7. Remnants of a WPA Mural Can Be Found Inside the James A. Farley Post Office Annex

Aside from housing a museum, the James A. Farley Post Office is also sort of an art gallery in and of itself. Enter the lobby and you’ll catch sight of two large oil paintings by Russian artist, Louis Lozowick, which feature the Triborough Bridge and Lower Manhattan (although the lower portion of Lower Manhattan has been covered by a memorial plaque).
Hidden away inside the lobby of the James A. Farley Post Office annex building, however, are the remnants of a WPA mural by California artist Channing Peake, which is unfortunately inaccessible to the public (see photos of it here). (This may change however, as the plans to convert the Farley Post Office into a train station and Amtrak waiting room). The piece itself dates back to 1936, and was originally planned as three separate panels (a Dust Bowl scene, a river flood scene and a harvest scene). However only the scene that depicts a great river flood in Johnstown Pennsylvania was actually completed. It’s in pretty bad shape, but it stands as an interesting piece of history. The New York Landmarks Preservation Commission even refers to it as “New York’s Pompeii.”