Sunday Adverts

Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Richcreek Bank

In 1892, Seth M. Richcreek arrived in Indianapolis. Before surfacing in the Circle City, he had been missing for 25 years. Soon after his arrival, Richcreek opened a law office, but devoted much of his...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Acme-Evans Company

Some may remember E-Z-Bake flour, as it was a grocery staple in the 1960’s. By that time, part of the company that produced the popular baking product was over one hundred years old. In 1820,...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: (Wheeler) Rescue Mission and Home

While not for a business or a service, this postcard from around the turn of the 20th Century advertises another of Indianapolis’ long-standing organizations. While not bearing its founder’s name yet, this advertisement indicates the...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Kahn Tailoring

Henry Kahn, the founder of Kahn’s Tailoring, was born in Bloomington, Indiana in 1860. His father, Isaac, was one of the first Jewish settlers in Monroe County, immigrating from France in 1844. The Kahn family...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: P.R. Mallory & Co.

In 1916, Philip Rogers Mallory founded the P.R. Mallory & Co. in Port Chester, New York. Mallory moved the company’s headquarters to Indianapolis in 1924, where it remained until 1978. In 1960, Philip passed control...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: The Indianapolis Recorder

Many of the businesses featured in this column met unfortunate ends, whether it be from the death of the founder, or economic circumstances. The Indianapolis Recorder is not one of those – founded in 1895,...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: G.P. McDougall & Son Kitchen Cabinets

This advertisement, from April 1905, features one of the fine cabinets, for which many patents were issued, made by G.P. McDougall & Son. George P. McDougall, a lifelong Indianapolis resident, was born in 1844. His...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: The Silent Waverley Electric Car

Long before the Prius and the Volt, Indianapolis’ Waverley Company offered a line of “silent electric” cars. This ad, likely from around 1913, features the Waverley Limousine Five, which sold for $3,500. At the time...

Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Turkey Dinner at Allen A.M.E.

It’s no secret community turkey dinners to celebrate Thanksgiving have been around for some time. This advertisement, from November 25, 1899, highlights such a dinner at the second-oldest African American church remaining in Indianapolis –...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Knobby’s Drive-In

Photo Courtesy of Evan Finch The matchbook above, likely from the 1950’s or 1960’s, advertises for Knobby’s Drive-In, a mainstay in Indianapolis’ mid-20th century drive-in scene. The original Knobby’s, located at 52nd and Keystone, was...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Lilly Hardware Company

This ad, from 1922, features an electric iron – a product available for almost forty years by that time. What is more remarkable is the history of the local vendor of this iron – Lilly...

Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: C.A. Webb

This ad, from 1903, is quite detailed compared to the other advertisements of its time, which mostly included text, or a simple drawing. The story of the man behind the advertisement – Charles A. Webb...

Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: The Melody Inn

Photo courtesy of Evan Finch. According to the current owners of the Melody Inn, known by many as a punk rock mecca of sorts, over 7000 bands have played at “The Mel” since 2001. However,...

Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Benjamin A. Osborne, Chiropractor

This art deco ad from the August 30, 1930, issue of the Indianapolis Recorder advertises the chiropractic services of Benjamin A. Osborne. However, Osborne’s career as a chiropractor is just a small part of his...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Holly Hock Hill Restaurant

1950’s Era Matchbook Courtesy of the Private Collection of Evan Finch. In 1928, V.D. Vincent, the Cafe Manager for the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce, started serving “special dinners” in their country cottage, located in what...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Van Sickle Radio Supply Company

I. Eugene Van Sickle, the owner of the Van Sickle Radio Supply Company, was born in Illinois in 1907. He arrived in Indianapolis sometime later, and graduated from Arsenal Technical High School in 1925. Before...

Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: City Cigar Store

This advertisement, from the 1859 Indianapolis City Directory, features the City Cigar Store, whose proprietor was Charles M. Raschig. Mr. Raschig was a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he was born in 1836. He came...

Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Don Massa Electronics Store

Not too long ago, in the days before there was a television on every smartphone, it was a rarity for a household to have more than one television. This advertisement, from 1953, encourages the consumer...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Atkins Saw

To piggyback on the fabulous Indianapolis Collected article of yesterday… Here’s a two-sided advert from the 1904 City Directory for Atkins Saw ...

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Posted in: Sunday Ads Sunday Adverts: Indianapolis Water Company – Canal Bridges

Considering all the recent talk of selling the Water Company (and what is being done with some of the funds), it seemed an ideal time to feature this old advert of Canal Bridges–at West and...

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