caused controversy, such as stereotypes of rural people being portrayed merely as hicks and hayseeds and not having the murals express their cultural values and work ethics. Many residents of small towns, most notably in the Southern states, resented the portrayal of rural lifestyles by artists who had never visited the areas where their artwork would be displayed. The controversy was of particularly acute in Arkansas, where 19 post offices received murals, with two post offices, one in Berryville, Carroll County and another in Monticello, Drew County, receiving sculpture. For seven decades following the Civil War, Arkansas had been perceived as the epitome of poverty and illiteracy by the rest of the nation. Many Arkansans had dealt with hardship and tribulation on a daily basis and the coming of the Depression had not made life easier. Although the sketches of such renowned artists as Thomas Hart Benton and Joseph P. Vorst were based on actual events and people encountered during their travels across the state, they sometimes focused on the worst aspects of life in these rural towns. This was not the legacy that Arkansans wished to leave their children and grandchildren. They wanted the murals to give hope to the younger generation in overcoming adversity, and provide inspiration for a brighter future with better things to come. In some instances, artists were asked to submit multiple drawings before being accepted by the community. When approval was given by the local residents on the artists’ final sketches, work on the murals proceeded, much to the satisfaction of all those involved. Notable artists Ida Abelman Kenneth Miller Adams Dewey Albinson Lee Allen Edmund Archer (artist) Paul Theodore Arlt Victor Arnautoff Ernest Hamlin Baker Belle Baranceanu Edith Barry Gifford Beal Rainey Bennett Lester W. Bentley Oscar E. Berninghaus Theresa Bernstein Auriel Bessemer Edward Biberman George Biddle Henry Billings Julien Binford Emil Bisttram Arnold Blanch Lucile Blanch Lucienne Bloch Acee Blue Eagle Peter Blume Ernest L. Blumenschein Aaron Bohrod Louis Bouche Ray Boynton Edgar Britton Manuel Bromberg Alexander Brook Conrad Buff Byron Burford Paul Cadmus Kenneth Callahan Clarence Holbrook Carter Daniel Celentano Jean Charlot Minna Citron Frederick Conway Howard Cook Dean Cornwell John Edward Costigan Arthur Covey Gustaf Dalstrom James Daugherty Horace Day Boris Deutsch Maynard Dixon Margaret Dobson Stevan Dohanos Olin Dows Ethel Edwards Stephen Etnier Philip Evergood William Dean Fausett Paul Faulkner Denman Fink John Kelly Fitzpatrick Joseph Fleck Seymour Fogel