116 N Main St

From the National Register nomination

Classical/Colonial Revival three-story building with Flemish-bond brick walls and marble details. The building is dominated by a Doric portico of gray-veined white marble on a brick first story. Between the columns are decorative metal railings that incorporate anthemion and paterae designs. The brick base has deep segmental-arch recesses with the main entry in the center recess and 10/15 windows with green-stone aprons in the flanking recesses. Upper-story windows are 6/6, some with green-stone apron panels. The north and south side elevations have slightly recessed segmental-arch first-story windows. The south entry has painted iron pilasters and cornice, an eight-light transom, and a stylized acroterion cresting. On the rear is a one-story Flemish-bond brick wing with a loading dock with a cantilevered awning. Other features include sympathetically designed wheelchair ramps, cast iron light sconces of cornucopia form, a modern three-story simulation stucco addition at the northeast corner, an early or original flag pole in the northwest corner of the lot. James A. Wetmore was involved in work on the preceding 1896 post office at this location in the 1920s. The cornerstone identifies the key persons involved in the design and construction of the building: Supervising Architect Louis A. Simon, Supervising Engineer Neal A. Melick, and Architect R. Stanley Brown. A. Farnell Blair was the contractor. In 1942 artist William Calfee added murals to the lobby. Limited renovation was undertaken in 1971. In 1983 the U.S. Postal Service claimed the building was "completely void of any architectural merit" (Wells and Dalton, Virginia Architects, 475)