Federal Aviation Administration Records Center
a.k.a. United States Court House & Post Office
300 W. King St., Martinsburg, WVThe former United States Courthouse and Post Office in Martinsburg is an interesting example of the picturesque eclecticism favored for public buildings during the last quarter of the 19th century. A blend of "chateauesque" and "Romanesque" elements, the building is, while by no means advanced for its day or even particularly distinguished on its own terms, significant for its very typicality. It is precisely the kind of relatively large-scale, substantial, and rather impressive structure usually granted a population center with a then-current census count of around 7,500. The authorship of the design may be attributable to Willoughby J. Edbrooke (1843-1896) who was the Supervising Architect of the Treasury Department at the time the building was planned and erected. Edbrooke, a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, favored a personal version of the Richardsonian Romanesque in his government work. On the other hand, the revised drawings on site are signed by the Assistant Supervising Architect, D. W. Aiken, to whom the smaller buildings to be planned may have been assigned. Another Treasury Department architect who may have played a role in formulating the final plans is J. O'Rourke, Supervising Architect for a period from 1893 to 1894. Therefore, Edbrooke cannot be credited with sole authorship of the Custom House design. Variations on the initial scheme are evident in the finished product, especially in the treatment of fenestration on the corners and on the first floor where square-headed windows have been combined with the round-headed windows of the original design. In 1894, there was some question over whether plumbing would be introduced in the building, contingent upon a sewage system being available.
The Martinsburg building is characteristic of the construction used in government buildings of its time and the looming scale of its tall walls and high roof give dignity and importance to the intersection where the building stands.
The building was used for the purposes for which it was built from 1895 until 1961 when the courthouse and post office were moved to a nearby new Federal Building. The old Courthouse and Post Office now houses records and is not open to any but authorized personnel.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.