From collection Eastern Illustrating & Publishing Company Collection
LB2010.9.120248
The caption identifies this large two-storey Italianate style brick building as the the home of the Machias, Maine post office and Eastern Trust and Banking. Originally, it was also a customhouse, owing to the town's proximity to Machiasport. It was designed by Alfred Mullett, who was the supervising architect for the U.S. Treasury building. Construction was overseen by Horatio Hill, a local building contractor and architect; it began in 1870-71 and was completed in 1872. It stood, then as now, on Main Street near the Machias River. Two men sit on the granite steps of the building; the one on the left wears the tall cap of an official and is perhaps an employee of the post office. A wooden sidewalk traverses the distance at the lower right of the frame, fronting buildings not visible; to the right, Main Street drops downhill among other commercial and multi-storey buildings. Today in 2023, the former post office houses the Machias Savings Bank and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
