Caponi Art Park

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2025.

From the record

One of 40 National Register listings published here for Dakota County · listed in 2025 · category: District.

Sources: the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

Address. 1215 Diffley Rd., Eagan, 55123
When was it listed? December 2025
Category. district
City. Eagan city
National Register reference number. 100012381 - assigned by the National Park Service when the property was listed.

Fires near this property

74 since 1995

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 74 fires within 5 miles of Caponi Art Park between 1995 and 2019, burning about 1,327 acres in total. None started naturally. 14 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause	Fires
Recreation and ceremony	40
Arson/incendiarism	14
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	11
Railroad operations and maintenance	8
Debris and open burning	1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

Date	Cause	Size	Reported by	Name on the report
25 September 2008	Recreation and ceremony	under an acre	Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge	BLACKDOG EAST
24 September 2000	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge	BOARDWALK
26 August 2011	Recreation and ceremony	under an acre	Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge	BASS PONDS 3
20 August 2008	Recreation and ceremony	under an acre	Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge	IKES
17 August 2005	Arson/incendiarism	under an acre	Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge	CLEVELAND
13 August 2007	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge	BLUE WATER
7 July 2013	Recreation and ceremony	under an acre	Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge	CEDAR AVE 3
6 July 2006	Arson/incendiarism	under an acre	Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge	CEDAR PLANK

Every fire recorded in Dakota County

Mines and quarries near this property

3 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 3 workings within 5 miles of Caponi Art Park: 2 unknowns, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status
Rosemont Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Producer
Sand & Gravel Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Unknown
Shakopee Sand & Gravel Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Unknown

Every working recorded in Dakota County

Storms near this property

60 of 72 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Eagan, the town this property stands in, in 72 storm reports between 1994 and 2024: 44 hail, 19 thunderstorm wind, 4 flash flood, 3 tornado. The reports record 1 death and 1 injury. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
July 2000	Flash Flood	Eagan	1 killed, $20,000,000	Widespread flooding in Eagan and neighboring portions of Rosemount, Apple Valley, and Burnsville. Between 6 and 12 inches of rain fell during this 3 hour event. One man died of drowning after being swept into a culvert. Over 200 homes in Eagan incurred water damage. Numerous homes in Rosemount and Burnsville reported basement flooding. Minor to moderate damage to forty homes in Burnsville. Numerous roads in Eagan, Burnsville and Rosemount flooded; numerous vehicles stalled. Portions of Pilot Knob Rd. destroyed along with retaining wall.
May 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	1 hurt, $24,000,000	10 homes with major structural damage. 1500 trees blown over. Estimated windspeed.
August 2022	Tornado (EF0)	Eagan	$750,000	A NWS Storm Survey concluded that an EF0 tornado touched down near Germane Avenue and 128th Street, or around Hidden Ponds, and Cedar Valley Apartments and moved northeast across 127th Street West. This tornado continued to move northeast before lifting between 126th and 125th Street along Genesee Avenue. This tornado uprooted or blew down numerous large trees along its path. Structural damage (mainly roof damage) occurred to apartment complexes, mobile homes, and single family homes between 128th and 125th Street. Maximum wind speeds were 85 mph with a width of 100 yards.
August 2022	Tornado (EF0)	Eagan	$750,000	A NWS Storm Survey concluded that a brief EF0 tornado formed in a wooded area between Timbershore Lane and Tananger Circle, south of Duckwood Drive in Eagan, Minnesota. Most of the damage occurred in this area, with large hardwood trees uprooted or blown down. Several of the large trees landed on roofs, sheds and fences in this residential neighborhood. The damage path became more disorganized as the tornado lifted near Lexington, and Yankee Doodle Road where a few large pine trees were uprooted. Damage indicators showed that up to 85 mph winds occurred, with a path width of 150 yards.
July 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	$500,000	no account filed
June 2012	Lightning	Eagan	$300,000	A lightning strike hit a gas meter on one home on 131th Street Southwest. The lightning traveled along the gas line, skipping one house and igniting another house nearby.\|\|One of the homes suffered significant damage as a result of the fire. There were no injuries in the fire, and one other house suffered minor damage.
May 2017	Hail	Eagan	$250,000	A swath of large hail, up to golf ball size, fell from Eagan, northeast through Inver Grove Heights. There were several reports of hail damage to vehicles, roofs and siding.
September 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	$100,000	Numerous trees were blown down between Lexington and Pilot Knob Road, and along Cliff Road in Eagan. A few of the trees landed on roofs and cars.
June 2011	Lightning	Eagan	$100,000	Lightning stuck a home in Eagan, Minnesota during the morning of June 21st and caught fire.
August 2022	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	$2,000	A few large trees were blown down near Pilot Knob Road and Berry Ridge Road.
August 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Photo provided via social media of snapped maple tree.
August 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Photo provided via social media of significant tree damage near Jefferson Trail NW and South Robert Trail in Eagan.
August 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Time estimated from radar. Delayed report of several large tree branches down, power lines also down.
August 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Time estimated from radar. Delayed report of large tree snapped at the base via picture on social media.
August 2024	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Large uprooted oak tree reported on social media.
September 2021	Tornado (EF0)	Eagan	-	An EF0 tornado touched down near the intersection of Highway 13, and Cliff Road in Burnsville. The path length was approximately 1 mile and most of the damage was due to trees falling on houses and vehicles.
May 2018	Hail	Eagan	-	The observer reported hail for approximately 13 minutes, with the largest hail stone of quarter size.
August 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Several large tree branches were blown down around Eagan.
June 2014	Flash Flood	Eagan	-	Several roads were flooded across northern Dakota County during the morning of Sunday, June 1st. At one point, several inches of flowing water was near the intersection of Pilot Knob and Deerwood Drive.
May 2014	Hail	Eagan	-	There were several reports of dime size hail from Eagan to Inver Grove Heights.
June 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	A tree was blown down in Eagan on Cliff Road.
June 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	A large tree was blown down, which took out power lines along Yankee Doodle Road in Eagan.
August 2013	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Several large tree limbs were blown down in Eagan.
June 2012	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	A 30 foot pine tree was uprooted in Eagan.
August 2009	Flash Flood	Eagan	-	A trained spotter reported significant street flooding south of Eagan, Minnesota, near the Minnesota Zoo.
May 2008	Hail	Eagan	-	Occurred at Cliff road and Interstate 35E.
October 2006	Hail	Eagan	-	Hail of differing sizes covered the ground.
June 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	A 6 inch diameter tree was downed.
September 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Several trees were downed onto power lines. A gas station canopy was also damaged.
September 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Several trees and numerous branches were downed. Minor damage was reported to several businesses and homes.
June 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	A tree was snapped. The time was estimated.
July 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Eagan	-	Four inch diameter tree limbs severed.
May 2022	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2022	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2022	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2022	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
March 2021	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
August 2020	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
September 2019	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2018	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2018	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
September 2016	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
September 2016	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
September 2016	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
October 2016	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
July 2015	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
June 2013	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
August 2013	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
August 2013	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
August 2013	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed
July 2007	Hail	Eagan	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Dakota County

Map coverage status

No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.

Listed places nearby

6 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Property	Distance	Listed
Holz Family Farmstead	2.2 miles	2007
Oheyawahe-Pilot Knob	5.0 miles	2017
Henry H. Sibley House	5.7 miles	1972
Mendota Historic District	5.7 miles	1970
Fort Snelling-Mendota Bridge	5.8 miles	1978
Fort Snelling	6.2 miles	1966

Sources for this property

National Archives record	The nomination case file for reference 100012381 in Record Group 79.
Dakota County	All 40 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.