Crossville Tennessee Post Office

ADDRESS: 240 Old Jamestown Hwy. Crossville, Tennessee 38555
ARTIST: Marion Greenwood
TITLE: The Partnership of Man and Nature
ARTIST: Marion Greenwood
MEDIUM: Oil on canvas (mural)
STATUS: The mural resides in the lobby of the building and is accessible to members of the public interested in viewing it.
YEAR: 1940

Nice combination of old and new in Crossville, Not only an interesting mural but also a dedication plaque. Who would have thought? I’m happy to see that the mural was taken out of the old post office and moved to the existing post office building. The newer post office is a classic 80’s building, I wonder when the mural was moved? I’m extremely happy to see that it has been preserved and is on public display.

This begs me to ask all sorts of questions. How does all this happen? Recent sales of post offices seem to include the murals. Some how in some cases the mural goes with the sale of the property. However, in some cases such as this the mural is moved and preserved. So I ask again how and why doesn’t this happen to ALL post office sales? Why isn’t the art protected in other states and other building transactions? Please let know, because during my tour of Tennessee I’ve seen other post offices sold along with the existing artwork still in the building. These treasures are no longer available to the public. This disturbs me more than I though it would.

What struck me the most about this mural is the look on the people’s faces. They all appear worn out and exhausted from life. Or maybe just tired from working, it’s hard to tell, but even the baby’s faces appears worn out and tired. Interesting composition, I wonder what the artists was trying to capture in this piece. This one by the way used to hang in the original or former post office. I’ll be showcasing this one tomorrow, so stay tuned if you are interested in a bit of Crossville history.

What do you think about the mural? Are you from Crossville? Have you ever noticed the mural when you visited the post office? What do you think of the mural? Do you like it? Do you wonder who the characters are? or where they are from? I do.

Thanks,

David W. Gates Jr.