United States Post Office (Porterville, California)

US Post Office--Porterville Main
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location	65 W. Mill Ave., Porterville, California
Coordinates	36°4′7″N 119°1′1″W / 36.06861°N 119.01694°WCoordinates: 36°4′7″N 119°1′1″W / 36.06861°N 119.01694°W
Area	1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built	1933–1937
Architectural style	Art Deco
MPS	US Post Office in California 1900-1941 TR
NRHP Reference #	85000141[1]
Added to NRHP	January 11, 1985

The U.S. Post Office, located at 65 W. Mill Ave., is the main post office in Porterville, California. Built from 1933 to 1937, the post office was designed by H. Rafael Lake in the Art Deco style. The design features decorative terra cotta plaques over the windows and cast aluminum plaques below the front windows, decorative features used in no other building in Porterville. A terra cotta frieze atop the front entry features eagle and acanthus motifs borrowed from Roman designs and a sunrise pattern typical of Art Deco decorations. The building is topped with a green tile roof, an unusual element in Art Deco buildings which is consistent with the vernacular Mission Revival style common in Porterville architecture. The post office is one of three Art Deco post offices remaining in California.^[2]

The post office was added to the National Register of Historic Places as US Post Office–Porterville Main on January 11, 1985.^[1]

References

1. National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
2. Robertson, Doug (April 27, 1984). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form: U.S. Post Office" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved April 17, 2013.

External links

• Photos from the NRHP nomination