Indiana's Oldest, Once-Thriving Shopping Mall Is Now Nearly Empty

At their height, malls represented the full promise of America's booming economy, being built at an exponential rate from the 1970s to the early 2000s. But now, they're monuments to the economy's shift to a faster, less-forgiving retail sector. One such once-thriving hub, the Washington Square Mall, now sits nearly empty in the southeast of Evansville, Indiana, a riverfront hub considered the "meanest city in the Midwest."

The poor condition of Indiana's oldest mall fuels discontent and criticism online, leading to low ratings on travel sites like Tripadvisor, where locals and passersby lament its condition. It may feel endless, like the biggest shopping malls in America, but not because of its size. "It's a ghost town," one local wrote in a review on Google. "There's hardly any stores here and hardly any traffic in the mall. So sad to see this mall like this. It used to be full of shops and lots of people."

The center is just one on a long list of shopping hubs that are withering on the vine. Changing shopping habits have made smartphones and laptops the first stop for consumers, whose ease and bottomless nature surpass a mall's town-square feel. "While malls have everything from makeup to electronics, walking long distances, dressing up, traveling, and navigating large spaces feels like too much work for many people," BeyWarehouse founder Brandon Hartman told Business.com. The market has stagnated so much that the Mall at University Town Center in Sarasota, Florida, is considered the last major mall built in the U.S. It opened its doors in 2014. Meanwhile, malls like Washington Square continue to deteriorate, with — at least according to some Tripadvisor reviewers — a leaky roof, musty smells, and gutted spaces to go alongside its neon purple lighting. Things weren't always so dire.

Washington Square Mall is many things. Some use it as a place to walk on a rainy day. And yes, a few businesses still operate there. It isn't, however, a place to spend a day shopping. "It's just really grungy and overall feels unsanitary," one wrote. "Numerous roof leaks and the water fountain that has been drained at least seven or eight years now give the mall a 'meh' feeling."

The mall opened in 1963, with its 200,000 square feet filled with a smorgasbord of retail outlets and a bowling alley. As the first enclosed shopping center in the Hoosier State, it became a magnet for both locals and visitors alike, hosting popular events that drew crowds. Out-of-towners soon accounted for half its revenue in the 1970s. It even expanded in the late 1980s. The good ol' days remain the main draw for visitors, who like the anachronistic design elements, including the tent-like food court and purple neon-lined ceilings. "This mall was a site [sic] to see," one visitor wrote on Google. "This mall has a lot of cool vintage aesthetics."

The mall's spaces are now filling with a different breed of stores. A thrift store, a pizza shop, and a hair salon are among the few that still call it home. Soon, it may join the growing list of abandoned malls to visit, but only as a postcard from the past. Emporium Flea Markets also opened a branch at the Washington Square Mall in 2025, a development welcomed by locals. "Fitting that Washington Square is becoming the mall for secondhand stores," one commented on Facebook. "It's old, the first mall in Indiana. But like thrift stores with their wares, instead of getting rid of the something old, we're giving it a different life."