Stories from Baptist Town: on Saturday, May 15th, the VCHS, in conjunction with the City Preservation Office and the Evansville African American Museum sponsored a walking tour presented by William Miller. Afterwards, guests viewed the African American Museum, admissions paid by the VCHS. |
Feel the History: the VCHS continues to be a major contributor to the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation's Feel the History class at F. J. Reitz High School. Classroom instructor and local historian Jon Carl has been a long standing member of the VCHS Board of Directors as has been Terry Hughes, co-creator, technical advisor and sometimes co-teacher for the class. VCHS Board members William Bartelt, Dennis Au, Stan Schmitt, and Greg Hager have served on the Critical Review Team for Feel the History, and many VCHS Board members have offered historical and research advise to the students in the class. Students in Feel the History creat historical documentaries that are aired regularly on WNIN, the community's public television station and posted as podcasts on the Evansville Public Library website. |
| 2006 Annual Meeting Focusing on the VCHS 25th Anniversary -- November 21, 2006 at the Executive Inn in Evansville, IN. Click here to see Darrell Bigham's message to the VCHS on its 25th Anniversary |
Jon Carl’s Reitz High School Honor United States history class started the program by presenting background information on how Evansville was changed from a depression town to a boomtown during WWII. The class had searched the Evansville newspapers to create a chronology of when Evansville companies got Government contracts, received E awards, and other activities during the war.
Next Evansville Museum Curator of History Tom Lonnberg, Evansville home front researcher, writer Patrick Wathen, and home front author Harold Morgan conducted a bus tour of sites in Evansville that played a significant role in the City's involvement in World War II. This bus tour included drive-bys of former war plant sites, including Chrysler, which produced 98% of the .45 caliber ammunition utilized by the U. S. military during the War; Republic Aviation, that produced P-47 Thunderbolt fighter planes; Servel, that produced wings for P-47s; and the Evansville Shipyard, that produced Landing Ship, Tanks (LST's). Also included in the tour were visits to other locales that were significance during World War II, including the sites of the USO, Red Cross Canteen, and various nightspots and hotels. This program provided an overview of Evansville's World War II history and focused on the very significant role the city played in wartime production.
Tom Lonnberg has been employed at the Evansville Museum of Arts, History and Science for 18 years and also serves as a History Instructor at U. S. I. While a reporter and editor at the Evansville Courier, Pat Wathen led the newspaper's coverage of the 50th anniversary commemorations of World War II. Wathen, who now is employed at Toyota, has continued his research into local World War II history. Harold Morgan is the author of the upcoming book Hometown Heroes that will focus on the Tri-State during World War II. An avid researched of home front history, Morgan has also written several articles for Maturity Journal on this topic."
The highlight of the day welcomed President Franklin D. Roosevelt to the city as we re-enacted his April 27, 1943 his visit to the Republic Aviation.
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On September 1, 2005, in conjunction with the Evansville Museum of Arts, History, and Science' "Happy Days: Evansville in the1950s" exhibit, John Story and Terry Hughes presented on the topic of early movie theaters in Evansville. Approximately 130 people attended this event that was open to the public and free, as are most VCHS presentations except the annual dinner. The annual dinner is open to the public, but it does involve the cost of the dinner itself.
Click here for the web site dedicated to Early Movie Houses in Evansville. Remember, at this time, the web site is a work in progress. When you click, a new browser window will open up. When you are through, close the newer browser window. All theaters now have minimal information. The Grand, Victory, and Alhambra have the most information available at present.
Please help us. We are actively searching for photos and other memorabilia from Evansville's motion picture theater past. See our list below. If you know of an omission from our list or have information to add, please contact Terry Hughes.
Thanks to all who helped by lending us memorabilia for this event: Dennis Beadles, Robert Glascock, Dick Melton, Willard Library, the Evansville-Vanderburgh Public Library, Tom Lonnberg and the Evansville Museum of Arts, History, and Science, John Story, Terry Hughes, and others who brought items to the presentation but did not leave their names.
Grand Theater
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The VCHS 2005 Annual Dinner and Indiana History Train Tour was Thursday, October 14th The History Train was in Evansville with its exhibit "The Faces of Lincoln." The VCHS annual dinner followed the tour. After dinner, attendees were treated to a preview of Young Lincoln -- The Early Life of Abraham Lincoln, 1816 - 1830. This video will air on PBS in February 2005. VCHS members William Bartelt and Darrell Bigham were interviewed for this video.
During the meeting, the VCHS elected its officers and five VCHS Board members for 2004-2005.
VCHS Board members William Bartelt and Thomas Lonnberg were at Barnes and Noble Booksellers in Evansville on Saturday, September 4th to sign copies of Evansville At the Bend in the River. Mr. Bartelt has updated Ken McCutchan's popular book with a new chapter on the happenings since 1982. Mr. Lonnberg supplied additional photographs.
Get the Adobe Acrobat ReaderClick to go to the VCHS LST 325 section of our Current Projects page. LST 325 moored temporarily near the Mead Johnson terminal. Its official arrival was Friday, July 11, 2003.
