Palisades State Park
Encyclopedia
Palisades State Park is a state park
of South Dakota
, USA, featuring cliffs and rock formations eroded out of pink Sioux Quartzite
. The park is located just south of Garretson
, 10 miles (16.1 km) off Interstate 90
. At only 157 acres (63.5 ha), it is South Dakota's second-smallest state park.
in Minnesota
. Within the quartzite
are deposits of catlinite
, a softer mineral essential to many Native American groups to make calumet
s. The park lies on the Coteau des Prairies
, a plateau
on the northern Great Plains
.
settled in the area beginning in 1865. In the 1870s Split Rock Creek was harnessed to power a large flour and feed mill
, and a town called Palisades formed around it. Silver
was discovered shortly downstream in 1886, prompting a short-lived silver rush
but the ore was found to be low quality. Three years later Garretson became a railroad junction
and most of Palisades relocated to the north. A steel truss bridge
built over Split Rock Creek in 1908 is on the National Register of Historic Places
.
is permitted on the quartzite formations, though the use of bolts is prohibited.
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
of South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
, USA, featuring cliffs and rock formations eroded out of pink Sioux Quartzite
Sioux Quartzite
The Sioux Quartzite is a Proterozoic quartzite that is found in region around the intersection of Minnesota, South Dakota, and Iowa, and correlates with other rock units throughout the upper midwestern and southwestern United States...
. The park is located just south of Garretson
Garretson, South Dakota
Garretson is a city in Minnehaha County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 1,166 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Garretson is located at ....
, 10 miles (16.1 km) off Interstate 90
Interstate 90
Interstate 90 is the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It is the northernmost coast-to-coast interstate, and parallels US 20 for the most part. Its western terminus is in Seattle, at Edgar Martinez Drive S. near Safeco Field and CenturyLink Field, and its eastern terminus is in...
. At only 157 acres (63.5 ha), it is South Dakota's second-smallest state park.
Natural history
The Sioux Quartzite rocks are 1.2 billion years old and up to 50 feet (15.2 m) high. They are exposed on either side of Split Rock Creek, which also flows through Split Rock Creek State ParkSplit Rock Creek State Park
Split Rock Creek State Park is a state park of Minnesota, USA, located in Ihlen, or just south of Pipestone, Minnesota.The Works Progress Administration built a dam in 1938 to create a lake, which provided an opportunity for water recreation in an area of the state with few natural lakes. The dam...
in Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. Within the quartzite
Quartzite
Quartzite is a hard metamorphic rock which was originally sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to gray, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink...
are deposits of catlinite
Catlinite
Catlinite is a type of argillite , usually brownish-red in color, which occurs in a matrix of Sioux quartzite. Because it is fine-grained and easily worked, it is prized by Native Americans for use in making sacred pipes such as calumets and chanunpas...
, a softer mineral essential to many Native American groups to make calumet
Calumet (pipe)
A Calumet is a ceremonial smoking pipe used by some Native American Nations. Traditionally it has been smoked to seal a covenant or treaty, or to offer prayers in a religious ceremony.- Etymology :...
s. The park lies on the Coteau des Prairies
Coteau des Prairies
The Coteau des Prairies is a plateau approximately 200 miles in length and 100 miles in width , rising from the prairie flatlands in eastern South Dakota, southwestern Minnesota, and northwestern Iowa in the United States...
, a plateau
Plateau
In geology and earth science, a plateau , also called a high plain or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting of relatively flat terrain. A highly eroded plateau is called a dissected plateau...
on the northern Great Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
.
Cultural history
PioneersAmerican pioneer
American pioneers are any of the people in American history who migrated west to join in settling and developing new areas. The term especially refers to those who were going to settle any territory which had previously not been settled or developed by European or American society, although the...
settled in the area beginning in 1865. In the 1870s Split Rock Creek was harnessed to power a large flour and feed mill
Watermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
, and a town called Palisades formed around it. Silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
was discovered shortly downstream in 1886, prompting a short-lived silver rush
Silver rush
A Silver rush is the silver-mining equivalent of a gold rush.Notable silver rushes have taken place in Mexico, Argentina, the United States , and Canada...
but the ore was found to be low quality. Three years later Garretson became a railroad junction
Junction (rail)
A junction, in the context of rail transport, is a place at which two or more rail routes converge or diverge.This implies a physical connection between the tracks of the two routes , 'points' and signalling.one or two tracks each meet at a junction, a fairly simple layout of tracks suffices to...
and most of Palisades relocated to the north. A steel truss bridge
Truss bridge
A truss bridge is a bridge composed of connected elements which may be stressed from tension, compression, or sometimes both in response to dynamic loads. Truss bridges are one of the oldest types of modern bridges...
built over Split Rock Creek in 1908 is on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Recreation
Palisades State Park has a campground with 37 sites, 6 camper cabins, and a group tenting area. There is also a 4-bedroom lodge which can be reserved for private events. Four hiking trails wind through the park. Rock climbingRock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...
is permitted on the quartzite formations, though the use of bolts is prohibited.