“Toy Town†was always a hectic place during the Christmas shopping season at the Sears store in downtown Evansville. In this late 1950s image, two employees position stuffed bears in a 1958 DeSoto Firemite, a miniature version of a larger DeSoto automobile manufactured by Chrysler to promote sales. A wide assortment of other toys is on display in the background, some on sale for as low as 88 cents. For decades, the store’s well-stocked toy department fulfilled the dreams of countless children, aided by the popular
Sears catalog, which boosted sales with convenient “one-stop shopping.†The Sears building, which still stands at Fourth and Sycamore streets, was occupied by the giant retailer from 1925 to 1975.
