BlockFrom the record
One of 16 National Register listings published here for Pipestone County · listed in 1989 · category: Structure.
Sources: the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service
Split Rock Bridge
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.
The listing
- What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 1 structure as contributing to the listing.
- Address. Co. Rd. 54 over Split Rock Creek, Ihlen, 56144
- When was it listed? November 1989
- Category. structure
- Also known as. Minnesota Masonry-Arch Highway Bridges MPS
- Township. Eden township
- National Register reference number. 89001823 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.
The ground it stands on
93 wordsThis property stands in Eden Township. An Illustrated History of the Counties of Rock and Pipestone, Minnesota, published 1911 gives that township a chapter of its own.
The chapter covers the township.
Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.
Read the whole chapter on Eden Township - 93 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.
Fires near this property
1 since 2009Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 1 fire within 5 miles of Split Rock Bridge in 2009, burning about 7 acres in total. None started naturally. None was 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 |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 April 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7.0 acres | Minnesota Department of Natural Resources | not named |
Mines and quarries near this property
1 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 1 working within 5 miles of Split Rock Bridge: 1 producer. All of them still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jasper Stone Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer |
Storms near this property
47 since 1997Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Ihlen, the town this property stands in, in 47 storm reports between 1997 and 2025: 21 flood, 13 hail, 8 thunderstorm wind, 2 tornado. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 2019 | Flood | Ihlen | $769,000 | Flooding resulted in damage to public infrastructure including county and township roads and culverts. State Highway 30 flooded between 110th and 100th Avenue. The property damage costs include estimates for public property losses. |
| June 2024 | Flood | Ihlen | $250,000 | Rainfall amounts across Pipestone County from June 20-22 ranged from 3 to 6 inches. Some overland flooding ensued with additional minor flooding along Pipestone Creek and North Branch Pipestone Creek. ||Some damages were reported to county and township roads and culverts. Preliminary damage assessments estimate loss to public infrastructure to be 250 thousand dollars. ||For additional information on river flooding, please see other flood entries for Pipestone County. |
| June 2014 | Flash Flood | Ihlen | $100,000 | Heavy rain caused flash flooding of numerous roads, including U.S. Highway 75. Many secondary roads were reported to be under water, and major roads suffered damage. |
| September 2019 | Flood | Ihlen | $10,000 | After excessive two-day rainfall during September 10-12 (record 2-day rainfall of 6.75 inches at Pipestone), Split Rock Creek below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) reached the highest stage on record of 9.39 feet above flood stage on September 12. Numerous county roads were under water near Sherman, including 250th Street. Significant amounts of agricultural land were flooded. |
| August 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ihlen | $5,000 | Thunderstorm winds blew down power lines. |
| May 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ihlen | - | Significant tree damage and large limbs downed from thunderstorm wind gusts. |
| June 2024 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Split Rock Creek below Jasper rose above flood stage the morning of June 21st, cresting around 9.10 feet above flood stage (100.10 feet) on June 22nd. This crest is in the Major Stage. The creek then fell below flood stage on the morning of June 27th. For a more comprehensive description of flood damage, please see other entries for Pipestone County. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ihlen | - | Wind gusts of at least 70 mph caused damage to tree limbs. |
| May 2022 | Hail | Ihlen | - | Crop damage is an estimate from insured losses. Information provided by the United States Department of Agriculture. |
| May 2022 | Tornado (EFU) | Ihlen | - | A video showed a brief tornado spinning up in open farmland. The tornado caused no damage from which the NWS could assign an EF-scale rating. The average path width was estimated at 20 yards. |
| August 2021 | Hail | Ihlen | - | Crop damage is an estimate from insured losses. Information provided by the United States Department of Agriculture. |
| August 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ihlen | - | Five inch diameter tree branches were downed by thunderstorm winds. Crop damage is an estimate from insured losses. Information provided by the United States Department of Agriculture. |
| June 2019 | Flood | Ihlen | - | During crop planting season, prolonged flooding led to the loss of or inability to plant crops across the area. Crop loss estimates provided by the United States Department of Agriculture. |
| May 2019 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Split Rock Creek below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) reached a peak of 1.31 feet above flood stage at the end of the month. The main impact was inundation of agricultural land and additional delays to spring planting in the flood plain. The low water crossing on 250th Street along the Minnesota-South Dakota border was flooded. Minor flooding continued at the end of the month. |
| March 2019 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Snow melt and heavy rainfall (measured 2.11 inches near Garretson and 1.70 inches at Pipestone) resulted in significant flooding of agricultural lands. 250th Street along the Minnesota/South Dakota border was flooded for numerous days. Split Rock Creek below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) reached the fourth highest stage on record cresting 4.53 feet above flood stage on March 18. |
| May 2019 | Flood | Ihlen | - | This is a continuation of flooding from April. Split Rock Creek below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) saw flooding slowly end at the start of the month. Starting the month at 0.51 feet above flood stage, the river fell below flood stage on May 2. Low water crossings on 250th and 251st Streets on the Minnesota/South Dakota border were flooded. |
| September 2019 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Flooding resulted in crop losses across the area. Crop loss estimates provided by the United States Department of Agriculture. |
| April 2019 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Runoff from occasional precipitation in late March and early April produced considerable flooding of agricultural land. Other than a brief period from 0600CST April 26 to 1300CST April 27, the river remained in flood through the end of the month. Split Rock Creek below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) crested in major flood stage (5.49 feet above flood stage) on April 7, the third highest crest on record. A second crest in moderate flood stage occurred on April 17 at 3.79 feet above flood stage. Minor flooding continued at the end of the month. |
| April 2018 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Snow melt and runoff from periods of heavier rainfall briefly produced minor flooding with impact to lowland agricultural areas and inundated several low water crossings near the Minnesota border. River levels reached 1.6 feet above flood stage on Split Rock Creek below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) on April 21. |
| June 2018 | Flood | Ihlen | - | A week of periodic heavy rainfall ending June 26 resulted in a widespread 3 to 7 inches of rainfall, much of which occurred on June 20, 24 and 25. Specific weekly totals included 4.02 inches at Pipestone, 2.14 inches near Edgerton, and several reports around 8 inches near Garretson. Major flooding occurred with significant amounts of crop and pasture land inundated, along with several low water crossings as Split Rock Creek crested below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) 5.7 feet above flood stage on June 21. The river remained in minor flood stage at the end of the month. |
| March 2018 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Heavy rainfall along with snow melt caused minor flooding of lowland agricultural areas along Split Rock Creek near Jasper. The river reached a crest of 1.9 feet above flood stage below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) on March 6. |
| July 2018 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Crop and pasture land was inundated as levels on Split Rock Creek climbed to 2.9 feet above flood stage below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) on July 6. |
| September 2018 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Heavy rainfall on September 18-20 brought a widespread 3 to 5 inches of rainfall with 4.66 inches at Pipestone. Moderate flooding occurred with crop and pasture land inundated, as well as the low water crossing on 250th Street near the South Dakota border, as Split Rock Creek below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) crested 4.6 feet above flood stage at 0200LST on September 21, with a lesser secondary crest at 2200LST on September 21. The river dropped below flood stage on September 26. |
| August 2018 | Flash Flood | Ihlen | - | Several vehicles were stalled out within the Jasper city limits due to high water. |
| August 2018 | Heavy Rain | Ihlen | - | Three inches of rain fell over a two-hour period. |
| October 2018 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Crop and pasture land was inundated as levels on Split Rock Creek climbed to a crest of 2.2 feet above flood stage below Jasper (gage site JSPM5) on October 10. |
| September 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ihlen | - | Trees were downed at Jasper, MN Cemetery. |
| August 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ihlen | - | Thunderstorm winds blew down several large branches. |
| May 2014 | Hail | Ihlen | - | The largest hailstones were measured at golf ball size. |
| June 2014 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Repeated heavy rains caused record flooding of Split Rock Creek, with considerable agricultural flooding. The creek crested at a record 7.47 feet above flood stage at Jasper on June 16th. |
| May 2014 | Hail | Ihlen | - | Hail was mostly pea to dime size, but a few stones were as large as golf balls. |
| June 2013 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Heavy rain caused Split Rock Creek to briefly flood, with lowlands including a few rural roads affected. The creek crested at 0.9 foot above flood stage near Jasper on June 24th. |
| May 2012 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Heavy rain caused moderate flooding of Split Rock Creek, flooding nearby lowlands including some farmland. The creek crested at 4.35 feet above flood stage near Jasper on May 7th. |
| July 2011 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Heavy rain caused Split Rock Creek to flood, with lowlands along the creek and a few county roads affected. The creek crested at 4.2 feet above flood stage near Jasper on July 14th. |
| June 2011 | Flood | Ihlen | - | Heavy rain caused Split Rock Creek to flood, with lowlands along the creek and a few county roads affected. The creek crested at 3.7 feet above flood stage near Jasper on June 15th. |
| June 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ihlen | - | Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including several trees blown over. The winds also blew down power lines, resulting in power outages. |
| June 2005 | Tornado (F0) | Ihlen | - | A tornado caused no reported damage after moving from Rock County. |
| July 2023 | Hail | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
| July 2023 | Hail | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
| April 2022 | Hail | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
| May 2012 | Hail | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
| June 2005 | Hail | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
| June 2005 | Hail | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
| June 2005 | Hail | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
| June 2005 | Hail | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
| August 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
| July 1997 | Hail | Ihlen | - | no account filed |
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 milesOther 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.
| Photograph | Property | Distance | Listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ihlen Mercantile Company | 1.1 miles | 1980 | |
| Jasper School Building | 3.2 miles | 2019 | |
 | Gerber Hospital and Garage | 3.3 miles | 1980 |
| John M. Poorbaugh Block | 3.3 miles | 2023 | |
| Stordahl Building | 3.4 miles | 1980 | |
 | Bauman Hall | 3.4 miles | 1980 |
Sources for this property
| National Archives record | The nomination case file for reference 89001823 in Record Group 79. |
| Pipestone County | All 16 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.