80829 - Manitou Springs, Colorado

 

     Address:    307 Cañon Avenue 

                       Manitou Springs, CO 80829

     Visited:      August 21, 2020

"Hunters, Red and White"

by Archie Musick

1942

Dedicated in 1940, this was the last building in town constructed of Manitou greenstone.  Local citizens lobbied the federal government for its distinctive stone construction, even though this increased building costs.  Greenstone was quarried around Manitou Springs from approximately 1890 to 1940 and is found only in this area.  The marble for the interior came from the Yule Quarry near Aspen, once owned by Jerome Wheeler.

The exterior remains almost as originally built with only a weathervane removed from the cupola at some point and an access ramp added in 1997.  Prominent local artest Archie Musick created the 1942 mural over the Postmaster's door.  Entitled "The Legend of Bubbling Spring," it depicts the region's pioneer history.

The Manitou Springs Post Office was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.

National Register Plaque

07-2018