The closures of local stores, factories, schools, and movie theatres over the decades have left residents of Vincennes with only memories of what once was. Many fondly recall working at the Brown Shoe Factory, shopping at Gimbel-Bond, watching the latest movie at the Pantheon, or enjoying the rides at Uncle John's Kiddieland. Some significant buildings, such as the Pantheon, have survived and are now used for other purposes, but others have been razed, or otherwise destroyed, and disappeared with hardly a trace except for perhaps a historical marker. Collecting more than seventy period images, Sun-Commercial columnist Brian Spangle tells the story of these once thriving Vincennes landmarks that long ago passed from the scene.

Brian Spangle graduated from Indiana State University with a master's degree in history in 1985. He was employed at the Knox County Public Library for thirty years, retiring in 2016. Spangle has written a local history column for the Vincennes Sun-Commercial since 1999. He is a member and past president of the Vincennes Historical & Antiquarian Society and the Northwest Territory Genealogical Society. He currently serves on the Vincennes Board of Cemetery Regents. This is Spangle's third book following Vincennes History You Don't Know in 2015 and Hidden History of Vincennes & Knox County in 2020.