Pipestone's Fourth of July in 1901,
illustrating the north side of the 100 block of West Main St.
Courtesy of Pipestone County Museum |
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At the turn of the last century, Pipestone had four railroads coming
through the town, making it an important regional tourism center.
Traveling salesmen were, in fact, given better seats at the local
theater (Ferris Grand Opera House) than the mayor and city council
members.
At the turn of this century, though the railroads are gone, tourism
is still an important part of the area's economy. Visitors now come
by car and bus, from around the country and around the world, to
see the Pipestone National Monument and the
large number of Sioux quartzite buildings in the Pipestone
Commercial Historic District.
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Current view of the 100 block
of West Main St.
Courtesy of Lorraine Draper |
Hoping to verify its assumption that the town's historic buildings
are a large part of the current tourism trade, the Pipestone Heritage
Preservation Commission (HPC), responsible for overseeing changes
made to the building facades of the downtown historic district,
conducted a year-long survey. The questionnaire, distributed at
local tourism centers (including all local lodging establishments
as well as local attractions), asked visitors two main questions:
why they came to Pipestone, and what they enjoyed while here. The
Commission found that consistently the top three attractions for
visitors were the Pipestone National Monument,
the historic buildings and the Pipestone City
Hall (County Museum).
The Commission was especially pleased with these results, because
Pipestone, like so many historic cities, went through a phase of
urban renewal in the 1970s. Many buildings were razed, and several
others were nearly destroyed. However, the lasting effect of urban
renewal was the creation of the local historic preservation movement.
Historic image of the south
side of the 100 block of East Main St., and Pipestone City Hall,
c.1900
Courtesy of Pipestone County Museum |
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The historic Calumet Hotel was one of the
first buildings in Pipestone to undergo a restoration project, between
1978 and 1981. The restoration work on that building continues to
this day, and so far major projects have included the replacement
of a bay window, tuckpointing, and the renovation of the main entry
and interior. The Mackay Block and the Syndicate
Block also underwent early restoration and preservation projects.
The City of Pipestone adapted the Pipestone Public
(Carnegie) Library for use as the local Senior Citizen Center,
and conducted preservation work on the exterior.
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Current view of the south side
of the 100 block of East Main St.
Courtesy of Lorraine Draper |
More recently, the County of Pipestone has renovated the interior
of the Courthouse, so that it closely resembles
its original appearance. The county also completed preservation
work on the building's exterior and conservation work on a 1901
statue on the front lawn. A local preservation group, Historic Pipestone
Incorporated (HPI), has undertaken two large projects in recent
years. They first restored the exterior of the last remaining train
depot in Pipestone, basing their work on historic photographs
of the building. After selling it to new owners (who have begun
the interior renovations), HPI purchased the 1912 Brown
Hospital, and are currently restoring it. The 1896 Moore
Block, next to the Museum has also undergone recent restoration
(the replacement of bay windows) and conservation work. Not only
the buildings, but Main Street itself has undergone a beautification
project. Historic-looking streetlights have replaced the modern
lights. Trees which blocked the view of the buildings were removed,
and planters and benches were installed on the sidewalks for the
convenience of pedestrians.
As the saying goes though, beauty is more than skin deep. It is
not only the façade and the streetscape, but what is inside the
buildings, which makes Pipestone appealing to visitors. In the past
10 years, a performing arts center (in the old
Ferris Grand Block) and an art gallery have joined the decades-old
Museum to become the cultural core of the downtown district. Each
of these is located within half a block of the Historic Calumet
Inn, while other attractions such as a movie theater, a recreation
center, and retail stores and services are located with in a two
block radius.
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