Pipestone National Monument | |
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| Location | Sweet Township, Pipestone County, Minnesota |
|---|---|
| Nearest city | Pipestone, Minnesota |
| Coordinates | 44°0′48″N 96°19′30″W / 44.01333°N 96.32500°W |
| Area | 281.78 acres (1.14 km2) |
| Visitation | 73,267 (2019)[2] |
| Website | Pipestone National Monument |
| MPS | Pipestone County MRA (AD) |
| NRHP reference No. | 66000112[1] |
| Significant dates | |
| Designated HD | October 15, 1966 |
| Designated NMON | August 25, 1937 |
Pipestone National Monument is located in southwestern Minnesota, just north of the city of Pipestone, Minnesota. It is located along the highways of U.S. Route 75, Minnesota State Highway 23 and Minnesota State Highway 30. The quarries are culturally significant to 23 tribal nations of North America. Those known to actually occupied the site chronologically are the Yankton Dakota, Iowa, and Omaha peoples. The Quarries were considered a neutral territory in the historic past where all tribal nations could quarry stone for ceremonial pipes.[3] The catlinite, or "pipestone", is traditionally used to make ceremonial pipes. They are vitally important to Plains Indian traditional practices. Archeologists believe the site has been in use for over 3000 years with Minnesota pipestone having been found in ancient North American burial mounds across a large geographic area.[4]
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ "Annual Visitation Report by Years: 2009 to 2019". nps.gov. National Park Service. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
- ^ "Pipestone National Monument - People". National Park Service. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
- ^ "Pipestone County Museum - History". Archived from the original on February 7, 2011. Retrieved July 1, 2006.