08/19/2025
The Charmed History of 808 Sunset Avenue: Semper Fulgens
The land that is now Sunset Avenue In the historic district of Evansville, Indiana was purchased by William Sonntag in the first few years of the 20th century. He and young architect, Manson Gilbert, looked to fashion a Gold Coast similar to the one in Chicago. Along the Ohio River, they built mansions which focused on Gilbert’s two obsessions, English and Italianate architecture. The first house to be completed was 808, for William Sonntag himself, in the year 1912. The stained glass in the primary bedroom on the main floor includes the Sonntag family crest, Semper Fulgens, which means Always Shining. And indeed, this home shines.
Semper Fulgens is the only house of the many Sonntag and Gilbert collaborated on that existed in the time of horse and carriage. As such, it is the only one with a carriage house that had three horse stalls and a groom’s apartment. As mentioned, it features the two styles that Gilbert loved, English Tudor and Italianate architecture, and is one of the few clay tile roofs in Evansville remaining, a roof that has continued to endure until today.
In 1925, the Sonntag’s sold the home to Edwin and Evelyn Karges. The Karges family furniture company began with Edwin’s father in the previous century, a typical hardwood furniture company abundant in Vanderburgh County at the time. The company made well built if simple pieces. But Edwin had gone abroad for his schooling, and came back longing to design elaborate Italianate and French style furniture. The story goes that Albert, Edwin’s father, thought that was a terrible idea, but told his son that Karges furniture was his company now, and he could do as he liked. After Edwin took over, Karges furniture company expanded globally and there are pieces of it in Windsor Palace and palaces in Dubai today. And also, here, at Semper Fulgens.
After World War 2, the Karges’ oldest son Eddie came home and married. There was a housing shortage at the time, and it was decided to divide the home into two apartments, with Eddie and his wife to live upstairs, and Edwin and Evelyn to live on the ground floor. An extensive renovation ensued, the legacy of which you see today. As furniture makers, they knew how to remake a house, adding features like elaborate closets, including shoe closets, and taking the elaborate walnut paneling that had been in the dining room ( the primary bedroom on the main floor) and carefully repurposing it in the lovely den adjacent to the ground floor living room. In the primary bedroom, when you are in bed and want to turn off the overhead lights, you do not have to get up and cross the floor. There is a switch, right there, bedside. Thank you, Evelyn Karges.
When we bought the house in 2014, we bought it from Evelyn’s grandson. No one had lived on the ground floor since her death in the late 80’s. Still the house had been maintained throughout its life. The ground floor was bare and abandoned in ways, but there was no damage. The upstairs, where the family had still been living, had had further updates in the 80’s. But the ground floor was stuck in the 40’s. The original Thermidor cooktop, and ovens with dials designed after the dials in WW2 airplanes were still in place. And they worked. While Edwin had designed furniture at his company, Evelyn had started her own company, Evelyn Karges Interiors, and the Brunschwig Fils wallpapers she so loved still adorn the walls. In the original upstairs bath, the BF wall paper was inspired by French military uniforms from the previous century. The hallway toile talks to you, just watch the video:) Downstairs, the den walls and ceilings are still covered by perfectly preserved BF wallpaper, a floral motif.
We moved in. We treasured and kept what we could. We did update the kitchen quite a bit, and I will always laugh with joy that the 1940’s Thermidor cooktop was 48 inches, the exact size of the Smeg gourmet six burner gas range/oven we put in. We kept the old Thermidor ovens though. We use them as beautiful, historic storage. We put in the first disposal and dishwasher the house had ever seen. And internet, which amusingly had not existed before us. We gloried in the chandeliers from Holland and Italy. We loved the cork floors in the den. It was late October when we moved in, and we called in a chimney sweep to see what he could tell us. The main chimney has three flues…separated. The one that services the ground floor fireplace had been retiled at some point, and then barely used. It needed nothing. Thank you again Evelyn Karges. I have enjoyed that fireplace so, so much.
In the February after we purchased house, we ventured out to the carriage house. It was a beautiful day, warm, like February can be, and I will never forget it. While the house had been maintained so well for so many years, the carriage house had not been. There was sky showing in many places. And a big hole in the ground of the main space caused by water flowing in, and bats living where the groom had lived were issues that needed attention. But we saw something that day, some crazy beauty that we were ready to dig into, to enjoy. You can see the results today. That is our legacy, the restoration of the carriage house. What will be yours? Put your stamp on this historic property. Semper Fulgens: Always Shining.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/808-Sunset-Ave-Evansville-IN-47713/77071400_zpid/
