Independence County Office and Library marker - Batesville, Ar. - Arkansas Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

Date of Construction: 1904

A three story, brick masonry institutional building with Batesville marble trim. It rests upon a foundation constructed with brick and Batesville marble and is covered by a hipped, standing seam metal roof. It is five bays long by three bays deep and stands as a detached, separate structure.

This building was originally constructed by the federal government as the post office building for Batesville. It is designed in the Renaissance Revival style which was first made popular in the United States by the design for the Boston Public Library by the New York architectural firm of McKim, Mead, and White and which was later adopted by the Treasury Department in particular for virtually all of their commissions throughout the first decade of the twentieth century, and for their post office designs in particular. Significant details include the segmented arch windows in the middle three bays on the main elevation, and the Batesville marble decorative panels, keystones and stringcourses. The heavy dentillated brackets beneath the cornice lend a rhythm which unites all four elevations.