ADDRESS: 116 East Church Street, Barnesville, Ohio, 43713
ARTIST: Michael Aloysius Sarisky
TITLE: Airmail
MEDIUM: Oil on canvas (mural)
STATUS: The Barnesville post office is still an active, operating facility. However, the mural has been reported missing, lost or destroyed. It previously resided in the lobby on the wall above the postmaster’s door. The current mural which resides in its places was a replacement replica created by a local artist. The news articles provide the full story.
YEAR: 1937
Barnesville was another goal during my recent October 2022 road trip. I was anxious for this visit as it was one of the missing, lost or destroyed murals. You can imagine my surprise when I observed a mural in the lobby.
Kudos to the Burnsville community in coming together to create a replacement mural. The building is well maintained and the mural looks good. The newspaper clippings gives you the full story. Very nice!
David W. Gates Jr.
Sources
- Personal visit on 10/23/2022 at 10:18 PM by David W. Gates Jr.
- United States Postal Service
- (affiliate link) Democratic Vistas: Post Offices and Public Art in the New Deal
: [Hardcover] Marlene Park, Gerald E. Markowitz
- The Times Leader: New mural unveiled at Barnesville Post Office | News, Sports, Jobs – The Times Leader (timesleaderonline.com)
What happened to the original mural? When did it disappear?
Apparently went missing, got lost or was destroyed when the lobby was remodeled in the 1970’s. At least that’s what I’ve been able to gather from the articles and rumors.
David W. Gates Jr.