ADDRESS : 815 South Garden Street, Columbia, Tennessee 38401
ARTIST: Henry Billings
TITLE: Maury County Landscape
MEDIUM: Oil on canvas (mural)
STATUS: The post offices no longer operates out of this building. The mural resides in the lobby of the building but is not easily accessible to members of the public.
YEAR: 1942
ARTIST: Sidney Waugh
TITLE: Large Concrete Eagle
MEDIUM: Concrete (sculpture)
STATUS: The eagle sculpture resides on the exterior of the building on the roof.
YEAR: 1941
oh Happy Farther’s day Dad!!!
So my time in Tennessee brought me to the old post office and court-house. The good news is the building is still being used as a court-house. The not so good news is that it is no longer a post office. I’m happy to see the engraved letters “post office and court-house” above the entrance to the building.
Howard Hull’s book “Tennessee Post Office Murals” list the Columbia Post Office as having a mural. Since the building is not open to the public I’m unable to confirm if the mural still exist. The Columbia chapter in Hull’s book displays pictures of the mural.
So now I’m going to ask for some help. Does this mural still exist in this building? Is there anyone reading know if the mural has been moved or restored? The front doors were locked during a week day with not security folks around to ask.
Any help in confirming this or shedding more light on this would be greatly appreciated.
UPDATE January 2015
In December 2014, I was able to schedule and gain access to this building. I also managed to get a bunch of photographs of the mural. Since the lobby was undergoing light bulb changes most ceiling lights were out or missing. This made it difficult to get go photographs. I can now check this one off my list. Yes, this mural is in great shape and in excellent condition.
Thanks,
David W. Gates Jr.
Sources
- Personal visit on 7/27/2013 and 12/22/2014 by David W. Gates Jr.
- Tennessee Post Office Murals by David W. Gates Jr.
- Tennessee Post Office Mural Guidebook
by David W. Gates Jr.
- (affiliate link) Democratic Vistas: Post Offices and Public Art in the New Deal
: [Hardcover] Marlene Park, Gerald E. Markowitz
- (affiliate link): Tennessee Post Office Murals
: Howard Hull
by David W. Gates Jr.
