New Deal buildings or New Deal murals or artwork.

Union City Indiana Post Office

November 28, 2021 By David W. Gates Jr.

ADDRESS: 102 W. Pearl St., Union City, Indiana 47390
ARTIST: Donald M. Mattison
TITLE: Country Cousins
MEDIUM: Oil on canvas (mural)
STATUS: The Union City post office is still an active, operating facility, and the mural can be viewed by interested members of the public. It resides in the lobby on a wall above the postmaster’s door.
YEAR: 1935

Union City is a perfect example of the lighting I prefer when I arrive for a site visit. The sun is shinning perfectly on the front of the building. I have deep blue skies. This is the perfect scenario and thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Union City.

In addition to have a great mural, Union City also has some great historical photos on display. Someone also took the time to create a wonderful bulletin board of postal history. This is a nice touch for visitors.

As info, the reason all the images of the old photos are on an angle was to avoid the glare. Each picture was in a glass frame. This made it difficult to photograph and see the old photo. Taking my pictures at various angles helped to eliminate the glare and allow us to see more of the old photos.

David W. Gates Jr.

Union City IN Post Office 47390 Mural Center

Union City IN Post Office 47390 Mural Signature

Union City IN Post Office 47390 Mural Right

Union City IN Post Office 47390 Mural Left

Union City IN Post Office 47390 Mural Detail

Union City IN Post Office 47390 Artifacts

Sources

Personal visit on 11/23/21 about 12:17 PM by David W. Gates Jr.
Indiana 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
(affiliate link): A Simple and Vital Design: The Story of the Indiana Post Office Murals: John C. Carlisle

Dunkirk Indiana Post Office

November 27, 2021 By David W. Gates Jr.

ADDRESS: 123 W. Commerce St., Dunkirk, Indiana 47336
ARTIST: Frances Foy
TITLE: Preparation for Autumn Festival
MEDIUM: Oil on canvas (mural)
STATUS: The Dunkirk post office is still an active, operating facility, and the mural can be viewed by interested members of the public. It resides in the lobby on a wall above the postmaster’s door.
YEAR: 1936

What a beautiful building and the mural is a great example of Frances Foy’s work. I’ve always enjoyed the two murals in the West Allis, Wisconsin post office and this is another example of her work.

Kudos to the postmaster and staff for seeing the building and lobby in great shape. It also smells nice. I noticed one of those room scented plug-in things on the wall. Two plants hanging from the vestibule.

Not only do you have a great building and mural, but you also have some great historical photos on display. I took a picture of each one, but because they are behind glass, it was hard to not get glare in the photo. So each picture I took has an awkward angle. I felt taking the pictures at an angle would at least allow you to see the old photo better. Did I do a decent job? Please comment below.

David W. Gates Jr.

Dunkirk IN Post Office 47336 Mural Center

Dunkirk IN Post Office 47336 Cornerstone

Dunkirk IN Post Office 47336 Mural Right

Dunkirk IN Post Office 47336 Mural Signature

Dunkirk IN Post Office 47336 Mural Detail

Sources

Personal visit on 11/23/21 about 10:59 AM and 06/30/2023 about 10:56 AM by David W. Gates Jr.
Indiana 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
(affiliate link): A Simple and Vital Design: The Story of the Indiana Post Office Murals: John C. Carlisle
Parma Conservation (https://parmaconservation.com)

Gas City Indiana Post Office

November 25, 2021 By David W. Gates Jr.

ADDRESS: 123 N. 2nd St., Gas City, Indiana 46933
ARTIST: William A. Dolwick
TITLE: Gas City in Boom Days
MEDIUM: Oil on canvas (mural)
STATUS: The Gas City post office is still an active, operating facility, and the mural can be viewed by interested members of the public. It resides in the lobby on a wall above the postmaster’s door.
YEAR: 1937

What a lovely visit, lucky me there was an older lady who chatted me up. We talked for what seemed like a good 15 or 20 minutes. I learned all about her life and a few of her 7 siblings. I learned about her parents moving to Alaska and how they moved back to Indiana when they were seniors and needed more assistance. Is hard to believe I learned so much about one person in such a short amount of time.

However, I also imagine that’s what life was like and how folks socialized years ago. It was kind of fitting, to talking in the lobby of this great building, observing the wonderful mural and catching up with the locals.

Kudos to the postmaster and staff for taking such wonderful care of the building.

David W. Gates Jr.