US Post Office-Madison Square Station
About this property
The United States Post Office Madison Square Station is a historic post office building located at 149 East 23rd Street between Lexington Avenue and Third Avenue on the East Side of Manhattan, New York City. It was designed by architect Lorimer Rich and was completed in 1937. The post office was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 11, 1989 The United States Post Office Madison Square Station is located at 149 East 23rd Street, between Lexington Avenue and Third Avenue on the East Side of Manhattan, New York City. In spite of the building's name, it is not located on Madison Square but about three blocks east (approximately 1/4 mile) along 23rd Street. The building runs through the block to East 24th Street, where there are loading docks and another much smaller and less formal public entrance. In the mid-1930s, the post office was included as part of a plan to have Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn designated as the eastern terminus of air mail, forming a link in the delivery of mail to the General Post Office through its connection to the pneumatic mail tube system. The plan involved using flying boats to transport mail from Floyd Bennett Field to a new seaplane base on East 23rd Street that was being constructed nearby. The Madison Square Station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. In 2025, the Historic Districts Council, in partnership with the Rose Hill/Kips Bay Coalition, requested the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission evaluate the building for potential designation as an individual landmark and an interior landmark. The building was constructed in 1937, and was designed by Lorimer Rich for Louis A. Simon, the Supervising Architect of the Treasury. It is a two to three story building clad on its main facade with polished "Dakota Mahogany" granite in the Classical Revival style. The main facade features six two-story Doric order piers and pilaster that surround the recessed entrance bays. The exterior also features five bronze relief sculptures by artists Edmond Amateis and Louis Slobodkin illustrating different forms of communication: from west to east, the god Mercury, jungle drums, mail, carrier pigeon, and smoke signals. The interior features eight murals executed between 1937 and 1939 by artist Kindred McLeary. Media related to United States Post Office (Madison Square Station) at Wikimedia Commons
Location
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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.
Everything a full report reveals about US Post Office-Madison Square Station
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Questions about this property
When was US Post Office-Madison Square Station listed on the National Register?
US Post Office-Madison Square Station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 10, 1989.
What type of historic resource is US Post Office-Madison Square Station?
US Post Office-Madison Square Station is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for US Post Office-Madison Square Station?
The period of significance for US Post Office-Madison Square Station is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near US Post Office-Madison Square Station?
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 US Post Office-Madison Square Station will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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