United States Post Office (Granville, New York) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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U.S. Post Office
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North elevation and west profile, 2008
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| Location | Granville, NY |
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| Nearest city | Hudson Falls |
| Built | 1935–36 |
| Architect | Louis A. Simon |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| MPS | US Post Offices in New York State, 1858–1943, TR |
| NRHP reference No. | 88002520 |
| Added to NRHP | May 11, 1989 |
The U.S. Post Office in Granville, New York, United States, is a special building. It sits on Main Street in the middle of the village. This brick building helps people in the area send and receive mail. It serves the ZIP Code 12832, which includes Granville village and the nearby areas.
This post office was built in the mid-1930s. At that time, the country was going through the Great Depression, a period when many people lost their jobs. Building projects like this helped create jobs. The building was designed by Louis Simon, an architect for the U.S. government. He used the Colonial Revival style, which was popular for post offices.
What makes this post office unique? It has a raised wall on its roofline called a parapet. Only two other post offices in New York have this feature. Also, its front looks a bit uneven, which was very unusual for post offices of its size back then. In 1989, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it's an important historical building. It is the only building in Granville village on this list.
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What Does the Granville Post Office Look Like?
The post office is on a narrow piece of land on the south side of Main Street. It is surrounded by two-story shops and businesses. There is a small path next to the building on the east side. On the west, a driveway leads to a parking lot behind the building. The post office is set back a little further from the street than its neighbors. It has plants and a flagpole in front.
Building Structure and Materials
The building is one and a half stories tall. It is made with a strong steel frame and has five sections on the front and six on the sides. The bottom part of the building, called the foundation, is made of slate stone in the front. The back and sides use cast stone.
The upper walls are made of brick laid in a common pattern. The roof has a pointed shape, called a gabled roof. It is covered with slate shingles. The ends of the roof have raised walls, or parapets, topped with stone. These brick parapets are stacked to look like fake chimneys. The back part of the building has a flat roof with stone on top. There is also a loading dock sticking out from the back.
Front Entrance and Details
The front of the building faces north. The main entrance is not in the center; it's on the far-left side. This entrance is set back into the building and has a curved top. It is decorated with a marble keystone (a wedge-shaped stone at the top of an arch) and other marble blocks. The entrance area itself has a patterned ceiling and wood panels. Above the door, there's a fan-shaped window.
Tall marble pillars stand at each front corner of the building. The window on the far-right side is smaller than the three windows in the middle. All windows have brick designs above them and marble sills below. Above the windows, you can see bronze letters that say "UNITED STATES POST OFFICE GRANVILLE, NEW YORK." A marble band, called a beltcourse, runs above these letters.
This marble band separates the main windows from smaller, "eyebrow" shaped windows above them. These small windows have metal screens. Above these, there's a decorative box-like trim called a cornice, supported by brackets.
Inside the Lobby
When you enter, you first step into a small entry area called a vestibule. From there, you go through another set of double wooden doors into the main lobby. The lobby floor is made of flat stones. The lower part of the walls has wood panels, similar to the entrance area. The ceiling is smooth plaster with a decorative border. The wooden tables and the bulletin board in the lobby are the original ones from when the building first opened.
When Was the Granville Post Office Built?
Granville got its first post office way back in 1797. This was after it was decided that Granville was part of New York, not Vermont. For many years, like other small towns, the post office moved around. It was often located in rented spaces inside other buildings.
Building During the Great Depression
In 1931, the U.S. government decided to build many new post offices in New York. This was a way to help people find jobs during the Great Depression. Granville's new post office was one of these projects. Construction started in 1935 after some old stores were torn down. A company from Maryland built it for $75,000. This was a lot of money back then! The building was finished and opened in 1936.
Louis A. Simon, the main architect for the Treasury Department, designed the building. He used the Colonial Revival style, which was common for post offices in small towns. But for Granville, Simon made the design extra fancy and a bit unusual.
For example, the raised wall on the roof (the parapet) is rare. Only two other post offices in New York have it: one in Dobbs Ferry and another nearby in Hudson Falls. Also, while some smaller post offices had uneven fronts, Granville's is the only five-section post office built during the Depression in New York with this unique look.
