Minna Citron

Post offices that have artwork by the artists Minna Citron

Tennessee Post Office Mural Artists

July 30, 2020 By David W. Gates Jr.

A total of twenty-nine artist created murals in thirty Tennessee Post Office buildings during the Great Depression of the 1930s. One of the artist Minna Citron received multiple commissions. The artist and their awarded sites as listed below.

We have found having a list such as this is convenient when performing research at the National Archives Records and Administration. Any researcher will reveal, that finding information is part of the fun, somethings what you are looking for is catalogued by the artist name. Other times the research materials you need may be cataloged by the city or town, and so on.

Having a list to refer to is helpful on your journey of discovering these wonderful treasures in our nations post offices.

Tennessee Post Office Mural Artist

Bolivar – Carl Nyquist
Camden – John H. Fyfe
Chattanooga – Leopold Scholz, sculpture
Chattanooga – Hilton Leech, mural
Clarksville – F. Luis Mora
Clinton – Horace Talmage Day
Columbia – Henry Billings, mural
Columbia – Sidney Waugh, sculpture
Crossville – Marion Greenwood
Dayton – Bertram Hartman
Decherd – Enea Biafora
Dickson – Edwin Boyd Johnson
Dresden – Minetta Good
Gleason – Anne Poor
Greeneville – William Zorach
Jefferson City – Charles Child
Johnson City – Wendell Jones
La Follette – Dahlov Ipcar
Lenoir City – David Stone Martin
Lewisburg – John H.R. Pickett
Lexington – Grace Greenwood (Ames)
Livingston – Margaret Covey Chisholm
Manchester – Minna Citron*
McKenzie – Karl Oberteuffer
Mount Pleasant – Eugene Higgins
Nashville – Belle Kinney
Newport – Minna Citron*
Ripley – Marguerite Zorach
Rockwood – Christian Henrich
Sweetwater – Thelma Martin

Sources

David W. Gates Jr. on site visits to each location.
Tennessee Post Office Murals by David W. Gates Jr.
Indiana Post Office Mural Guidebook by David W. Gates Jr.
National Archives Records and Administration, College Park Maryland
Who was who in American Art, 1564-1975: 400 years of artist in America, Peter H Falk; Audrey M Lewis, Georgia Kuchen, Veronika Roessler, Madison, CT, Mount View Press. 1999.
Democratic Vistas: Post Offices and Public Art in the New Deal: [Hardcover] Marlene Park, Gerald E. Markowitz

Former Newport Tennessee Post Office

February 21, 2015 By David W. Gates Jr.

ADDRESS: 219 E. Broadway Street, Newport, Tennessee, 37821
ARTIST: Minna Citron
TITLE: TVA Power
MEDIUM: Oil on canvas (mural)
STATUS: The murals no longer resides in the original building shown here. They were moved to the Newport Community Center on Cosby Highway. The murals are located in the second floor museum. They are only viewable during very limited volunteer hours.
YEAR: 1940

After I finished my visit at the newer post office I headed over to the former Newport building. Anyone familiar with the older buildings knows its easy to spot. It’s the classic square boxy shape. Has two lamps on either side of the staircase and a half circle above the door. But you won’t find the mural here. Nope! according to my research it has been moved to Newport Community Center. Inside the community center is the Cocke County Museum where the mural resides.

By the time we had figured this out we were not able to visit the museum. Further more, I’ve also discovered the museum is only open one day a week and for limited hours. Go figure! How does that jive with making the art accessible? Anyway, another time and another place, I’ll be back to hopefully seen this one. To be honest I was reluctant to post this one since I didn’t have the artwork to include in this article. But I when I first started this blog I was more concerned with getting a good exterior picture of the building. I’ve achieved that so I decided to post this article. Hopefully, I have it before this article goes live. Yes, I was able to get the mural photos before this article posted. Please see the update below.

When I was talking to the man at the newer building he mentioned he knew the owner of the building. It also occurred to me that the post office may have vacated and sold this building many years ago. Here is why, at some point federal law required all buildings to be ADA compliant. Many of these older buildings had to be retrofitted with ramps in front of the buildings to accommodate persons with disabilities. This building does not have a ramp which lead me to believe it may have been sold prior the law being enforced for older buildings.

What can you tell me about it? Are my assumptions correct? Now that I think about it maybe there is a ramp in the back of the building. I don’t recall seeing one but you never know. Please comment below if you know more about this building.

Former Newport Tennessee Post Office 37821

Former Newport Tennessee Post Office 37821 Cornerstone

UPDATE January 2015

I found the murals, scheduled a visit, and photographed them. This was actually in December but I’m just getting around to updating this post in January. It’s actually 4 separate panels I’ve labeled each panel 1, panel 2, panel 3 etc. The biggest question I have for everyone now is this: Where inside the building where the murals installed? See I can tell by panel 1 that this was above the postmasters office door as it has the classic missing square at the bottom of the mural. This is because the mural came down past the door on either side.

So if that is the case which walls were the other 3 panels installed? I like to see picture of when this building was a post office and when the art was installed. Anyone out there have such images? Please comment and share below.

The mural is no longer at the building on Broadway. It has been moved to the Newport community center. There is a small museum on the second floor. I scheduled an appointment and a volunteer meet me there. Special thanks to Jane and the museum for taking time out your day.

Thanks,

David W. Gates Jr.

Former Newport Tennessee Post Office Mural 37821

Former Newport Tennessee Post Office Mural 37821 Full

Former Newport Tennessee Post Office Mural 37821 Panel

Sources

Personal visit on 9/04/2014 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
The Newport Main Talk (https://www.newportplaintalk.com/news/article_574e3e8e-f22e-11e3-89ad-001a4bcf887a.html?mode=image&photo=0)

Manchester Tennessee Post Office

July 20, 2013 By David W. Gates Jr.

ADDRESS: 1601 Hillsboro Blvd., Manchester, Tennessee, 37355
ARTIST: Minna Citron
TITLE: Swapping Day
MEDIUM: Oil on canvas (mural)
STATUS: The mural is on display behind the retail counter. It is only viewable during business hours.
YEAR: 1942

Yesterday I featured the Former Manchester Tennessee Post Office. Which is located in the downtown area of Manchester. Today I feature the newer building. Luckily the mural that once hung in the former building was moved to the new building. This makes me happy.

So many questions about this one, the circumstances surrounding the move etc. Finding all the details and some history is made more difficult since each town potentially has its own historical societies. The only historical society I found was for Coffee County.

If you look at the detail of this mural you can see the Former Manchester Post Office in the background of the painting. I though this was a really cool feature of the mural. It also provided me a rough idea of what to look for when I went driving around the down town area looking for the former building.

Thanks,

David W. Gates Jr.