Location: 56 S Main St, St Albans City, VT 05478
The Post Office and Custom House in St. Albans, VT is a handsome Colonial Revival building constructed in 1937-38. It was authorized by the Public Buildings Act of 1926, a massive public building program that nearly doubled the inventory of Federal Structures. The building is stylistically and programmatically related to other Federal structures associated with the expansion of the U.S. Customs Service in northern Vermont following the improvement of highway links across the Canadian border in the 1930’s. The Post Office and Custom House exhibits a skillful attention to detail in the choice of exterior materials and construction compared with other contemporary buildings of similar scale produced by the Public Buildings Branch of the Treasury Department during the Great Depression.
The Post Office and Custom House is a major public building within its local context, and harmoniously complements the Bellows Free Academy (1930) across from it on South Main Street. Its marble wainscoted lobby contains the well preserved Saltra murals depicting rural Vermont life that were commissioned by the Fine Arts branch of the Treasury Department. The design of the Federal Office Building addition (1966) to its west, which consolidated several agencies on the site, was deferential to the original building and does not detract from its Colonial Revival image.
Facts
- Architects: Louis A. Simon, Lorimer Rich
- Construction Dates: 1937-1938
- GSA Building Number: VT0018ZZ
- National Register of Historic Places Landmark Status: National Register Listed
U.S. General Services Administration