Fall 2013 issue: ‘Art Gone Postal’ sneak peek!

"Border Gateways," mural at Fort Scott Post Office
“Border Gateways,” oil-on-canvas mural at Fort Scott Post Office. Completed in 1937 by Oscar E. Berninghaus.

Art Gone Postal
Fall 2013 Issue

Just call them the seven wonders of Southeast Kansas.

Found in Burlington, Columbus, Eureka, Fort Scott, Fredonia, Neodesha and Oswego, seven New Deal murals and sculptures have called Southeast Kansas home for more than 70 years. Produced under the Treasury Department’s Section of Fine Arts in the ‘30s and early ‘40s, these seven art pieces – plus 22 elsewhere in Kansas – were placed publicly in area post offices to help bolster American pride and patriotism and boost the morale of those suffering after the Great Depression.

They’re still captivating Southeast Kansans today.

“Post offices were gathering places then, and everyone was getting to see this artwork,” says Dr. Lorraine Madway, curator of special collections and university archivist for Wichita State University Libraries. “Their purpose…”

Want to keep reading? Check out the fall issue of Southeast Kansas Living! It includes this story in its entirety, plus photos of all of the New Deal murals and sculptures in post offices across Southeast Kansas — and so much more. Subscribe now, or contact us to find a newsstand near you. (And stay tuned to this blog for more sneak peeks!)

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