Lincoln Gardens

In Evansville, Indiana, the early 20th century proved to be a time of hardship for its African American residents. In the early 1900s, due to the increase of racial segregation within the city, the majority of the African American population resided in an area known as Baptistown. By 1916, overcrowding and unsanitary conditions became an issue, to the point where over a third of Baptistown residents had no access to sewage systems.[1] Segregated Evansville had few good-paying jobs for African Americans and white neighborhoods did not welcome those African Americans that could afford better homes. To accommodate for the growing population of African American residents in Baptistown, dilapidated buildings were torn down and streets were extended and repaved.[2] None of the city’s actions proved enough to improve what was described by the African American newspaper The Evansville Argus as “slum” and “an area dominated by filthy shacks without sanitary facilities.” [3]

Under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the Public Works Administration (created in 1933 during the Depression as part of the New Deal) made Evansville’s Lincoln Gardens its second housing project. As with most Public Works Administration housing projects, Lincoln Gardens was built for a specific community, and in Evansville, it was for low-income African American residents. Because of segregation and other racist policies at the time, African Americans needed their own community with their own businesses in order to succeed and prosper. Many groups in the city were in favor of the project, but there were some concerns. It was debated whether new low-income housing located on vacant land on the edge of the city was more cost effective and efficient that building in the central city. It was finally decided that the central city option was the best fit with the planning engineer’s description that “the federal government is interested in slum clearance in connection with low-cost housing.”[4]

Construction of the Lincoln Gardens complex began in June 1937 and was dedicated by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt who visited the building site in November 1937.[5] Four city blocks, nearly eleven acres, of Baptistown “slum” housing was razed and residents temporarily relocated. In its place, 16 apartment buildings were constructed. Lincoln Gardens opened on July 1, 1938.[6] The Evansville Argus, proclaimed Lincoln Gardens as the “Pride of City”, “rising as a monument to the relentless spirit and efforts of the public spirited citizens of Evansville.” Lincoln Gardens reported 100% occupancy rate as of November 23, 1938.[7]

Lincoln Gardens included 191 “modern sanitary” homes for 500 African American residents. It included a social room, and four rooms used for recreation, youth classes, and adult education. The housing project included “beautiful wide lawns, shrubbery, plenty of fresh air and ample supervised play.” Residents were considered low income with a family income that did not exceed five times the rental charge.[8] Initial average monthly rents including electricity and gas ranged from $12.65 to $20.20 depending on room size and location within the apartment buildings.[9] Renters were chosen by need, character, and priority of application.[10] Lincoln High School, Evansville’s only African American high school and constructed in 1928, was directly across the street from Lincoln Gardens. During WWII, Lincoln Gardens had its own United Service Organization (USO), welcoming African American troops.[11] In the 1930s and 1940s, Lincoln Gardens became a center of African American social life within the bigger neighborhood, revitalizing Baptistown, which became a de-facto African American social hub within segregated southwestern Indiana.

By the 1990s, Lincoln Gardens had fallen into disrepair and eventually all buildings except one were demolished. Sondra Matthews, who grew up in Lincoln Gardens felt that it was important to save this legacy. “The basis of our economic life was going to be torn down as well. I just thought that if this happens, our grandchildren will not know what we had, the life we lived in the Lincoln Gardens area. They would not know how successful and prosperous we were.”[12] Lincoln Gardens’ surviving building was deeded to the board of the Evansville African American Museum. The museum opened in 2007, dedicated to retelling the story of African American culture in Evansville. One of the featured exhibits includes a restored one-bedroom Lincoln Gardens apartment, which typically housed a family of six.

[1] Tamera L. Hunt and Donavan Weight. Rediscovering “Baptistown”: A Historical Geography Project on Local African American History. University of Southern Indiana and Texas A&M International University. P.389.
[2] Ibid.
[3] “New Lincoln Gardens, Pride of City, Now 100 Percent Occupied,” The Evansville Argus, 3 December 1938, 1,<https://newspapers.library.in.gov/cgi-bin/indiana?a=d&d=EA19381203. Accessed February 2020.
[4] Robert G. Barrows. New Deal Public Housing in the Ohio Valley: The Creation of Lincoln Gardens in Evansville, Indiana. Ohio River Valley, P. 56
[5] Ibid., P.72
[6] "Lincoln Gardens Housing Project-Evansville IN." Living New Deal. Accessed April 2019.
[7] “New Lincoln Gardens, Pride of City, Now 100 Percent Occupied,” The Evansville Argus, 3 December 1938, 1. Accessed February 2020.
[8] Ibid.
[9] Robert G. Barrows. New Deal Public Housing in the Ohio Valley: The Creation of Lincoln Gardens in Evansville, Indiana. Ohio River Valley, P. 66.
[10] “New Lincoln Gardens, Pride of City, Now 100 Percent Occupied,” The Evansville Argus, 3 December 1938, 1. Accessed February 2020.
[11] “Moment of Indiana History: Evansville African American Museum.”  Accessed April 2019.
[12] "Preserving History." Preserving History | Evansville Living Magazine. Accessed April 22, 2019.

Student Authors: Emma Brauer and Robin Johnson
Faculty/Staff Editors: Dr. Ronald V. Morris, Dr. Kevin C. Nolan, and Christine Thompson
Graduate Assistant Researchers: Carrie Vachon and JB Bilbrey