Arkansas Post Office Murals

Joseph P. Vorst, "Rural Arkansas", Paris Post Office. Photo courtesy of Dr. Jonathon Glenn. Used with the permission of the United States Postal Service®. All rights reserved

Endearing images on the walls of 1930s post offices have captured the American scene and transformed the post office into a truly democratic art gallery. During the Great Depression that plagued the nation in the 1930s and 40s, Americans searched for images that could serve as beacons of hope during a time of economic and emotional despair. The Federal government, under the direction of President Roosevelt, implemented a “New Deal Policy” designed to provide work for the unemployed and hope to a destitute people.

An essential element of the project took the form of art, more specifically, art that the average American could relate to. This art for the people was shaped into federally funded murals that were installed in nearly 1,400 post offices around the country. Of the twenty one murals commissioned for post offices in Arkansas, nineteen exist today.

Visit the Arkansas Post Office Murals page.