Evansville Goodwill Industries, Inc. opened for business on May 12, 1935 at 112-114 N. W. First Street. Rent was $50 per month. Workers were to be paid in merchandise at the rate of 25 cents per hour. By November of that year, the agency was paying wages at a rate of $3.00 for five (5) days work.

There were only about 10 employees, including a plant manager, secretary, and plant workers!  The idea was to provide jobs for people with disabilities by receiving and repairing goods for resale in the Goodwill Store.

During the Great Flood of 1937, Evansville Goodwill Industries stood by 24 hours a day to assist the Red Cross and other agencies in serving the community in any way possible. Five thousand cubic feet of the building was used to store furniture for flood victims. Fifteen people were housed in the facility until suitable lodgings could be located for them and 2,247 garments were given to flood victims.

Our basement flooded to a depth of five (5) feet, putting the heating plant out of order. Also during the flood, a severe windstorm ripped off part of the roof and stock in the upper portion of the building was ruined by drenching rain that accompanied the storm.

In spite of the flood damage to the building, we remained at 112 N. W. First Street until a fire in January 1938 destroyed the building. By the end of the next month, we had moved to a new facility at 18 Locust Street (left).

When Goodwill opened in 1935, employees repaired donated clothing, shoes, furniture, and other goods and sold them. In 1936 laundry equipment was installed and both the Boy and Girl Scouts collected items for Goodwill. As we continued to grow additional stores were opened such as the one in the picture at the left. This store was opened in 1951 at the corner of Fourth and Walnut Streets.

Eventually, we expanded outside of Evansville. We now operate stores in southeastern Illinois and western Kentucky, as well as other locations in southern Indiana.

By 1956, Goodwill was seeking larger quarters and purchased property at 930 Division Street from Servel, Inc. (at right).

Over the years, Goodwill has offered a variety of job training programs including furniture repair, laundry, industrial sewing and upholstry, shoe repair, car detailing, car repair, and food service.  Each idea aimed at further increasing opportunities for people with disabilities.

This building, at 500 S. Green River Rd., houses Goodwill's main offices, our flagship store, and a production area with space for processing and sorting donations. In addition, the Green River Rd. location serves as the distribution point for Goodwill's 14 retail stores and our on-line store at