U.S. Post Office and Office Building
About this property
The Federal Building, U.S. Post Office and Courthouse in Hilo, Hawaii is a former courthouse of the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii. Completed in 1917 and expanded in the 1930s, the building was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. Prior to the annexation of the islands by the United States in 1898, Hilo was a thriving educational and commercial center on Hawaii, the largest of the Hawaiian Islands. Flourishing agricultural enterprises were served by railroads and harbors that facilitated trade with both the continental United States and East Asia. Postal services in Hilo commenced in 1858. When the Hawaiian Islands became a territory of the United States in 1900, officials wanted to expand postal and court facilities for the second-largest city in the territory. By 1913, the Hilo Board of Trade and the territory's governmental representative secured US$200,000 for a federal building. New York architect Henry Whitfield designed the new building in 1915. Whitfield, who was the brother-in-law of Andrew Carnegie, had just completed the design for the Honolulu Carnegie Library. Whitfield designed the building in the Mediterranean Renaissance Revival style, which blends traditional classical architecture with features more suited to a tropical climate. The building was one of the first in Hawaii constructed using reinforced concrete, a technology that was common on the mainland. Construction was completed and the building occupied in 1917. It originally functioned as a courthouse, post office, and custom house. Other tenants included the Immigration Bureau, Agricultural Extension Service, Weather Bureau, and Internal Revenue Service. By the 1930s, tenants required more space and two wings were added to the building between 1936 and 1938. Louis A. Simon, supervising architect of the US Treasury, designed the wings in a style compatible with that of the original building. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places listings on the island of Hawaii on October 1, 1974 as site 74000708. In 1978, most postal functions moved to a new location, and the following year the Third Circuit Court vacated the third floor, which was converted into offices. The structure is located on the northern edge of downtown bounded by Waianuenue Avenue, Wailuku Drive, and Kinoole and Kekaulike streets at 154 Waianuenue Avenue (Route 200), 19°43′32″N 155°5′20″W, on Kalakaua Park square. Across the square is the historic former District Courthouse and Police Station. Whitfield's design blends classically inspired forms and motifs with features that are suitable for the warm Hawaiian climate. It is particularly noteworthy for its use of reinforced concrete, and it is one of the earliest buildings in the area to be constructed of permanent materials.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was U.S. Post Office and Office Building listed on the National Register?
U.S. Post Office and Office Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 30, 1974.
What type of historic resource is U.S. Post Office and Office Building?
U.S. Post Office and Office Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for U.S. Post Office and Office Building?
The period of significance for U.S. Post Office and Office Building is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near U.S. Post Office and Office Building?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near U.S. Post Office and Office Building will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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