ADDRESS: 104 Swift St. Edgerton, Wisconsin 53534
ARTIST: Vladimir Rousseff
TITLE: Tobacco Harvest
MEDIUM: Oil on canvas (mural)
STATUS: The Edgerton Post Office exists to this day, and the mural is still accessible to members of the public interested in viewing it. It resides in the lobby on the wall above the postmaster’s door.
YEAR: 1941
I told myself I wasn’t going to blog about buildings I don’t have complete pictures of. But since it’s the middle of winter and I’m working on the site, I figured I may as well. What do you mean by that, you may ask yourself. Well it was a Sunday when I visited Edgerton, Wisconsin. Based on my experience, it’s always a gamble as to whether the lobby will be open. In this case the doors were locked and I was not able to get inside to look around.
Why is this a big deal may be the next question you might be asking yourself? Well, because the Edgerton Post Office does have a mural. And gosh darn it, I wasn’t able to see it during my visit. So what did I do instead? I took a bunch of pictures of the exterior of the building. I’ve got this one on my radar for a future visit and hopefully not on a Sunday.
Update June 2013
I was finally able to visit this on during business hours. I made it a point to stop in and see this one during a weekend in June. I’m glad I did, because there is a nice display case in the lobby with the great artifacts. What else can you tell me about the Edgerton, Wisconsin Post Office or the mural on the wall? Please comment below.
Thanks,
David W. Gates Jr.
Sources
- Personal visit on 9/20/2012 and 6/4/2013 by David W. Gates Jr.
- Wisconsin Post Office Murals by David W. Gates Jr.
- Wisconsin Post Office Mural Guidebook 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
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places, Reference Number (00001239).
- National Archives Records and Administration Identifier Number (106779371).
I hope everyone had a nice 4th of July. I ended up taking another road trip through Wisconsin. I figured since I had the day after the 4th, off from work it would be a great time to update some of the material.
Edgerton was one of my primary targets and I was sure glad to make this visit. The mural is wonderfully preserved and vivid with color. I was also presently surprised as I also found a nice display case with some post office artifacts and old newspaper clippings.
The title of the mural is “Tobacco Harvest” and was done by Vladimir Rousseff in 1941.
It’s nice to be able to update and complete this blog entry on the Edgerton Wisconsin Post Office. By complete I only mean being able to add a picture of the artwork. By all means if you have more information regarding this one I’d love to hear from you.
Take care,
David