The former U.S. Post Office-Meriden Main, also known as Meriden Main Post Office, is located at 89 Colony Street in
Meriden, Connecticut
Meriden ( ) is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, located halfway between the regional cities of New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven and Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. The city is part of the South Central Connecticut Planni ...
. Built in 1907 and extended in 1932, it is a striking local example of
Beaux Arts architecture
Beaux-Arts architecture ( , ) was the academic architectural style taught at the in Paris, particularly from the 1830s to the end of the 19th century. It drew upon the principles of French neoclassicism, but also incorporated Renaissance and B ...
. The building was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1986.
[ It no longer houses the city's main post office, which is at 190 Center Street.
]
Description and history
Meriden's former post office is located on the east side of Colony Street on the northern fringe of downtown Meriden, at the southeast corner of Brooks Street. It is a two-story masonry structure, with a steel frame set on a granite foundation, with walls finished in rusticated and dressed limestone, The main facade is three bays wide, with a projecting center bay housing the entrance, flanked by tall fluted Corinthian columns. Windows on two levels are articulated by quoin blocks, and the entrance has an elaborate cornice with medallion. The building is crowned by a modillioned cornice and stone parapet. The interior lobby space features terrazzo marble flooring and heavy woodwork, with walls adorned by murals depicting Meriden's historic cites.[ and ]
Construction of the building was authorized by Congress in 1907, and the building was completed in 1909 to a design by James Knox Taylor
James Knox Taylor (October 11, 1857 – August 27, 1929) was Supervising Architect of the United States Department of the Treasury from 1897 to 1912. His name is listed ''ex officio'' as supervising architect of hundreds of federal buildings b ...
. In 1932 a sympathetic addition was made to the rear by James Wetmore. The building is a striking local example of Beaux Arts architecture
Beaux-Arts architecture ( , ) was the academic architectural style taught at the in Paris, particularly from the 1830s to the end of the 19th century. It drew upon the principles of French neoclassicism, but also incorporated Renaissance and B ...
, and one of the city's finest architectural landmarks. It was vacant at the time of its listing on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1986.
See also
*
*List of United States post offices
Several United States post offices are individually notable and have operated under the authority of the United States Post Office Department (1792–1971) or the United States Postal Service (since 1971). Notable U.S. post offices include indivi ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:United States Post Office (Meriden, Connecticut)
Meridien
Beaux-Arts architecture in Connecticut
Government buildings completed in 1907
Buildings and structures in Meriden, Connecticut
National Register of Historic Places in New Haven County, Connecticut