US Post Office Albion
The US Post Office Albion is the post office of the United States Postal Service for the ZIP code 14411 and serves the Village and Town of Albion and the adjoining areas of Barre and Gaines . The building is located on South Main Street ( New York State Route 98 ) in the center of town.
The brick building was built in the late 1930s in the style of the Colonial Revival . There is a mural in the lobby depicting the nearby Erie Canal . The post office building has been added to the National Register of Historic Places with other current and past post offices . Although the building is within the boundaries of the Orleans County Courthouse Historic District , it is not considered to be a contributor to that historic district because it was built after the historic period that was significant to the district.
Building
The post office is on the southwest corner of the intersection of Main Street and East State Street in the center of town. Opposite is the Courthouse des Countys, which is separated from the street by a small green area with tall trees. To the north is the Swan Library, a neoclassical- style residential building that was built in 1840 and later converted into a Colonial Revival-style library. South of the post office is a former residential building from the 1830s that now houses offices. On the other side of the intersection, on the northeast corner, is the First Presbyterian Church. The stone building with the 53 m high steeple is the tallest building in Orleans County . Main Street slopes slightly northwards and leads to the second historic district of Albion, the North Main-Bank Streets Historic District and ends at the New York State Barge Canal , the former route of the Erie Canal.
The one-story building itself has five yokes and the facade is decorated with brick masonry. The main wing has a slightly inclined gable roof , the gable sides of which are clad with wooden planks. The roof is made of copper and the cornice on the eaves is serrated. In the middle of the roof sits a square dome with corner stones ; Doric pilasters at the corners frame the sliding windows with six over six window fields. The inverted pointed arch dome is finished with a weather vane . The rear wing also has a cornice on the eaves, but has a flat roof . This has a parapet with a mural crown of limestone .
Limestone window sills and lintels frame the twelve sliding windows with over twelve lights on all sides of the facade. There is a simple bezel in each pediment. The frieze of the east facade bears the bronze inscription UNITED STATES POST OFFICE above the main entrance, the words ALBION and NEW YORK are affixed to the bricks below on both sides of the entrance arch. A foundation stone with a date is set in the northeast corner. A few granite steps with the original railings and lamp posts as well as a modern wheelchair ramp lead up to the centrally located main entrance.
The entrance is flanked by two recessed, fluted Doric pilasters and columns. These support a gable triangle with a serrated cornice, to which a large wooden plaque with the inscription "ZIP 14411" made of metal letters was later attached. Above it is a blind arch with an eagle made of aluminum .
Inside, the modern double doors open to a vestibule made of wood, which is accentuated by slender pilasters and has multi-faceted slug panes. The main lobby has a floor of red and brown ceramic tiles and paneling made of yellow-brown wood. Above that, the wall and ceiling, including the separating cornice, are plastered. Much of the interior is original, including the counter windows, the metal grilles, the mailboxes, the interior doors and door frames, two wooden tables for customers and an announcement board. A mural shows ships on the canal. It's high on the wall above the postmaster's office .
history
From the time the County Seat was established in Albin in 1824, through the period of its prosperity as a canal town and as the central loading point for the sandstone that was quarried in the nearby medina , Albion managed without its own post office. In the early 20th century, mail was distributed in a rented shop on East Bank Street. In the 1920s this went out of fashion and the postal administration decided it was time for a dedicated post office.
In 1931, an extension of the Public Buildings Act of 1926 authorized a new post office as a job creation measure imposed due to the Great Depression, but the cornerstone was not laid until 1936 after two neoclassical structures on the site were demolished. New York City construction company Andover & Associates built the new post office at a total cost of $ 52,699 (today's prices $ 970,000). It opened in 1937.
Louis A. Simon , the Supervising Architect of the Treasury Department who was responsible for the design of most federal buildings at the time, used the same design in the Colonial Revival that he used for twelve other post offices in New York State . This choice reflects both the Treasury's interest in standardization and the preference for style during the Great Depression. The design of the post office in Albion is one of the most typical representatives of this group of buildings and does not show any of the variations found in the other buildings.
In 1939, Judson Smith's mural Along the Barge Canal was added to the lobby. He was commissioned to create the painting after winning a ministry competition. With the exception of the replacement of the original lighting in the lobby with more modern equipment, there have been only minor changes to the building since its construction.
When the Orleans County Courthouse Historic District was created six decades later , its borders included the post office. Together with the county jail, the post office formed the two of the 35 properties in the district that were classified as non-contributing to its historic character as they were constructed later than in the period 1830-1910 that were considered significant to the integrity of the historical district applies. When the post office itself was included in the National Register nine years later, despite its historical character, it was denied recognition as an important building.
See also
supporting documents
- ^ A b C. Wilson Lettin: National Register of Historic Places Registration: Orleans County Courthouse Historic District ( English ) New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation . February 1979. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
- ↑ a b c d e f Larry E. Gobrecht: National Register of Historic Places Registration: United States Post Office, Albion, Orleans County / Albion Post Office ( English ) New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation . July 1986. Retrieved August 18, 2010. and accompanying photos
Coordinates: 43 ° 14 ′ 45.6 " N , 78 ° 11 ′ 38.8" W.