US Post Office-Canajoharie
Also known as: Canajoharie Post Office
Why it's listed
This one-story brick post office at 50 West Main Street in Canajoharie was built in 1937 on a site formerly used as a lumber yard and later a garage and storage yard, beside the filled-in Erie Canal bed. Designed under Treasury Supervising Architect Louis A. Simon and built by Vanguard Construction Corporation, it follows a standard plan used for thirteen nearly identical post offices across New York State. The Colonial Revival design has a symmetrical front, a gable roof with a square cupola, a denticulated wooden cornice, and an entrance framed by fluted Doric columns and a blind fanlight holding a cast aluminum eagle. Inside, an L-shaped lobby retains tile floors, plaster walls and original screenline sections. A 1942 mural by Anatol Shulkin shows James Arkell presenting his paper bag to townspeople during the Civil War. The building was recognized for its intact Depression-era federal architecture and for this locally themed artwork.
Significance in brief: It is an intact example of Depression-era federal architecture in the Colonial Revival style, built from a standardized plan used for thirteen nearly identical post offices in New York State. It also holds a well-preserved 1942 mural by Anatol Shulkin, commissioned by the Treasury Department's Section of Fine Arts, depicting the invention of the paper bag in Canajoharie.
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 88002464, listed November 17, 1988. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 50 W. Main St., Canajoharie |
|---|---|
| County | Montgomery County |
| Listed | November 17, 1988 |
| Reference number | 88002464 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900- (specific dates 1937; 1942) |
| Architect / builder | Treasury Department; Louis A. Simon, Supervising Architect; Vanguard Construction Corporation of New York City (general contractor) |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| Areas of significance | Art, Politics/Government, Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Form lists the building as occupied, in good condition, with a high degree of integrity on the exterior and interior; present use is government. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 42.90657, -74.56104 (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 88002464.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7890918
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.