The Old Pike Inn is one of the best-recognized buildings in New Albany. Built about 1840, it is served as the home of the “Old Pike Inn,” a tavern operated by the Kreutzner family, from 1945 to 1995. A full-scale restoration returned the building…

Brewing played a significant role in the commercial landscape of New Albany for most of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The arrival of large numbers of German immigrants during the 1840s and 1850s created strong demand for beverages enjoyed…

The New Albany and Salem Railroad played a crucial role in the commercial and industrial development of southern Indiana for more than a century. Organized in 1847, the railroad linked New Albany with Salem, Indiana, the seat of Washington County. …

By the early 1870s, New Albany became a bustling river town with extensive commercial activity and a large number of industrial facilities. Nationwide economic trends disrupted New Albany’s economic prosperity. The Great Panic of 1873 swept across…

The business of history is a relatively recent addition to New Albany’s commercial landscape. Not until the era of the New Albany sesquicentennial in 1963 did citizens show significant interest in historic preservation. Early activists saved…

The Schmitt Furniture Company is one of New Albany’s oldest businesses. Founded in 1936 by Charles Schmitt, Sr., the company opened for business in a store at State and Market Streets. In 1944, it moved to its present location at “furniture…