US Post Office and Courthouse
About this property
The Walter E. Hoffman United States Courthouse, formerly known as the U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, is a courthouse of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Norfolk, Virginia. Built in 1932, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, reflecting Art Deco architecture. Historically it served as a courthouse and additionally as a post office. The courthouse, located in downtown Norfolk, was constructed as a Post Office and Courthouse in 1932–34. Local Norfolk architects, Benjamin F. Mitchell and the firm of Rudolph, Cooke, and VanLeeuwen, were jointly responsible for the architectural design. Although built during the Depression, the building is quite lavish in its design and finishes. Upon its completion, this four-story, gray limestone building was considered at the time to fall "little short of magnificence", according to the local paper, the Virginian-Pilot. The elaborate Art Deco interior is marked with a high level of craftsmanship. During the first two decades of the twentieth century, the city of Norfolk experienced an explosion of prosperity, in part due to the rapid growth of the Naval Base. The need for a new, larger courthouse and post office was becoming so acute that temporary postal stations were established to handle the overflow of postal congestion. At the time, the courthouse and Post Office were both housed in the circa 1898 Federal Courthouse at 235 E. Plume Street. In 1915, a committee was appointed and headed by Norfolk's Mayor Wyndham R. Mayo to petition Congress for an appropriation of funds for the construction of a new Federal building in the city. The committee included Postmaster Major Clinton L. Wright, as well as many civic and business leaders. This petition was never approved, despite being submitted and resubmitted throughout the 1920s as the need for more space increased. In 1922, funds to acquire temporary housing for mail operations were allocated. In 1929, Congress made a tentative allocation of $1.15 million for the Norfolk Federal building. Menalcus Lankford, Congressman elect from Norfolk, and Postmaster Major Wright, successfully realized $2.05 million in appropriations for the federal building. A site was selected on January 12, 1931. The location consisted of two small blocks between Brambleton Avenue on the north, East Bute Street on the south, Monticello Avenue on the east and Granby Street on the west, bisected by York Street. The site consisted of approximately 81,000 square feet, part of which had been occupied by St. Luke's Episcopal Church, destroyed by fire ten years earlier.
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 US Post Office and Courthouse listed on the National Register?
US Post Office and Courthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 9, 1984.
What type of historic resource is US Post Office and Courthouse?
US Post Office and Courthouse is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for US Post Office and Courthouse?
The period of significance for US Post Office and Courthouse is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near US Post Office and Courthouse?
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 and Courthouse will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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