United States Customs House and Post Office (Pensacola, Florida)

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U.S. Customs House and Post Office
Pensacola Customshouse01.jpg
Escambia County Courthouse
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Location223 Palafox Pl.,
Pensacola, Florida
Coordinates 30°24′34″N87°12′54″W / 30.40944°N 87.21500°W / 30.40944; -87.21500
Arealess than one acre
ArchitectBell, M.E.
Architectural style Renaissance Revival
NRHP reference No. 97000659 [1]
Added to NRHPJuly 22, 1997

The U.S. Customs House and Post Office, also known as the Escambia County Courthouse, is a historic site in Pensacola, Florida. Built in 1887, it is located at 223 Palafox Place. [2] On July 22, 1997, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

Contents

History

From 1885 to 1937, the Escambia County Courthouse was a building on the northeast corner of Palafox and Chase streets. It was built for $200,000. [3] [4] The U.S. Customs House and Post Office housed the customs house on the second floor, the post office on the first floor, the district attorney’s office, and the courts on the third and fourth floors. [5] [6] It also housed the internal revenue collector's office and the office of the surgeon in charge of the Pensacola marina hospital. [6]

In 1937 Escambia County, which needed more space, swapped its location for that of the U.S. Customs House and Post Office because the Federal Government, which by then had no more use for a customs house, needed a building site for a new U.S. Post Office and Courthouse. The Federal Government demolished the old county courthouse in 1938 and built its new building there.

Escambia County moved into the old customs house and post office in 1940, housing the county and clerks offices. [6] Plans were announced in 2008 to renovate the upper floors for the Arts Council of Northwest Florida and West Florida Historic Preservation. [6]

Architecture

The U.S. Customs House and Post Office was designed by architect M. E. Bell. [4] [2] The late Victorian Renaissance Revival style four-story building has a limestone exterior, over brick walls. [5] [4] Its main entrance has a colonnaded portico with a flat roof. [4] A four-story annex addition was added in 1953. [4]

See also

Further reading

References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. 1 2 "Florida (FL), Escambia County". National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved September 1, 2025.
  3. ↑ "Escambia County Courthouse". Florida's 10th Judicial Circuit. Archived from the original on December 25, 2009. Retrieved September 1, 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "US Customs House and Post Office". NPGallery. National Park Service. Retrieved August 31, 2025.
  5. 1 2 "United States Customs House and Post Office (Pensacola, Florida)". Clio. Retrieved September 1, 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Escambia County | Florida's History Through Its Places". Florida Division of Historical Resources. Archived from the original on September 26, 2013. Retrieved September 1, 2025.
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