US Post Office-Wellsville
Also known as: Wellsville Post Office
Why it's listed
Wellsville's post office at 40 East Pearl Street is a two-story building with one-story wings, faced in buff-colored brick and trimmed with limestone. It was built between March 1932 and March 1933 under a federal program to relieve Depression unemployment. Washington, D.C. architects Walter B. Olmsted and Frederick V. Murphy designed it as consulting architects to the Treasury's Supervising Architect. The front facade is dominated by two-story fluted limestone pilasters, Greek fret ornament and stylized carved eagles at the corners, mixing Greek Revival forms with 1930s Modernist and Art Deco touches. Most New York post offices of the period used the Colonial Revival style, which makes this one unusual. Inside, the lobby survives intact, with marble floors and wainscot, bronze fixtures and a coffered ceiling. Two stone bas-reliefs by H. K. Bush-Brown and Fred Cowles depict the founding of the Iroquois League of Peace and the story of Mary Jemison, and were made specifically for the space.
Significance in brief: It is presented as an outstanding example of Depression-era federal public works architecture, designed in a refined Classical Revival style with Greek Revival and Modernist or Art Deco influences. Its completely intact public lobby has marble, bronze and plaster finishes and two stone bas-reliefs of local Iroquois history. It was one of the few New York post offices of the period not designed in Colonial Revival style.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 88002445, listed May 11, 1989. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 40 E. Pearl St., Wellsville |
|---|---|
| County | Allegany County |
| Listed | May 11, 1989 |
| Reference number | 88002445 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1931-3 |
| Architect / builder | W.B. Olmsted, F.V. Murphy, Consulting Architects |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival with Greek Revival, Modernist and Art Deco influences |
| Areas of significance | Art, Politics/Government, Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed in good condition; the form marks the property as occupied and in government use, and the lobby is described as completely intact. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Within district | The Village of Wellsville East Historic District |
| Coordinates | 42.12353, -77.94867 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 88002445.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7891063
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.