ADDRESS: 335 E. Walworth Ave., Delavan, Wisconsin, 53115
ARTIST: Rosemary Roth
TITLE: Vignettes From Delavan History
MEDIUM: (Mural)
STATUS: The Delavaon post office is still an active, operating facility, and the mural can be viewed by interested members of the public. It resides in the lobby on the wall above the postmaster’s door.
Year: 1984
When I first arrived in Delavan I was amazed to see large statues of an elephant and giraffe. I also drove by a rather large building and discovered it was Wisconsin’s School for the Deaf. I found the post office and was delighted that it was an older building. I started taking pictures of the exterior of the building and then proceeded inside.
You could imagine my excitement when I noticed it had a mural. After studying it for a little while longer I noticed the signature at the bottom right hand corner. It was dated 1984 so I’m guessing this does not make it a WPA mural. Maybe the mural was restored in 1984. I’m not sure and there is little I was able to find online regarding this one. If anyone else has information or history of this mural I’d love to hear from you.
As I sit and write this post I discovered Delavan has quite an interesting history. The reason for the animal statues is because Delavan was once the home to over 26 circus company’s in the late 1800’s. Wikipedia has a nice article about Delavan Wisconsin. I think another highlight for tourist should be a stop in the post office. It’s a wonderful piece of artwork and highlights the history of Delavan nicely.
Thanks,
David W. Gates Jr.
Sources
- Personal visit on 3/13/2012 by David W. Gates Jr.
- United States Postal Service
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places, Reference Number (00001260).
- National Archives Records and Administration Identifier Number (106779608).
