US Post Office-El Centro Main

Last updated
U.S. Post Office-El Centro Main
U.S. Post Office Building, El Centro, California.jpg
USA California location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location230 S. 5th St., El Centro, California
Coordinates 32°47′27″N115°33′14″W / 32.79083°N 115.55389°W / 32.79083; -115.55389 (US Post Office-El Centro Main) Coordinates: 32°47′27″N115°33′14″W / 32.79083°N 115.55389°W / 32.79083; -115.55389 (US Post Office-El Centro Main)
Area0.5 acres (0.20 ha)
Built1931-32
Architect James A. Wetmore, Louis A. Simon
Architectural style Classical Revival, Beaux Arts
MPS US Post Office in California 1900-1941 TR
NRHP reference # 85000125 [1]
Added to NRHPJanuary 11, 1985

The El Centro Main Post Office, in El Centro, California, was built in 1931. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985 as U.S. Post Office-El Centro Main.

El Centro, California City in California, United States

El Centro is a city in and county seat of Imperial County, California, the largest city in the Imperial Valley, east anchor of the Southern California Border Region, and the core urban area and principal city of the El Centro metropolitan area which encompasses all of Imperial County. El Centro is also the largest American city to lie entirely below sea level. The city, located in southeastern California, is 113 miles (182 km) from the major Southern California city of San Diego and near the Mexican city of Mexicali.

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

It is Beaux Arts in style, with a large loggia across the front which is common to Italianate or Second Renaissance Revival style. It has classical Corinthian columns. Design is credited to James A. Wetmore and Louis A. Simon of the Office of the Supervising Architect,

Loggia covered exterior gallery

A loggia is an architectural feature which is a covered exterior gallery or corridor usually on an upper level, or sometimes ground level. The outer wall is open to the elements, usually supported by a series of columns or arches. Loggias can be located either on the front or side of a building and are not meant for entrance but as an out-of-door sitting room.

Italianate architecture 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture

The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture.

Corinthian order Latest of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture

The Corinthian order is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order which was the earliest, followed by the Ionic order. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order. The Corinthian, with its offshoot the Composite, is the most ornate of the orders. This architectural style is characterized by slender fluted columns and elaborate capitals decorated with acanthus leaves and scrolls. There are many variations.

Its National Register nomination discusses its architecture:

The El Centro Main Office is anomalous, both in terms of its size, its style, and in the use of expensive materials. Stylistically, the El Centro Post Office is essentially Beaux Arts Classicism, though by 1932, this style was at least 15 years out of date. It is unique among 1930s post offices for its unusual style alone; the other Beaux-Arts buildings from the early thirties also housed federal courts or other federal agencies, and were designed by private architects. By 1932, the Office of the Supervising Architect was developing the Starved Classical style, and the most common style used for small post offices in California was some form of Mediterranean Revival. In any event, the post office is the most sophisticated Beaux-Arts building in town, and acts as a major urban design focus for the town's archiecture and public spaces: On the state level, the building is important as a stylistically anachronistic example of the small post office building type. [2]

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References

  1. National Park Service (2013-11-02). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
  2. "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: U.S. Post Office / El Centre Main Post Office". National Park Service . Retrieved February 20, 2019. With accompanying three photos from 1982