Prospect Park Water Tower and Tower Hill Park - Minneapolis, MN - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

Located at 55 Malcolm Ave. SE, Minneapolis, and affectionately known as the “Witch’s Hat,” the Prospect Park Water Tower acts as a unique visual landmark identifying the surrounding community. Situated at the highest natural point in the city of Minneapolis, it was originally built in 1914 to improve water pressure for the hilly Prospect Park neighborhood. City engineer Frederick William Cappelen designed the water tower to be a metal tank interior standing 320 ft. tall with a holding a capacity of 150,000 gallons of water. The tower is crowned with a conical cap of steeply pitched green tile which acts as a roof. Directly beneath the roof, an octagonal Romanesque-arched belvedere surrounds the tower top, giving it a medieval feel. The water tower served the neighborhood until 1952.
The neighborhood has an annual "Ice Cream Social" on the first Friday of June, a get-together for the neighborhood with food, music and other entertainment. It is the one time of year when the interior of the water tower is opened to the public. The tower still stands as a symbol and a source of pride for the Prospect Park neighborhood. The tower is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The "Witch's Hat" water tower is rumored to be Bob Dylan’s muse for “All Along the Watchtower”.

Street address: 55 Malcolm Ave. SE Minneapolis, MN USA County / Borough / Parish: Hennepin County Year listed: 1997 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Architecture/Engineering, Event Periods of significance: 1910-1952 Historic function: Functioning water tower. Current function: Serves as community symbol; unique landmark. Privately owned?: no Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Season start / Season finish: Not listed Hours of operation: Not listed Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   12/22/2023 MasterSergeantUSMC visited it 09/12/2021 dmeverts7 visited it 08/22/2020 hijfte visited it 02/17/2019 Awol visited it 09/23/2018 Casper&Aero visited it 10/31/2016 m&m O visited it 07/31/2015 bbqbomber visited it 06/20/2015 K9ATT visited it 12/22/2011 BigChiefS4 visited it 11/15/2008 pfalstad visited it 06/10/2008 meralgia visited it 05/30/2008 mystagogic visited it 04/23/2008 FSU*Noles visited it 03/21/2008 joukkusisu visited it 03/25/2006 Friar Cadfael visited it

View all visits/logs