You are here

Post Office and Federal Courthouse

-A A +A
1908–1910, James Knox Taylor, OSA. 1939, 1963, 1967, additions and renovations. 201 E. Pikes Peak Ave. (southeast corner of Nevada Ave.) (NR)

The rigidly symmetrical post office facade, sheathed on all four sides in pink Pikes Peak granite, rises two stories, fronted by pilasters dividing fenestration bays. The taller, first-level openings have rounded tops. The composition and ornament are Neoclassical. Pilasters carry an Ionic frieze and projecting cornice, with a balustrade around the flat roof, whose original tin was replaced in 1961. First-floor keystones form corbels to support the second-story stringcourse. Two main entrances are between large arched windows, with relief sculpture in the transoms and flanking cast iron fixtures.

James Knox Taylor, formerly chief draftsman, was promoted to Supervising Architect of the Treasury following architectural training at MIT and a partnership from 1884 to 1892 with Cass Gilbert in St. Paul. Taylor oversaw design of many government structures across the country, including the Denver Mint ( DV011) and main post office ( DV037). Most of the interior of the El Paso post office has been closed to the public after extensive remodeling in 1967 blocked off the original light court, and a 1936 mural by Frank Mechau was moved to the Denver Federal Building.

Writing Credits

Author: 
Thomas J. Noel

If SAH Archipedia has been useful to you, please consider supporting it.

SAH Archipedia tells the story of the United States through its buildings, landscapes, and cities. This freely available resource empowers the public with authoritative knowledge that deepens their understanding and appreciation of the built environment. But the Society of Architectural Historians, which created SAH Archipedia with University of Virginia Press, needs your support to maintain the high-caliber research, writing, photography, cartography, editing, design, and programming that make SAH Archipedia a trusted online resource available to all who value the history of place, heritage tourism, and learning.

,