Bristol Customshouse and Post Office
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Bristol Customshouse and Post Office
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Bristol Customshouse and Post Office in 2013
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| Location | Bristol, Rhode Island |
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| Coordinates | 41°39′58″N 71°16′31″W / 41.66611°N 71.27528°WCoordinates: 41°39′58″N 71°16′31″W / 41.66611°N 71.27528°W |
| Built | 1858 |
| Architect | Young, Ammi B. |
| Architectural style | Other |
| Part of | Bristol Waterfront Historic District (#75000053) |
| NRHP Reference # | 72000015 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | May 31, 1972 |
| Designated CP | March 18, 1975 |
Bristol Customshouse and Post Office is a historic two-story rectangular Italian palazzo style brick building that was used as a post office and customshouse in Bristol, Rhode Island, United States. The land for the site was acquired for $4,400. The building was designed by Ammi B. Young and completed in 1858 for a cost of $22,135.75. The building roughly measures 46 feet (14 m) by 32 feet (9.8 m) and is constructed of deep red brick and has three arched openings on each of its sides and stories that are lined with sandstone moldings. The archways protrude from the side of the building and the center archway serves as the first floor with the adjacent archways housing large windows that are barred with iron. As it typical of the style, the second floor is more elaborate with a shallow balcony of iron supported by iron brackets and the paneling of the upper facade's surmounting entablature is elaborately decorative. The sides and rear are similar to the front facade, but include blind recesses and the molding is of a browner sandstone.
The building was abandoned in 1962 and acquired by the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) in 1964. The YMCA has an adjacent structure and used the building as an ante-space until 1990. Currently, the building is used as offices. The Bristol Customshouse and Post Office is historically significant as it is an example of the Italian palazzo mode of architecture. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
The land for the site was acquired on April 19, 1856 for $4,400 and constructed in 1857 for a cost of $22,135.75. Completed in 1858 from the design by Ammi B. Young, the Bristol Customshouse and Post Office is a two-story rectangular Italian palazzo style brick building that rests upon a raised granite base. The building is about 46 feet (14 m) by 32 feet (9.8 m) and is heated by steam. The front facade is made of deep red brick that has three large arched openings on both stories and a "greyish sandstone molding outlines the arches on both floors and caps the piers which separate the first-floor arches and a decisive molding of the same material forms a belt between the two stories." The archways protrude from the side of the building and the center archway serves as the first floor with the adjacent archways housing large windows that are barred with iron. As it typical of the style, the second floor is more elaborate with a shallow balcony of iron supported by iron brackets and the paneling of the upper facade is "understated, but the surmounting entablature is heavy and elaborately decorated." The cornice as the visual top of the building and conceals the low hipped roof that is only visible from a distance. The sides and rear are similar to the front facade, but include blind recesses and the molding is of a browner sandstone.
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