U.S. Post Office: Far Rockaway

The Far Rockaway Post Office is architecturally significant as an outstanding example of post office design from the 1930s, the most prolific period of post office construction in America.

Designed in 1935 and built in 1935-6, the Far Rockaway Post Office is an important example of the work of Eric Kebbon, a talented architect who designed six New York State post offices as a consultant to the Office of the Supervising Architect of the Treasury. The Far Rockaway building is Colonial Revival in style and reflects a movement in Colonial Revival design in the 1920s and 1930s toward more academically based work. The post office clearly reflects the influence of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello (1793-1809), one of the great monuments of American architecture, with its domed polygonal central pavilion and pedimented entrance. Although the basic design of the building illustrates characteristics typical of post office design of the 1930s, such as a symmetrical principal facade, brick construction and multi-paned sash, this adaptation of an historic design is unusual for the period. In addition, the interior is quite sumptuous for a post office of this period. The building is one of the few New York State post offices with a grand entrance vestibule. The materials used on the interior, including a rich variety of marbles, are far more varied than those used on most other contemporary post offices in New York State.