YESTERYEAR: NW Sixth Street

NW Sixth Street

by Pat Sides

This photo captured a quiet moment in the first block of NW Sixth Street when it was taken in the mid-1950s. Most of the buildings in the foreground still stand, the most notable of which is the Loew’s (Victory) Theater at the far right. Next to the theater is Gem Furniture Mart, a fixture in downtown Evansville for many years.

The largest building across the street is the Huston Building, which was built in 1906 for Kohinoor Laundry; when this picture was taken, it was occupied by the U. S. Army Reserve Corps. The structure next to it is Schuttler’s Music Shop, also a longtime presence in the downtown commercial district. 

The building visible in the center distance (behind the street sweeper) was located on the northwest corner of Sixth and Sycamore and housed the Salvation Army offices and chapel. Further down the block was the Synagogue Adath Israel. In recent decades, much of this block was razed to make room for a large municipal parking garage.