New Harmony Inn

504 North Street, New Harmony, IN 47631
(812) 682-4431 (Sherrie McLain-Titzer, wedding planner)

New Harmony is a very small, very beautiful town about an hour's drive from Evansville. The town itself was built by a group of Harmonists hoping to establish a utopian community. There is even a small village of authentic pioneer-style buildings where actors demonstrate how they would have lived in the 1800s. The town is lovely to walk around, with lakes, gardens, a labyrinth made out of shrubs, and the non-denominational Roofless Church, which is popular for ceremonies.

The New Harmony Inn is a gorgeous complex, and if you get married in New Harmony, they will probably be involved in some way, whether it's for the ceremony, reception, catering, housing your guests, or simply renting a horse-drawn carriage or a golf cart.

The Bauerhaus

13065 Darmstadt Road, Evansville, IN 47725 (812) 759-9000

The Bauerhaus is a popular location for ceremonies and receptions for it's classic old-world German charm. It is located on the far North side of Evansville, past the airport off of Boonville-New Harmony Road, where the 4-H Center is located.

New Harmony Granary

(812) 682-3050

"This stunning and peaceful facility was acquired by David Dale Owen in 1843 and dates to the Harmonist period. Beautifully restored, the large sandstone, brick, and wood building has hosted many uses since the early 19th century, including being a corn and flour mill, a warehouse, a scientific laboratory, and a museum.

Now the facility is used for rehearsal dinners, weddings, receptions, business and professional meetings, conferences and luncheons. Each year the Granary also hosts New Harmony’s popular “Under the Beams” concert season."-from the Historic New Harmony website.

Bethlehem United Church of Christ

6400 Oak Hill Road, Evansville, IN 47725 (812) 867-2497
Service Times: Saturday 5:30 pm (blended), Sunday 10:15 (traditional)

Bethlehem UCC is located on the North side of Evansville, about 10 minutes south of the airport and 10-15 minutes north of metropolitan Evansville.

The Sanctuary, built in 1924, is described as Gothic in detail with natural light oak cushioned pews, seats 350 people comfortably. The sanctuary has an altar centered rather than pulpit centered design. The altar is centered and elevated to signify the importance of the rituals of the church. The most elevated area in the sanctuary is the preaching pulpit to the right of the altar where the minister delivers the sermon or message. The preaching pulpit is prominently placed to signify the importance of the spoken word of God. The sanctuary has a main center aisle, 75 feet long, and two side aisles.

Bethlehem is a church much favored for weddings. Its excellent pipe organ, center aisle, and attractive, light-filled sanctuary make it the perfect setting. Go to the Church Facilities Tour page to get a look at their buildings and campus. Non-members are welcome to be married at Bethlehem. The policies and fees for non-members are below. Church members are asked to call the church office and speak to the pastors for special fee and wedding service scheduling guidelines. Non-members who do not have an active member as an immediate relative will be assigned a pastor to officiate at their ceremony. Active church members or their immediate family can request to have their wedding officiated by either of the two pastors depending on the pastors' schedules. The church secretary can give you a tour of the sanctuary and dressing rooms during normal office hours 8 AM to 4 PM, Monday through Friday. One of the best ways to get a feeling of what a wedding would be like is to come to any of their worship services. At the 10:15 am Sunday worship service the magnificent organ is played.

• They require a two-hour pre-marriage counselling session with the minister as soon as possible, and lunch with a married couple from the church to get their perspective on a healthy marriage.
• Guest ministers may be invited by Bethlehem's minister if you request.
• No secular music is allowed, but you may request an organist of your choosing if you wish.
• No flash photography is allowed.
• Only bubbles and handbells can be used as you leave the building (no rice or birdseed).
• No alcohol allowed on the premises.
• Fees are listed at the bottom of their "Weddings" page (linked above).
• Quotes for use of their Fellowship Hall for receptions are available upon request.
  

St. Lucas United Church of Christ

33 West Virginia Street, Evansville, IN 47710 (812) 422-5528
Service Times: 9:00 am

St. Lucas is in a fairly central location, on West Virginia Street just west of Main Street, down the street from the Main Street Turoni's. They are also accepting of non-members. They do expect that St. Lucas's minister will officiate, but if the couple has another officiant in mind, it can generally be arranged to have that person as a guest minister. It is also expected that the church organist will play, though you can also request another.

• A $75 deposit is required to reserve the date, which will be applied to the cost of the ceremony.
• The church prefers to provide their own candles, and require decorations to be done at least one hour before the service.
• No flash photography is allowed in the sanctuary.
• There is a multi-purpose room available for receptions, but Saturday functions must be over by 10:00 pm.
• No rice or bird seed may be thrown. Flower petals and bubbles are allowed.
• No alcoholic beverages are allowed.
• Prices are listed in the PDF at the bottom of their "Weddings" page.

Kirby's Private Dining

1119 Parrett Street Evansville, IN 47713 (812) 422-2230

Kirby's Private Dining is a place I'd driven by before many times, but had never noticed before until I knew to look for it. Getting there from downtown is very easy. Get on Second Street heading south (toward Washington Ave.), and keep going until you come to a Y. Kirby's in on the far right corner of that Y, right across from Haynie's Corner.

It appears to be essentially a big Victorian house that got remodeled into a reception hall. There are three rooms, the largest of which can hold up to 120 people. The biggest room is $250 to rent and includes all tables, linens, chairs, dishes, clean-up, etc. They allow outside catering, but they charge an extra fee for it. They also provide catering at other locations.

West Baden Springs and French Lick Springs Resorts

8538 West Baden Avenue, West Baden Springs, Indiana 47469 (866) 706-4354

I have lived in Evansville for 24 years, but I have never been to French Lick, and I have never heard of these two hotels. I have to admit, from the pictures at least, I feel like I've been missing out.

French Lick is about two hours north of Evansville, and I knew they had a casino, and apparently they also have an indoor water park and are about 15 minutes from Paoli Peaks, our local ski resort. It's also only an hour from Louisville, which has a major airport for any guests flying in.

But to me, as a fan of European architecture and pretty much anything that looks grand and old, the really exciting thing is the hotels themselves, especially West Baden (which will be the one I talk about here, mostly 'cause I like it).

They seem to have many options for either the wedding itself or the reception, and if your party's big enough, you can even have it in that impressive main atrium. They can accommodate parties from 70 to 4,000, and offer catering.

It's also connected to the casino, and has a beautiful indoor pool, a spa, mineral baths, and several on-site restaurants.

Here's a blog that has pictures from a West Baden wedding.

The Centre

715 Locust Street, Evansville, IN 47708 (812) 435-5770

The Centre in downtown Evansville is an option for receptions. It boasts wonderful modern architecture and is conveniently located on Martin Luther King Blvd., just a few blocks away from the Lloyd Expressway.

The Centre's large theater is usually used for plays and occasionally concerts, but it also has elegant and more intimate ballroom space which can accommodate 20 to 4,000 people. Space rental ranges from $250-$1,600, depending on how much space you need, and they offer equipment rental. They do require you to use their catering service, but I've heard it's pretty good.

I will post photos of the interior later, if I can find some.

Jesse Daniels Photography

Email via website

Collections begin at $2300, which includes engagement photos and two photographers at the wedding. He focuses on close-up, artistic shots.

Again, I can't put other people's pictures on my blog, but here is a link to his galleries.

Testimonials:

OMG! What joy to view such exquisite photographs. I'm only through the first 25 of the ceremony, and am shedding tears of JOY! Sorry to be so sappy, but these pictures have taken my breath away. They have to be the most beautiful and artistic photos I've ever seen. Oh my God, I don't know what to say...THANK YOU! -Carolyn

I have been meaning to call and tell you that I love, love, love the book you made with our pictures! And the pictures are awesome. I love the style of the photography and the way you printed them. Fantastic. Sooo happy that we have chosen you all to do the wedding...can't wait! -Kristen

We just wanted to email you guys and say thanks soooooo much for meeting with us this weekend! We had so much fun doing the engagement pictures. You guys were awesome and are really fun to be around! -Julie and Joe

Memories by Michelle

(812) 491-3349

Wedding collections start at $1700. Here's her 2010 wedding brochure.

I can't put any of her pictures on here, but she definitely seems to prefer a more artistic approach, focusing on emotions and important details. Here is a gallery of some of her work. She also offers engagement sessions and leather-bound photo albums of your wedding.

Testimonials:

Thank you so much for photographing our wedding. I was really impressed with the pictures and especially your easy-going nature. You were wonderful to work with and that means so much on wedding day. You and April were there to help us with anything and everything - relaying messages and even helping us cut the cake. I'm so excited to order the album! Thanks again. -Lindsey

You are amazing! I can't get over all of those pictures! I want to order all of them! My best friend wants you to do her wedding next year. I had so much fun with you and April at the wedding and reception. You could not have done a better job! Thanks so much for making my wedding day pictures perfect! You are the best! Talk to you soon. -Katie

I am completely speechless on how amazing our wedding pictures turned out. You truly have a wonderful gift of capturing not only the small moments that only a few people get to enjoy, but also the magical and meaningful moments that everyone was apart of. Thank you just doesn't seem to be enough to say for how grateful I am that you were a part of our special day. We truly enjoyed working with you, April, and Jeannie. Everyone has said what an amazing job that you did and I just wanted to let you know that I will recommend you to anyone that I hear of that is planning a wedding. You are the greatest. Thank you so very much for photographing our special day and capturing the moments that in 20 years we will be able to look back on and remember every moment of that day. Thanks again. -Doy and Daniel

Equinox Photography

(812) 421-0579 jtequinox@gmail.com

From their gallery, Equinox Photography appears to take dynamic and unique photos, looking for emotions and candids, as well as capturing beautiful details in interesting ways.

Collections start at $1800.

Holiday Inn Conference Center

4101 Highway 41 North, Evansville, IN 47711 (812) 424-6400

The Holiday Inn is located at US 41 and Lynch Road, about 10 minutes south of the airport. Since it is right on Highway 41, it is pretty accessible from anywhere in the city. If you wanted to host your reception there, it has 13 meeting rooms, the largest of which can accommodate 1500 guests.

And of course, one of the benefits of having your reception in your hotel is that if you choose to offer alcohol, you don't have to worry about getting people safely home. They're already there.

To request availability and a price quote, click here.

Trinity United Methodist Church

216 SE Third Street, Evansville, IN 47713 (812) 423-4495

Service Times: 8:30 am in the May Chapel (contemporary); 10:45 am in the sanctuary (traditional)

This is a beautiful cathedral in the heart of downtown (Third and Walnut), the spires of which can be seen from very far away.

There is an impressive sanctuary with a large organ for bigger ceremonies, and a small chapel for more intimate ones.

As an added bonus, Trinity UMC seems very friendly to non-members who want to have their ceremony here. They lay out guidelines and information on their website.

• The sanctuary can hold up to 400, and the small chapel can hold 35-40. Both the bride and the groom each have an area to get dressed.
• All weddings must be scheduled at least 4 months in advance.
• They require and offer premarital counseling.
• Secular music is not allowed for the ceremony.
• No alcohol is allowed on the premises.
• Clean-up is your responsibility. No food or drink is allowed in either the chapel or the sanctuary.
• The church will assign you a Wedding Director to help plan decorations, follow guidelines, show you around the building, etc.
  

Routt Photography

(812) 423-9999

Routt does some neat things with wide shots, focusing/softening, and playing with color, i.e. making most of the picture black-and-white and leaving a few details in color.

Packages start at $1995 and include engagement photos.

Testimonials:

My wedding pictures are incredible...Routt Studios captured the feeling of the day. Nothing was missed; I even saw things I had forgotten. Loved them, thank you so much. -Jessica

Wow! What amazing pictures. We had an idea that the pictures would be incredible during the photo shoot. The expressive poses and creative backgrounds made for pictures like no other. George and Donna Routt are amazing to work with. Routt Studios was the best choice to capture these precious moments of our baby. They also did our wedding, and we still get compliments on the pictures. We will always cherish these pictures. I would recommend Routt Studios for any occasion. -Scott, Sarah, and Celeste