A Historic Reunion: Visit the New Deal Mural at Silver Spring Library, 3rd Floor
After decades of separation, the Silver Spring Post Office and the historic mural “The Old Tavern” again share the same address. The mural was painted in 1937 by emigre Nicolai Cikovsky for the Silver Spring Post Office. The 6’x16’ oil on canvas depicts black and white Civil War Union soldiers, 1864-65, reading mail and relaxing in front of the Eagle Inn, which stood on the SW corner of present day Georgia Avenue and Colesville Road, in the village then called Sligo.
In 1994 Silver Spring resident Jerry McCoy searched for and unearthed the mural, partnering with Friends of the Library Silver Spring to raise funds for its 1997 conservation and dedication. McCoy founded the Silver Spring Historical Society in 1998.
In 2015, “The Old Tavern” was cleaned and reinstalled in the new Silver Spring Library, with funds raised by Friends of the Library Silver Spring Chapter (FOLSS). On August 31, 2018, the U.S. Postal Service held a ribbon-cutting event for the opening of the SS Post Office at 900 Wayne Avenue. John Sery of Montgomery Preservation (MPI) captured the moment for the December 2018 FOLSS newsletter.
Rockville’s New Deal-Era Post Office Mural will be Featured on a 2019 Forever Stamp
The City of Rockville and Peerless Rockville plan to commemorate this honor on a 2019 date TBD. The 1940 mural by Judson Smith was restored as part of the landmark building’s purchase by the City and re-purposed as the Rockville Police Station in 2012.
In a press release, the U.S. Postal Service stated that the stamp will be sold within a pane of 10 stamps that depict “five different murals designed to add a touch of beauty to Post Office walls and help boost the morale of Americans during the era of the Great Depression.”
Mural Celebration
Partnerships Matter!
SSHS 20th Anniversary Joyfully Celebrated, Nov. 3, 2018 at Station
MPI Rescue and Restoration of historic S.S. B&O Railroad Station
Rescue and Restoration of 1937 New Deal U.S. Post Office Mural
Welcome to Rebeccah Ballo
New Supervisor of the Historic Preservation Section, Montgomery Planning, M-NCPPC. She brings great regional experience, having been a preservation planner for several local governments since 2002. For the past decade, she managed the design, review and approval process for Arlington County’s 40 historic districts. Rebeccah previously was a preservation planner in the City of Alexandria and Prince George’s County. She received her undergraduate degree in history from Washington University in St. Louis, and earned a masters degree in urban and environmental planning with a certificate in historic preservation from the University of Virginia.
Are you interested in Civil War History?
The Montgomery County Civil War Round Table meets on the second Thursday of each month (September through May) at the Gaithersburg Hilton. Dinner is at 7 pm, with a speaker at 8 pm.
Contacts: Bob Clark bobclark3@aol.com and Vivian Eicke vive01@verizon.net