National Register of Historic Places

Pipestone Water Tower

Pipestone, Pipestone County, Minnesota
Listed
March 3, 1980
Type
Structure
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
80002123

About this property

The Pipestone Water Tower is a 132-foot-tall (40 m) concrete water tower in Pipestone, Minnesota, United States, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Unreliable rainfall and a lack of glacial lakes in the area necessitate the use of a tower to pump and store water from an underground reservoir. The Pipestone Water Tower is unique in that it is one of only two water towers in the United States known to have been designed by architect L.P. Wolfe; its sister, the Brainerd Water Tower, is located in Brainerd, Minnesota. It was built to replace an aged steel standpipe tower built in the late 1880s. Construction on the structure was commenced by the Campbell Construction Company in 1920 for $24,610. Water service from the tower began on October 26, 1921, and continued until it was replaced by a larger tower in 1976. A restoration of the tower was undertaken in 1990, along with the construction of a new wayside rest area. The water tower, significant in that it is constructed of poured concrete, stands at 132 feet (40 m) tall and roughly 25 feet (7.6 m) in diameter. The 150,000-US-gallon (570,000 L) capacity tank is supported by a hollow supporting column which contains an unusual set of spiral windows and an internal staircase. The tower pumped and stored water from a 500,000-US-gallon (1,900,000 L) reservoir built below it at the time of its construction, releasing the water via gravity on demand. The tower has become the center of the Water Tower Festival, a community celebration held in late June.

Location

2nd St., NE
Pipestone, Pipestone County, Minnesota
44.00178, -96.31082

Categories

ENGINEERING
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Calumet Hotel
Industrial
0.4 mi
Pipestone Commercial Historic District
Listed
0.4 mi
Pipestone Public Library
Industrial
0.4 mi
Burlington Cedar Rapids and Northern Depot
Industrial
0.5 mi
Pipestone County Courthouse
Industrial
0.5 mi

Questions about this property

When was Pipestone Water Tower listed on the National Register?

Pipestone Water Tower was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 3, 1980.

What type of historic resource is Pipestone Water Tower?

Pipestone Water Tower is classified as a structure in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Pipestone Water Tower?

The period of significance for Pipestone Water Tower is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Pipestone Water Tower?

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