History

The land for the town of Lamasco was platted in 1837 and the town was incorporated in 1839. The name was created from portions of the last names of the proprietors of the town, John and William Law, James B. MacCall, and Lucius H. Scott and included land on both sides of Pigeon Creek – from Saint Joseph Avenue on the west, east to First Avenue and from Maryland Street on the north, and south to the Ohio River.

In 1857, the area of Lamasco east of Pigeon Creek was annexed by Evansville; the part west of the creek remained independent and quickly became known as Independence. Thirteen years later, Evansville proposed annexing Independence, although many residents opposed the annexation. By the summer of 1870, Independence became part of Evansville and the name “Independence” gradually disappeared.

Within the Lamasco neighborhood is the Independence Historic District which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. This historic district includes many buildings of significance both historically and architecturally on Wabash Avenue and West Franklin Street.

In the summer the 1913 West Branch (Carnegie) Library is the site of the Franklin Street Bazaar and in October, West Franklin Street is closed for the week-long West Side Nut Club Fall Festival (billed as the Second Largest Street Festival in the Country).