- City:
- Crossett, AR
- Site Type:
- Civic Facilities, Federal Facilities, Post Offices
- New Deal Agencies:
- Federal & Military Operations, Treasury Department
- Started:
- 1939
- Completed:
- 1940
- Designers:
- Louis A Simon - Supervising Architect, Neal A. Melick - Supervising Engineer
Description
“When construction was completed in 1940, Crossett reveled in the addition of the ‘pleasing green’ stucco building that was designed using a combination of Art Deco, Greek Revival, and International architectural syles” (Arkansas Historic Preservation Program). The post office cost $70,000 to build, and housed the post office until 1968. The postal service sold the building to the city for $1 to house the new public library. The library remained in the building until 2002, and the former post office is currently home to the Crossett Economic Development Foundation.
“In terms of design, this is a building built decades ahead of its time. The Crossett Post Office was, and still is, a jewel hidden in a small town in Southeast Arkansas” (Old Crossett Post Office). The building was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 2003 (Ashley County Ledger).
Source notes
Arkansas Historic Preservation Program. (n.d.). Crossett Post Office, Crossett, Ashley County. Retrieved from https://www.arkansaspreservation.com/historic-properties/_search_nomination_popup.aspx?id=2022. Old Crossett Post Office. (n.d.). Ashley County Ledger. Retrieved from https://ashleycountyledger.com/history/national_register/crossettpostoffice.txt.Site originally submitted by Susan Allen on January 10, 2014.
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Mason Toms
The architect for this building was Arthur F. Deam. It was part of a 1938 Federal architectural competition for small post offices. You can read Talbot Hamlin’s review of the competition on pages 564-565 in the September 1938 issue of Pencil Points magazine (https://usmodernist.org/PA/PP-1938-09.pdf). Louis Simon, though listed as the “supervising architect,” did not actually design any post offices, he just approved designs.