotel, the Elks Ballroom, and the Evansville Museum of Arts and Sciences. In 1974, Evansville Civic Theatre acquired the historic Columbia Movie Theater as its permanent home.


Annual festivals

The
West Side Nut Club Fall Festival The West Side Nut Club Fall Festival is an annual event held the first full week of every October on Franklin Street in Evansville, Indiana, and is organized by the West Side Nut Club. The festival features over 136 food booths run and operated b ...
is a street fair held in the area west of downtown Evansville. It is held on the first full week of October and draws between 100,000 and 150,000 people each day. The main attraction of the festival is the food, with includes pronto pups, elephant ears, corn dogs, chocolate-covered crickets,
fried-brain sandwich A fried brain sandwich is a sandwich of sliced calves' brains on sliced bread. Thinly sliced fried slabs on white toast became widespread on menus in St. Louis, Missouri, after the rise of the city's stockyards in the late 1880s, although dema ...
, and alligator stew.
Paul Harvey Paul Harvey Aurandt (September 4, 1918 – February 28, 2009) was an American radio broadcaster for ABC News Radio. He broadcast ''News and Comment'' on mornings and mid-days on weekdays and at noon on Saturdays and also his famous ''The Rest o ...
remarked only
Mardi Gras Mardi Gras (, ) refers to events of the Carnival celebration, beginning on or after the Christian feasts of the Epiphany (Three Kings Day) and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday, which is known as Shrove Tuesday. is French for "Fat ...
in
New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
is larger than the Fall Festival. The
Germania Männerchor Volksfest The Germania Maennerchor Volksfest is an annual German heritage festival that takes place each August in Evansville, Indiana, United States. History The festival is run by the Germania Maennerchor, which is a social and singing club founded in 1900 ...
is a three-day German heritage festival which takes place every August in the historic Germania Mannerchor building on the city's west side. The festival includes food, drink, dance, and music. Many of the city's residents with German ancestry also wear historic German attire. On the last weekend of August, 4,000
hot rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and made ...
s converge on the Vanderburgh County 4-H fairgrounds north of the city for "Frog Follies."


Museums

Angel Mounds State Park is nationally recognized as one of the best preserved prehistoric Native American sites in America. From 1100 to 1450 A. D., a town near this site was home to people of the middle Mississippian culture. Several thousand people lived in this town protected by a stockade made of wattle and daub. Because Angel Mounds was a
chiefdom A chiefdom is a form of hierarchical political organization in non-industrial societies usually based on kinship, and in which formal leadership is monopolized by the legitimate senior members of select families or 'houses'. These elites form a ...
(the home of the chief), it was the regional center of a large community. The
Children's Museum of Evansville The Koch Family Children's Museum of Evansville is an interactive children's museum in Evansville, Indiana. The museum educates and inspires children about the world. Exhibits include deconstructing objects, a water exhibit that spans multiple flo ...
opened its doors to the public in September 2006. The museum is the result of two years of planning and was constructed in the historic Central Library downtown. The
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
building is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
. The museum offers visitors three floors of interactive exhibits and galleries. The Evansville African American Museum was established to continually develop a resource and cultural center to collect, preserve, and educate the public on the history and traditions of African American families, organizations, and communities. The museum is in the last remaining building of Lincoln Gardens, the second federal housing project created under the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal in 1938. The
Evansville Museum of Arts, History, and Science The Evansville Museum of Arts, History & Science is a general-interest museum located on the Ohio riverfront in downtown Evansville, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1904, it is one of Southern Indiana's most established and significant cultural ...
is home to one of southern Indiana's most established and significant cultural centers. It holds the Koch Planetarium, the oldest in Indiana. Also on the campus is the Evansville Museum Transportation Center, which features transportation in southern Indiana from the latter part of the nineteenth century through the mid-twentieth century. The
Reitz Home Museum The Reitz Home Museum is a Victorian house museum located in the Riverside Historic District in downtown Evansville, Indiana. The museum offers year-round guided tours. An authentic restoration offers visitors a step back in time with silk da ...
is Evansville's only Victorian House Museum. It is noted as one of the country's finest examples of
second French empire The Second French Empire (; officially the French Empire, ), was the 18-year Empire, Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 14 January 1852 to 27 October 1870, between the French Second Republic, Second and the French Third Republic ...
architecture. It was placed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1973. In October 2005, the moored in Evansville and was turned into a museum (USS LST Ship Memorial) in recognition of the city's war effort. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Evansville produced 167 LSTs (and 35 other craft), making it the largest inland producer of LSTs in the nation. The USS ''LST-325'' is the last navigable
tank landing ship Landing Ship, Tank (LST), or tank landing ship, is the naval designation for ships first developed during World War II (1939–1945) to support amphibious operations by carrying tanks, vehicles, cargo, and landing troops directly onto shore with ...
in operation. The Evansville Wartime Museum was opened on the weekend of Memorial Day in 2017. The Museum features exhibits commemorating Evansville's role in the Allied war effort during World War II including a display of one of the few remaining P-47 Thunderbolts.


Mesker Park Zoo

The Mesker Park Zoo & Botanic Garden opened in 1928 and is one of the oldest and largest zoos in the state. Set in a park, the zoo features 200 species and more than 700 animals. An estimated 3 million people visit the zoo between April and August every year. Mesker Park Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.


Libraries

Evansville is home to the
Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library The Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library (EVPL) is a public library system serving Evansville and Vanderburgh County in Indiana, USA. The EVPL also supplements the services provided by the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation and has the a ...
(EVPL). As a unified system serving both Evansville and the surrounding county, EVPL is one of the largest public library systems in
Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
. It was rated a five star library by the
Library Journal ''Library Journal'' is an American trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional prac ...
, which places it in the top 1% of public libraries in the U.S. EVPL also obtained a Top Ten library ranking in the 2010 edition of Hennen's American Public Library Ratings, achieving a number eight ranking within its population category. An independent private institution,
Willard Library The Willard Library is a private donation library incorporated in 1881 to serve the city of Evansville, Indiana, and to carry out the terms of a private trust. The Willard Library houses a trove of local archives and genealogical materials in add ...
, is also in Evansville. Willard was formed in 1881 to serve the public, regardless of race, a progressive mission in the latter half of the nineteenth century. The library houses local archives and genealogical materials, in addition to its collection of standard publications. The building is constructed in the
Gothic Revival style Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
and was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1972.


Sports

Evansville is home to two
NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...
athletic programs. The
Evansville Purple Aces The Evansville Purple Aces are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of the University of Evansville, located in Evansville, Indiana. The Aces athletic program is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference and competes at the NCAA's Divis ...
basketball team plays at the Ford Center. The
Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles The Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles (colloquially known as Screagles) are the athletic teams that represent the University of Southern Indiana, located outside Evansville in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, in NCAA Division I intercollegiate sports ...
basketball team plays on campus at Screaming Eagles Arena. Evansville is home to several professional teams as well. The
Evansville Otters The Evansville Otters are a professional baseball team based in Evansville, Indiana. They compete in the West Division of the independent Frontier League. Since their establishment in 1995, the Otters have played at historic Bosse Field, which o ...
are a professional baseball team in the
Frontier League The Frontier League is a professional independent baseball league with teams in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Eastern Canada. Formed in 1993, it is the oldest currently running independent league in the United States. The le ...
and have played at
Bosse Field Bosse Field is a baseball stadium located in Evansville, Indiana. Opened in 1915, it was the first municipally owned sports stadium in the United States and is the third-oldest ballpark still in regular use for professional baseball, surpassed o ...
since 1995. The
Evansville Thunderbolts The Evansville Thunderbolts are a minor league ice hockey team in the Southern Professional Hockey League. The team plays at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana. The team replaced the Evansville IceMen of the ECHL. History During the 2015 ...
are a minor league professional
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
team in the
Southern Professional Hockey League The Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) is a professional ice hockey independent minor league based in Huntersville, North Carolina, with teams located primarily in the southeastern United States as well as Illinois and Indiana in the mid ...
and play at the Ford Center. There was also a junior hockey team named the Evansville Jr. Thunderbolts in the NA3HL and played at Swonder Ice Arena from 2015 to 2019. The Evansville Coliseum is home to the
WFTDA The Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) is the international governing body for the sport of women's flat track roller derby, and association of leagues around the world. The organization was founded in April 2004 as the United Leagues Co ...
league, the
Demolition City Roller Derby Demolition City Roller Derby (DCRD) is a women's flat-track roller derby league in Evansville, Indiana, and is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). History and organization DCRD became Evansville's first flat-track roll ...
. In 2021, the city saw the formation of two minor league soccer clubs: the
Evansville Legends FC Evansville Legends FC is an American soccer club based in Evansville, Indiana. The team was founded in 2021 by Steve McCullough and competes in the River Conference of the Ohio Valley Premier League. The Legends play their home games on Old Nat ...
and the Midwest Hooligans. The Legends compete in the
Ohio Valley Premier League The Ohio Valley Premier League (OVPL) is a United States Adult Soccer Association, USASA-affiliated league through US Club Soccer that includes teams from Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. The regular season of the OVPL run ...
on Old National Bank Field at
Goebel Soccer Complex Goebel Soccer Complex is a multi-purpose, $3.4 million project that opened in the spring of 2004 on of land in Evansville, Indiana. The facility has nine Olympic-size irrigated Bermuda grass fields and one Olympic-size AstroPlay turf field. Th ...
. The Hooligans compete in the
United Premier Soccer League The United Premier Soccer League (UPSL) is an American soccer league that was founded in Santa Ana in Southern California, with teams in regionalized conferences throughout the United States, and recently Canada and Mexico. The league was found ...
and play at Double Cola Soccer Complex near the demolition site of Roberts Stadium. From 1957 to 1975, and then again in 2002, 2014, 2015, 2019, and from 2021 to 2025 Evansville hosted the
NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Championship The NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament (officially styled by the NCAA as a "Championship" instead of a "Tournament") is an annual championship tournament for colleges and universities that are members of NCAA Division II, a grouping of ...
(Elite Eight). From 1999 to 2007, Roberts Stadium hosted the
Great Lakes Valley Conference The Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Its thirteen member institutions are located in the U.S. states of Illinois ...
basketball tournaments, and in 2013, the same event was held at the Ford Center. A number of Division I NCAA events have been hosted by the city as well. In 1983 Roberts Stadium hosted the first round of the
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, branded as NCAA March Madness and commonly called March Madness, is a single-elimination tournament played each spring in the United States, currently featuring 68 college basketball teams from ...
, and in 1980 and 1983, it hosted the
Midwestern City Conference The Horizon League is an 11-school collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I, whose members are located in and near the Great Lakes region. The ...
men's basketball conference tournament. The Ford Center has hosted the
Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern and Southeastern United States, Southeastern United States. It participates in NCAA Divisi ...
men's and
women's A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
basketball tournaments since 2018. Evansville used to play host to the top tier boat racing circuit of
H1 Unlimited H1 Unlimited is an American Unlimited Hydroplane racing league that is sanctioned by the American Power Boat Association (APBA). Until 2009, the series was known as ABRA Unlimited Hydroplane, in turn renamed from APBA Unlimited Hydroplane in 2004. ...
when it hosted
Thunder on the Ohio :''Also see: Sports in Evansville''. Thunder on the Ohio was a hydroplane boat race in the H1 Unlimited season. Thunder was held each year on the Ohio River in downtown Evansville, Indiana, United States. Evansville had hosted Thunder on the ...
along the Ohio River in downtown Evansville, which was hosted continuously from 1979 to 2009. Evansville had also previously hosted Thunder on the Ohio from 1938 to 1940. The two-mile Evansville tri-oval was known as one of the fastest hydroplane courses in the world, as various world records were set on the Evansville course. Hydroplane racing returned to Evansville in 2017, with the introduction of the Evansville Hydrofest, an
American Power Boat Association The American Power Boat Association (APBA) is an American membership-owned corporation. In 1903, New York's Columbia Yacht Club had formulated a constitution for what ultimately became the APBA. It is the United States sanctioning authority for the ...
event.
Goebel Soccer Complex Goebel Soccer Complex is a multi-purpose, $3.4 million project that opened in the spring of 2004 on of land in Evansville, Indiana. The facility has nine Olympic-size irrigated Bermuda grass fields and one Olympic-size AstroPlay turf field. Th ...
is on of land and features nine Olympic-size irrigated Bermuda grass fields and one Olympic-size AstroPlay turf field. Additionally, Double Cola Soccer Complex provides twin soccer fields and stadium seating for the high school regular season and postseason matches. Swonder Ice Arena is a double-rink facility that opened in the fall of 2002 and features a fitness center, a skate park, and party rooms. High schools in the EVSC district used Lloyd Pool for SIAC swimming and diving meets before its shutdown and demolition plans in 2021. The Deaconess Aquatic Center replaced Lloyd as the local hub for swim and dive in October 2021. Evansville has hosted Drums on the Ohio, a
Drum Corps International Drum Corps International (DCI) is a governing body for junior drum and bugle corps responsible for developing and enforcing rules of competition, and for providing standardized adjudication at sanctioned drum and bugle corps competitions througho ...
Summer tour competition at the Reitz Bowl, since 1978 with a brief hiatus from 2008 to 2013. The event normally takes place in June, and draws over 3,000 spectators. It is the only DCI event within a 100 mile radius.


Parks and recreation

Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve is a nature preserve located in Evansville, Indiana. It is a National Natural Landmark and a State Nature Preserve owned by the City of Evansville and operated by the non-profit Wesselman Nature Society. The prese ...
is a
National Natural Landmark The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best ...
containing approximately of virgin bottomland hardwood forest, the largest tract of virgin forest inside any city limits in the United States. The Nature Center features exhibits, events, wildlife observation areas, meeting rooms, library, and gift shop. Adjacent to the Nature Preserve, Wesselman Park features a Par 3 golf course, basketball courts, tennis courts, sand volleyball courts, softball fields, and a playground. Evansville has a municipal park system with 65 parks and 21 special facilities encompassing more than of land in the city of Evansville and Vanderburgh County. A bicycle and pedestrian trail extend into adjacent counties and links to the
American Discovery Trail The American Discovery Trail is a system of recreational trails and roads that collectively form a coast-to-coast hiking and biking trail across the mid-tier of the United States. Horses can also be ridden on most of this trail. The coastal tra ...
. This trail system includes the Pigeon Creek Greenway Passage, a bicycle and pedestrian trail. The city's operates four public golf courses, two disc golf courses, Garvin Park, Lloyd Pool, the Goebel Soccer Complex, Swonder Ice Arena and the C.K. Newsome Community Center. Anchored by the Four Freedoms Monument and the Bally's Evansville, Dress Plaza along the riverfront offers a brick paved walkway above, and tiered seating below with a view of the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
.


Government

The Mayor of Evansville,
Lloyd Winnecke Lloyd Winnecke (born June 6, 1960) is an American politician and businessman serving as the 34th mayor of Evansville, Indiana. He was elected in November 2011 and his four-year term began January 1, 2012. In November 2015, Winnecke was re-elec ...
, serves as the chief executive officer. Cities in Indiana have a
Mayor–council government The mayor–council government system is a system of local government that has a mayor who is directly elected by the voters serve as chief executive, and a separately elected legislative city council. It is one of the two most common forms of loc ...
, or strong mayor system, so the mayor has most of the executive and administrative power over the city’s daily operations. A nine-member elected
City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...
is the legislative and fiscal body of city government. The Council’s nine members are made up of one representative from each of the City’s six Council districts and three at-large members. Members are part-time elected officials who serve for four-year terms. As the legislative body, the Council has the exclusive responsibility of passing or changing local laws. As the fiscal body, the Council has the authority to levy certain taxes and it has the sole responsibility of adopting a City budget each year. The county has eight state trial courts of original jurisdiction. One circuit court and seven superior courts. The judge's offices are non-partisan in terms of six years. A judge must be a member of the Indiana Bar Association. The judges are assisted by magistrates that are appointed. circuit court. The
United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana (in case citations, S.D. Ind.) is a federal district court in Indiana. It was created in 1928 by an act of Congress that split Indiana into two separate districts, northern an ...
maintains a permanent division in the city. Vanderburgh County's delegation to the Indiana State House of Representatives comprises three representatives: Wendy McNamara (District 76), Gail Riecken (District 77), and Holli Sullivan (District 78). Evansville and Vanderburgh County are represented by two state senators. In general, the southern third of the county and Armstrong Township are part of District 49, currently held by
Jim Tomes Jim Tomes (born July 31, 1948) is a Republican member of the Indiana Senate, representing the Senate District 49 since 2010. As one of the founders of the 2nd Amendment Patriots gun rights grassroots organization, he has served as its director s ...
. The county's west side is also in District 49. Most of the county is in District 50, which extends to the east, a seat held by
Vaneta Becker Vaneta Becker (October 9, 1949) is an American politician who serves as a Republican Senator in the Indiana Senate representing Senate District 50, which contains portions of Vanderburgh and Warrick County in the southern part of the state. Sh ...
. The region is in the 8th District of Indiana and served by U.S. Representative
Larry Bucshon Larry Dean Bucshon ( ; born May 31, 1962) is an American politician and physician who has been the U.S. representative for since 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party. Early life, education, and early career Bucshon was born in Taylo ...
. Evansville is the county seat of
Vanderburgh County Vanderburgh County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2010, the population was 179,703. The county seat is in Evansville. While Vanderburgh County was the seventh-largest county in 2010 population with 179,703 people, it is also the ...
. Some of the city's governmental functions are shared with
Vanderburgh County Vanderburgh County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2010, the population was 179,703. The county seat is in Evansville. While Vanderburgh County was the seventh-largest county in 2010 population with 179,703 people, it is also the ...
officials. In recent years various bi-partisan groups have advocated merging the Evansville city and Vanderburgh County governments, as was done in other surrounding cities such as
Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
,
Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...
, and
Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
. Evansville and Vanderburgh County already have a number of notable merged government functions. The school system is consolidated countywide in the
Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation The Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation (EVSC) is a public school corporation serving Evansville, Indiana and Vanderburgh County; its boundary includes the entire county. It is the third largest school district in the state of Indiana, beh ...
and the library system is consolidated countywide in the
Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library The Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library (EVPL) is a public library system serving Evansville and Vanderburgh County in Indiana, USA. The EVPL also supplements the services provided by the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation and has the a ...
. Additional countywide authorities are in place for the
Evansville Regional Airport Evansville Regional Airport is three miles north of Evansville, in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. It is owned and operated by the Evansville-Vanderburgh Airport Authority District. Federal Aviation Administration records say the ai ...
and for flood control via the countywide levee authority.


Mayors

The following is a list of mayors of Evansville:


Education


Higher education

Evansville is home to several institutions of higher learning. The
University of Evansville The University of Evansville (UE) is a private university in Evansville, Indiana. It was founded in 1854 as Moores Hill College. The university operates a satellite center, Harlaxton College, in Grantham, England. UE offers more than 80 differ ...
(UE) is a small, private, Methodist affiliated university with approximately 3,050 students. Founded in 1854, UE features
liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term ''art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the ...
and
science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...
degrees along with a nationally renowned theatre department. Nearly half of UE's students study abroad as part of their experience, including at a satellite campus, Harlaxton College, in
Grantham Grantham () is a market and industrial town in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, situated on the banks of the River Witham and bounded to the west by the A1 road. It lies some 23 miles (37 km) south of the Lincoln and ...
,
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. UE athletic teams participate in Division I of the
NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
and are known as the Purple Aces. Evansville is a member of the
Missouri Valley Conference The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the third-oldest collegiate athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the midwest. History The MVC was established ...
The
University of Southern Indiana The University of Southern Indiana (USI) is a public university just outside of Evansville, Indiana. Founded in 1965, USI enrolls 9,750 dual credit, undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students in more than 130 areas of study. USI offers program ...
(USI) is a
public university A public university or public college is a university or college that is in owned by the state or receives significant public funds through a national or subnational government, as opposed to a private university. Whether a national universit ...
just outside Evansville city limits. Founded in 1965, the school has an enrollment of 11,021 students (2019) and is among the fastest growing comprehensive state universities in Indiana. USI athletic teams participate in Division I of the
NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
and are known as the Screaming Eagles. USI is a member of the
Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern and Southeastern United States, Southeastern United States. It participates in NCAA Divisi ...
. The school began transitioning to Division 1 sports in the 2022-2023 school year. The
Indiana University School of Medicine - Evansville The Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM) is a major multi-campus medical school in the state of Indiana. There are nine campuses throughout the state; the principal research and medical center is located on the Indiana University–Purdu ...
opened in 2018 in a new interdisciplinary academic health science education and research campus downtown in partnership with the University of Southern Indiana and the University of Evansville. Other campuses in the city include
Ivy Tech Community College Ivy Tech Community College (Ivy Tech) is a public community college system in the U.S. state of Indiana. It is the state's public community college system and it has more than 40 locations. It is also the state's largest public postsecondary in ...
and
Oakland City University Oakland City University (OCU) is a private university affiliated with the General Baptist Church and located in Oakland City, Indiana Oakland City is the third-largest city in Gibson County, Indiana, United States, after Princeton and Fort ...
's School of Adult and Extended Learning.


Primary and secondary education

The
Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation The Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation (EVSC) is a public school corporation serving Evansville, Indiana and Vanderburgh County; its boundary includes the entire county. It is the third largest school district in the state of Indiana, beh ...
consists of five public high schools, 11 middle schools, and 20 elementary schools. In addition, there are two parochial, two charter, and one private school. Catholic education is administered by the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Evansville The Diocese of Evansville ( la, Dioecesis Evansvicensis) is a diocese of the Catholic Church in Southwestern Indiana. On October 21, 1944, the then- Diocese of Indianapolis was split into the Archdiocese of Indianapolis and the Diocese of Ev ...
.


Notable public schools

*
Benjamin Bosse High School Benjamin Bosse High School, referred to as Evansville Bosse High School by the IHSAA, is a public high school of the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation in Evansville, Indiana, United States. Bosse is the third smallest high school by enrol ...
* Central High School * North High School *
FJ Reitz High School Francis Joseph Reitz High School (FJ Reitz High School, FJ Reitz, or simply Reitz) is a public high school on the west side of Evansville, Indiana. It was founded in 1918 following a donation from local philanthropist and banker Francis Joseph ...
* William Henry Harrison High School *
Southern Indiana Career & Technical Center The Southern Indiana Career & Technical Center is a high school-level institution that provides advanced education to meet the demand in the areas of agriculture, business and marketing, family and consumer sciences, health careers, and trade and ...


Notable Catholic schools

*
Reitz Memorial High School Reitz Memorial High School or simply Memorial High School (MHS) is an inter-parochial Catholic high school on the east side of Evansville, Indiana. It sits on land bought with money donated by Francis Joseph Reitz in 1922 in memory of his parents ...
* Mater Dei High School


Charter school

* Signature School


Private school

*
Evansville Day School Evansville Day School (EDS) is a private, Jr. PreK-12 college-preparatory school located in Evansville, Indiana in the United States. It is the only independent coeducational, day school in Evansville and the surrounding region. To accommodate ...
offers grades JPK-12. * Evansville Christian School offers grades PK-12


Media

The ''
Evansville Courier & Press The ''Evansville Courier & Press'' is a daily newspaper based in Evansville, Indiana. It serves about 30,000 daily and 50,000 Sunday readers. History The ''Evansville Courier'' was founded in 1845 by William Newton, a young attorney. Its first ...
'', owned by Gannett, serves the Evansville area. The newspaper also publishes the monthly magazines ''Evansville Business Journal'' and ''eWoman Magazine'', and it owns the ''
Henderson Gleaner ''The Henderson Gleaner'' (also known as ''The Gleaner'') is the daily newspaper in Henderson, Kentucky. The newspaper is published Tuesday through Sunday mornings. It has not been published on Mondays since it was founded in the 1880s. ''The Gl ...
'' in neighboring
Henderson, Kentucky Henderson is a home rule-class city along the Ohio River and is the county seat of Henderson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 28,757 at the 2010 U.S. census. It is part of the Evansville Metropolitan Area, locally known as the ...
. ''Evansville Living'' and ''Evansville Business'', published locally by Tucker Publishing Group, are bi-monthly local magazines showcasing the people, businesses, and communities in the area. Other media publications include ''Maturity Journal'', a free monthly newspaper aimed at senior citizens, and ''News4U'', a free monthly entertainment magazine. The Evansville area is primarily serviced by radio stations in Indiana and Kentucky. The two main radio groups in Evansville that control the majority of its radio stations are
Townsquare Media Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wi ...
and
Midwest Communications Midwest Communications is a Wausau, Wisconsin-based radio broadcasting company. It owns 82 radio stations located primarily within the Midwest United States, in Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Illinois and ...
. Radio stations providing coverage to Evansville include: WSWI/820, WGBF/1280, WBGW/1330, WEOA/1400, WABX/107.5, WDKS/106.1, WJPS/107.1, WGBF-FM/103.1, WIKY-FM/104.1, WJLT/105.3, WKDQ/99.5, WLYD/93.5, WNIN-FM/88.3, WSTO/96.1, WBKR/92.5 WJWA/91.5 and WPSR/90.7. Evansville is, as of the 2015-16 rankings, the 103rd-largest
television market A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...
in the United States according to
Nielsen Media Research Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...
. The
designated market area A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...
consists of 30 counties in Southeastern
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
,
Southwestern Indiana Southwestern Indiana is an 11-county region of southern Indiana, United States located at the southernmost and westernmost part of the state. As of the 2010 census, the region's combined population is 474,251. Evansville, Indiana's third-largest c ...
, and Northwestern
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
. The 2010 population estimate of this 30-county region is nearly one million people. Local Broadcast Television:


Infrastructure


Transportation

Immediate access to many major forms of
transportation Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, ...
makes Evansville an important factor in Indiana's global economy. The city boasts road, rail, water, and air transportation systems. The
Evansville Regional Airport Evansville Regional Airport is three miles north of Evansville, in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. It is owned and operated by the Evansville-Vanderburgh Airport Authority District. Federal Aviation Administration records say the ai ...
, housed in a
terminal Terminal may refer to: Computing Hardware * Terminal (electronics), a device for joining electrical circuits together * Terminal (telecommunication), a device communicating over a line * Computer terminal, a set of primary input and output dev ...
, offers over 30 flights a day to destinations around the country. Evansville does not have convenient access to commuter rail. Evansville has a growing interstate system.
I-64 Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at I-70, U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at an interchang ...
is eight miles north of the city and straddles the
Gibson Gibson may refer to: People * Gibson (surname) Businesses * Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment * Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based * Gi ...
-
Vanderburgh County Vanderburgh County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2010, the population was 179,703. The county seat is in Evansville. While Vanderburgh County was the seventh-largest county in 2010 population with 179,703 people, it is also the ...
line. This interstate routes west to
St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
and runs east to
Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...
.
I-69 Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of 10 unconnected segments with an original continuous segment from Indianapolis, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, at ...
provides a convenient link from I-64 to the city's thriving eastside retail district and a direct route to the downtown business district via the
Veterans Memorial Parkway The Veterans Memorial Parkway (VMP, known as "Veterans" by locals) is a 13.4 kilometre (8.3 mi) expressway located in the Canadian province of Ontario. The expressway was previously known as King's Highway 100 from 1977 until 1993, and as Airp ...
. It is also being extended north to Indianapolis. U.S. Highway 41 connects the city with
Henderson Henderson may refer to: People *Henderson (surname), description of the surname, and a list of people with the surname *Clan Henderson, a Scottish clan Places Argentina *Henderson, Buenos Aires Australia *Henderson, Western Australia Canada * H ...
via the
Bi-State Vietnam Gold Star Bridges The Bi-State Vietnam Gold Star Twin Bridges, (usually referred to as simply The Twin Bridges, despite differences in their widths), are located in Henderson County, Kentucky and connect Henderson, Kentucky, and Evansville, Indiana, along U.S. Ro ...
to the south and, to the north, the cities of
Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...
,
Vincennes Vincennes (, ) is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. It is next to but does not include the Château de Vincennes and Bois de Vincennes, which are attached ...
, and
Terre Haute Terre Haute ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, about 5 miles east of the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a ...
. Other major local state roads include State Road 57, State Road 62 (Morgan Avenue /
Lloyd Expressway The Lloyd Expressway is a major east-west Highway, traffic artery located in Vanderburgh County, Indiana. The route primarily runs through Evansville, Indiana, reaching from Interstate 69 in Indiana, Interstate 69 on the east side of the city t ...
), and State Road 66 (
Lloyd Expressway The Lloyd Expressway is a major east-west Highway, traffic artery located in Vanderburgh County, Indiana. The route primarily runs through Evansville, Indiana, reaching from Interstate 69 in Indiana, Interstate 69 on the east side of the city t ...
/ Diamond Avenue). Public transit includes the
Metropolitan Evansville Transit System Metropolitan Evansville Transit System (METS) is a public transit system consisting primarily of bus service in the city of Evansville, Indiana. History The Metropolitan Evansville Transit System was created in 1971 to address Evansville's gr ...
(METS) which provides bus transportation to all sections of the city. Evansville has several multi-use trails for bikes and pedestrians, and in many areas there are on-road bike paths that help cyclists get around the city by bicycle. Like most cities, Evansville was served by electric streetcars into the 20th century. The community is served by Uber and Lyft and as of fall 2019 rentable scooters. Evansville has historically been a center for
railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
traffic. The
Evansville and Crawfordsville Railroad The Evansville and Crawfordsville Railroad Company was Evansville, Indiana's first railroad company. It was first chartered in 1853 by William D. Griswold, a lawyer in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was renamed Evansville and Terre Haute Railroad in 18 ...
was first completed in 1853. The Big Four, Illinois Central, and the Southern Railway served the city in early decades of the 20th century. The Chicago & Eastern Illinois closed its station in 1935 and merged its trains into the Louisville and Nashville Railroad station. Evansville's last remaining depot, the L&N station, last had passenger trains in 1971 with unnamed remnants of the Chicago & Eastern Illinois' and the
Louisville and Nashville The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of the ...
's ''
Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
'': one to St. Louis, and another to Atlanta via Nashville. Today, the city is served by four major freight railroads,
CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track. ...
(with a major yard in the Howell area),
Evansville Western Railway The Evansville Western Railway is a Class III common carrier shortline railroad operating in the southern Illinois and Indiana region. It is one of three regional railroad subsidiaries owned and operated by P&L Transportation. Overview Foun ...
, the
Indiana Southwestern Railway Indiana Southwestern Railway is a subsidiary of Pioneer Railcorp, operator of several short-line railroad companies. The ISW is a Class III railroad, and operated on 17 miles of track from Evansville, Indiana, northward to Cynthiana, Indiana. ...
, and the
Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...
. The Howell Yard in Evansville sorts and makes up trains, and has intermodal facilities to handle 3,000 cargo containers and piggyback trailers per month Three public and several private port facilities receive year-round service from five major
barge Barge nowadays generally refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but nowadays most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels ...
lines operating on the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
. The river connects Evansville with all river markets in the central United States and on the
Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...
and with international markets through the port of
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
. Evansville has been a
U.S. Customs The United States Customs Service was the very first federal law enforcement agency of the U.S. federal government. Established on July 31, 1789, it collected import tariffs, performed other selected border security duties, as well as conducted ...
port of entry In general, a port of entry (POE) is a place where one may lawfully enter a country. It typically has border security staff and facilities to check passports and visas and to inspect luggage to assure that contraband is not imported. Internati ...
for more than 125 years. Because of this, it is possible to have international cargo shipped to Evansville in bond. The international cargo can then clear Customs in Evansville rather than a coastal port.


Utilities

Electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...
and
natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...
are both provided to Evansville by Centerpoint Energy. Water and sewer services are provided by the Evansville Water & Sewer Utility, which provides water to more than 75,000 customers in Evansville and the surrounding area. The
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
provides for most of the city's source of drinking water. Water is drawn from the river and filtered at a 60 million gallon per day treatment plant. There are approximately 1,000 miles of water mains in the system and includes approximately 6,000 fire hydrants.


Police

From 1818 to 1847, law enforcement was administered by the
Warrick County Warrick County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 63,898. The county seat is Boonville. It was organized in 1813 and was named for Captain Jacob Warrick, an Indiana militia company commander killed ...
sheriff, and from 1847 to 1863, the city marshal shared policing duties with the police department. In 1863, the Evansville Police Department was founded.


Notable people


In popular culture


Film and television

Game scenes in the 1992 film ''
A League of Their Own ''A League of Their Own'' is a 1992 American sports comedy-drama film directed by Penny Marshall that tells a fictionalized account of the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). The film stars Tom Hanks, Geena Dav ...
'' were filmed at
Bosse Field Bosse Field is a baseball stadium located in Evansville, Indiana. Opened in 1915, it was the first municipally owned sports stadium in the United States and is the third-oldest ballpark still in regular use for professional baseball, surpassed o ...
. It is the third oldest baseball stadium still in use in the United States (behind
Fenway Park Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Base ...
in
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
and
Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago Wh ...
in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
). The ballpark served as the homefield for the
Racine Belles The Racine Belles were one of the original teams of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League playing from through out of Racine, Wisconsin. The Belles won the league's first championship. The team played its home games at Horlick Fi ...
. Scenes from the 2014
Michael Rosenbaum Michael Owen Rosenbaum (born July 11, 1972) is an American actor and podcaster. He is known for portraying Lex Luthor on the Superman television series ''Smallville'', a role that ''TV Guide'' included in their 2013 list of "The 60 Nastiest Vill ...
movie '' Back in the Day'' feature Green River Road in Evansville. All exterior shots on the 1988-1997
sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...
''
Roseanne ''Roseanne'' is an American sitcom television series created by Matt Williams and Roseanne Barr which aired on ABC from October 18, 1988, to May 20, 1997, and briefly revived from March 27, 2018, to May 22, 2018. The show stars Barr as Roseann ...
'' are still photographs taken in and around Evansville. The Conners' house is at 619 South Runnymeade Avenue, and the Lobo Lounge is a pizzeria at the corner of Edgar and Louisiana Streets. Matt Williams, one of the show's producers, is a native of Evansville and a graduate of The University of Evansville theatre program. He is a co-founder of Wind Dancer Productions and has been involved with numerous sitcoms such as 'Home Improvement', movies and dramatic plays for Broadway. ''
The Daily Show ''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk and satirical news television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central with release shortly after on Paramount+. ''The Daily Show'' draws its comedy and satire form from ...
'' has featured Evansville in two episodes. The first featured a story about comedian Carrot Top's reopening of the historic Victory Theatre. The second poked fun at former mayor Russell Lloyd Jr. for skipping out on a city meeting to attend
Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...
's Farewell Tour concert being performed on the same night at Roberts Stadium. Evansville was also featured in
Alton Brown Alton Crawford Brown Jr. (born July 30, 1962) is an American television personality, food show presenter, chef, author, voice actor, and cinematographer. He is the creator and host of the Food Network television show ''Good Eats'' that ran for ...
's series ''
Feasting on Asphalt ''Feasting on Asphalt'' is a television series starring Alton Brown of the Food Network programs '' Good Eats'' and ''Iron Chef America''. Brown's third series, ''Feasting on Asphalt'' explores "road food" (eating establishments which cater to tr ...
''. Alton and his crew visited the historic
Greyhound Bus Greyhound Lines, Inc. (commonly known as simply Greyhound) operates the largest intercity bus service in North America, including Greyhound Mexico. It also operates charter bus services, Amtrak Thruway services, commuter bus services, and p ...
station for its
vending machine A vending machine is an automated machine that provides items such as snacks, beverages, cigarettes, and lottery tickets to consumers after cash, a credit card, or other forms of payment are inserted into the machine or otherwise made. The fir ...
s, the
YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...
tea room for lunch, and the Hilltop Inn for a brain sandwich and
burgoo Burgoo is a stew, similar to Irish or Mulligan stew, often served with cornbread or corn muffins. It is often prepared communally as a social gathering. It is popular as the basis for civic fund-raisers in the American Midwest and South. Et ...
. Other shows have included '' Ghost Hunters'' which investigated
Willard Library The Willard Library is a private donation library incorporated in 1881 to serve the city of Evansville, Indiana, and to carry out the terms of a private trust. The Willard Library houses a trove of local archives and genealogical materials in add ...
's "Gray Lady" ghost and ''
Storm Stories ''Storm Stories'' is an American non-fiction television series that airs on The Weather Channel (TWC) and Zone Reality. It is hosted and narrated by meteorologist and storm tracker Jim Cantore. ''Storm Stories'' showcases various types of severe ...
'' on
The Weather Channel The Weather Channel (TWC) is an American pay television channel owned by Weather Group, LLC, a subsidiary of Allen Media Group. The channel's headquarters are in Atlanta, Georgia. Launched on May 2, 1982, the channel broadcasts weather forecas ...
documenting the devastating
tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...
that struck the city in 2005. The city was briefly featured in the 2007 ''
Prison Break ''Prison Break'' is an American serial (radio and television), serial drama television show, television series created by Paul Scheuring for Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox. The series revolves around two brothers, Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purce ...
'' episode "
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
". In 2012, Evansville was featured on the British television program '' Supersize vs Superskinny'' because of a poll that ranked the residents of the city as the most
obese Obesity is a medical condition, sometimes considered a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it may negatively affect health. People are classified as obese when their body mass index (BMI)—a person's we ...
in the United States. Evansville and neighboring Newburgh was the featured location for the feature film ''Back in the Day'' filmed in 2014. Evansville is mentioned several times in the
third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (d ...
and fourth seasons of the
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
series ''
Boardwalk Empire ''Boardwalk Empire'' is an American period crime drama television series created by Terence Winter and broadcast on the premium cable channel HBO. The series is set chiefly in Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition era of the 1920s and ...
''. In 2021, an episode of HBO's "
We're Here ''We're Here'' is an American reality television series on HBO featuring former ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' contestants Bob the Drag Queen, Eureka O'Hara and Shangela. In the series, the trio of drag queens travel across the United States to recruit ...
" was filmed in Evansville.


Literary media

Evansville is featured in a section of
Vladimir Nabokov Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov (russian: link=no, Владимир Владимирович Набоков ; 2 July 1977), also known by the pen name Vladimir Sirin (), was a Russian-American novelist, poet, translator, and entomologist. Bo ...
's 1955 novel ''
Lolita ''Lolita'' is a 1955 novel written by Russian-American novelist Vladimir Nabokov. The novel is notable for its controversial subject: the protagonist and unreliable narrator, a middle-aged literature professor under the pseudonym Humbert Humber ...
'', as well as
Walker Percy Walker Percy, OSB (May 28, 1916 – May 10, 1990) was an American writer whose interests included philosophy and semiotics. Percy is noted for his philosophical novels set in and around New Orleans; his first, ''The Moviegoer'', won the Nat ...
's 1962 novel ''
The Moviegoer ''The Moviegoer'' is the debut novel by Walker Percy, first published in the United States by Alfred A. Knopf in 1961. It won the U.S. National Book Award.Robert Silverberg Robert Silverberg (born January 15, 1935) is an American author and editor, best known for writing science fiction. He is a multiple winner of both Hugo and Nebula Awards, a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame, and a Grand ...
's 1969 science fiction novel '' To Live Again''. Evansville is the primary location in the historical fiction novel, ''Invitation to Valhalla'' by Mike Whicker, published in 2004. The novel is based on the records of German spy Erika Lehmann's attempt to infiltrate the LST shipyards during WWII. An Evansville couple is the focus of "Hungarian Rhapsody: An Adoption Story" by James Derk, based on a series of stories in the ''
Evansville Courier & Press The ''Evansville Courier & Press'' is a daily newspaper based in Evansville, Indiana. It serves about 30,000 daily and 50,000 Sunday readers. History The ''Evansville Courier'' was founded in 1845 by William Newton, a young attorney. Its first ...
''. Evansville, under the name Vansul, appears as a slapstick satire in the
post-apocalyptic Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which the Earth's (or another planet's) civilization is collapsing or has collapsed. The apocalypse event may be climatic, such as runaway climate change; astro ...
novel ''Light of the Ancient Sun''. Evansville is the hometown of the protagonist, Jack Crabb, in Thomas Berger's 1964 book ''
Little Big Man Little Big Man ( Lakota: Wičháša Tȟáŋkala), or Charging Bear, was an Oglala Lakota, or Oglala Sioux, who was a fearless and respected warrior who fought under, and was distant cousin to, Crazy Horse ("His-Horse-Is-Crazy"). He opposed the 186 ...
''. This is not mentioned in the 1970 cinematic adaption, ''
Little Big Man Little Big Man ( Lakota: Wičháša Tȟáŋkala), or Charging Bear, was an Oglala Lakota, or Oglala Sioux, who was a fearless and respected warrior who fought under, and was distant cousin to, Crazy Horse ("His-Horse-Is-Crazy"). He opposed the 186 ...
''.


Sister cities

Evansville has three
sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...
, as designated by
Sister Cities International Sister Cities International (SCI) is a nonprofit citizen diplomacy network that creates and strengthens partnerships between communities in the United States and those in other countries, particularly through the establishment of "sister cities" ...
, Inc. (SCI): *
Osnabrück Osnabrück (; wep, Ossenbrügge; archaic ''Osnaburg'') is a city in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population ...
,
Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...
, Germany *
Tizimín Tizimín is a city located in the Tizimín Municipality in the Mexican state of Yucatán, It is located in the Coastal Zone of the same state. It has an average height of 20 meters and is located at a distance of 1,492 km from Mexico City, ...
,
Yucatán Yucatán (, also , , ; yua, Yúukatan ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Yucatán,; yua, link=no, Xóot' Noj Lu'umil Yúukatan. is one of the 31 states which comprise the political divisions of Mexico, federal entities of Mexico. I ...
, Mexico * Tochigi City, Japan


Notes


References


Further reading

* Lawrence M. Lipin, ''Producers, Proletarians, and Politicians: Workers and Party Politics in Evansville and New Albany, Indiana, 1850-87.'' Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 1994.


External links


City of Evansville

Evansville Convention and Visitor's Bureau

Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library's digital archive
{{Authority control Populated places established in 1812 Cities in Indiana Cities in Vanderburgh County, Indiana Communities of Southwestern Indiana Evansville metropolitan area County seats in Indiana Indiana populated places on the Ohio River 1812 establishments in Indiana Territory