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.
I visited the Columbia building last July and the mural looked great. I don’t know if it has been restored but the colors seemed vibrant. At that time the building was not being used as a courthouse or post office and they had considered selling it. The FBI and Homeland Security had offices there.
Hi Lisa,
Was the building open to the public when you visited? I was there in April, during what I guess would be normal business hours. The doors were locked and no one was around. I really wanted to get into but had no idea who to contact? I was just wondering how you got in to see it?
Take care,
David
No it was not. I was just lucky because an employee who was arriving for work was kind enough to let me in after I explained that I was there for scholarly reasons (I’m an art historian). I was told by a Columbia resident that they were selling the building, but the employee told me that the government hadn’t yet decided.
Lisa,
You were right the mural does look great and is in excellent condition. I was able to visit in December of last year. I’ve updated this article to include the photographs I took during my visit.
Thanks for confirming its still there and for the comment.
Take care,
Post Office Freak
Glad it worked out and that they allowed you to take the photos! Also great shot of the cornerstone. Super helpful for research.
Thanks for the comment Evan, I was super excited. Persistence paid off as this was my third trip to Tennessee. It’s certainly a challenge getting the one’s that are not open to the public on a regular basis. But it is certainly worth it.
Take care,
Post Office Freak