A towering witches hat is an iconic symbol often associated with the Halloween season and the concept of witches. The hat is typically black in color and features a pointed cone shape that extends towards the sky. It is often depicted as having a wide brim that can sometimes extend beyond the tip of the cone. The origins of the towering witches hat can be traced back to traditional images of witches, which were popularized during the Middle Ages and Renaissance periods. During this time, witches were often depicted wearing black clothing, including long dresses and pointed hats. The pointed hat was believed to symbolize a connection to the supernatural and was associated with witchcraft and sorcery.
If you took better photos than I did, please email them and I’ll post them here.
During the renovation work, the roof was repaired and a number of the original roof tiles were replaced with new ones manufactured to their original specifications. You can tell it s there and you can see part of the railroad bridge over the river, but it is amazing how such a prominent and predominant geographical feature can be swallowed by the landscape.
The pointed hat was believed to symbolize a connection to the supernatural and was associated with witchcraft and sorcery. In modern times, the towering witches hat has become a prominent symbol of Halloween and is often worn as part of a witch costume. It is commonly featured in various Halloween decorations, such as yard displays and haunted houses.
Minneapolis Park History
I finally climbed the Witch’s Hat Tower in Tower Hill Park. The erstwhile water tower was completed in 1914 after the park was acquired by the Minneapolis Board of Park Commissioners. I have already written about the tower here and here and here. Today I’m just providing proof of my climb with photos and a few brief observations.
Most years the tower is only open one night a year, the night that Pratt School has its ice cream social, which was last Friday, but this year the tower will also be opened to celebrate the dedication of the tower 100 years ago. That will take place July 12 and 13. So you get an extra chance to see the view from the top this summer.
The view west toward downtown — and into the sun. Pratt School is at the bottom. I took the picture a little after 5 p.m. I didn’t have to wait in line to make the climb, but by the time I descended about 100 people were in line waiting their turn. (David C. Smith)
The Witch’s Hat from the terrace near the entrance to the tower. It was a perfect day for a view. It really is this white and sky really was this blue. My Dad, who turns 90 this year, chose not to climb the 100+ steps to the top of the tower, but still enjoyed the spectacular view from the terrace. Even if you miss the few chances to climb the tower, visit the park for beautiful views of the city. (David C. Smith)
The view from the Witch’s Hat to the southwest, across Prospect Park and the Mississippi River into South Minneapolis. This was my favorite view, in part, because of how well the Mississippi River is hidden. You can tell it’s there and you can see part of the railroad bridge over the river, but it is amazing how such a prominent and predominant geographical feature can be swallowed by the landscape. I couldn’t help but imagine the wildness of the view from here 150 years ago — before buildings and also before the Minneapolis park board planted hundreds of thousands of trees along city streets. Early writers note that what is now South Minneapolis, from the river gorge to the lakes in the southwestern part of the city, was mostly treeless prairie. The Tower Hill Park tennis courts are visible in the lower right corner. (David C. Smith)
The top of the stairs down the Witch’s Hat. (David C. Smith)
The spiral staircase of the Witch’s Hat. It was narrow enough that I had press up against the wall and suck in my (shrinking) stomach to pass people going the other way. The large deck at the top of the tower was intended to be a bandstand for concerts, but musicians had a difficult time getting their instruments up this narrow staircase. Imagine lugging a bass, bass drum or tuba up or down. But others were once able to enjoy the view any time. When the tower was first opened in 1914, the park board paid a park keeper to open the tower to the public five days a week. (David C. Smith)
If you took better photos than I did, please email them and I’ll post them here.
David C. Smith
© 2014 David C. Smith
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Like Loading.Witch’s Hat Centennial at Tower Hill
The above image, a poster from the 60-year anniversary of the construction of the Witch’s Hat on Tower Hill, was sent to me by a reader in the Netherlands. The top is apparently from Frederick W. Cappelen’s original design for the tower in 1913. The bottom is a groovy, so ’70s, panorama of Tower Hill.
My correspondent from the Netherlands, who spent part of his youth in Prospect Park, wanted to know if a poster had been created for the centennial of the tower.
I’m happy to report that plans are in the works for a poster and a t-shirt featuring the tower. Joe Ring informs me that because the official dedication of the tower didn’t take place until the summer of 1914, even though construction began in 1913, the neighborhood is holding the centennial this year instead of last year.
So it looks like we may have two opportunities to climb the tower this summer and see what has to be the grandest panorama available in these parts.
Pratt School, across the street from the park, is having its annual ice cream social May 30, 5-8 p.m.. That is typically the only day of the year when the tower is opened to the public. So enjoy some ice cream, listen to some music and climb the tower that night.
But Joe informs me that the tower will be open for its centennial celebration on July 12 and 13, as well, with another concert planned for July 15. Definitely more dates to put on your summer calendar.
David C. Smith
© 2014 David C. Smith
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Like Loading.A Missed Opportunity: The Witch’s Hat Is Closed for Another Year!
The view from Tower Hill — at the base of the Witch’s Hat. Imagine the view from the observation deck above. (Talia Smith)
For years my “To Do in Minneapolis” list has included a climb that I have never made. And it’s not something I can do just any old day. We get one evening a year and that’s it. And once again I missed my chance. I wasn’t paying close enough attention that the Prospect Park/Pratt School Ice Cream Social was May 31. The night of that neighborhood party is the one time a year that the Witch’s Hat Tower on Tower Hill Park is open for climbing.
The climb would have been especially gratifying this year because it was the tower’s 100th birthday. The City of Minneapolis built the water tower on the hill, with the park board’s permission, in 1913. As explained before, the park was already named Tower Hill, at the request of neighborhood residents, when the Witch’s Hat water tower was built.
Since my earlier post on the Witch’s Hat, I found this stereopticon image of “Cheever’s Tower” dated 1858. (Minnesota Historical Society)
The Witch’s Hat tower was designed by Frederick Cappelen, as noted on a plaque that was put on the tower in 1999. I have a complaint about that plaque.
Cappelen is described on the plaque only as a “Norwegian architect.” Concise, but really misleading. Yes, he was Norwegian by birth, but he had immigrated to the United States at the age of 23 in 1880. He went to work for the City of Minneapolis in 1886 as a bridge engineer and in 1893 was elected Minneapolis’s City Engineer. He left that office in 1899, but was elected City Engineer again in 1913 and held that title until he died of complications from appendicitis in 1921. So, although Norway-born, he lived nearly his entire adult life in Minneapolis and during much of that time was a city employee.
The graceful arch of the bridge was the world’s longest concrete span at the time it was completed in 1923. (Mulad)
Cappelen’s greatest achievements in Minneapolis had nothing to do with the Witch’s Hat. He was the designer of the Franklin Avenue Bridge over the Mississippi, which was completed after his death. At that time, the bridge was the longest concrete-span bridge in the world, with a central span of 400 feet. The bridge’s official name is F. W. Cappelen Memorial Bridge.
Cappelen was also a key figure in designing the city’s water distribution system from the 1890s into the 1900s. He was so well-known as a bridge designer and a water works designer that his obituary was included in both the Proceedings of the Society of American Civil Engineers and the Journal of the American Water Works Association.
Cappelen was a Public Servant
Here’s my complaint about the plaque. I have no problem with identifying him as a “Norwegian architect” despite the fact that he was as American as everyone else in the city. My problem is with not identifying him as a public employee, as the City Engineer, a description that has far more to do with our memory of him than that he was Norwegian by birth.
The omission of his status as a public employee is part of my larger complaint that too many people praise everything in the private sector and disparage everything and everyone in the public sector. Too many people have such blind reverence for business methods and profit motives that they cannot distinguish between public and private good and the sometimes vastly different challenges involved in each. Some public problems cannot be solved by methods designed to maximize private profits.
I have also witnessed first-hand brilliance, stupidity and sloth in both government and corporate worlds. I have known very successful business people whom I would not trust to walk my dog around the block for fear that they’d screw it up somehow — or sell my dog before they made it back. I have known public employees with whom I would trust my life.
I have no tolerance for people who assume that someone who gets his or her paycheck from a government entity is incompetent and that everyone who works for a profit-making enterprise is more industrious and resourceful.
I have as much tolerance — none — for those who assume the only reason we have parks at all was a conspiracy of capitalists to enrich themselves. This myopic view, in my recent experience, seems particularly prevalent among people writing doctoral dissertations and some of those advising them.
To emerge from our present political quagmire, we have to be better than those extremes.
If there is a valuable lesson in Minneapolis park history it is that a great variety of people, with disparate philosophies and political views, have worked together on issues of the common good and achieved marvelous results. They included “capitalists” who looked beyond self-interest and profit, and they certainly included talented and dedicated public servants — like Frederick William Cappelen, City Engineer.
I’m sorry I missed again a chance to climb the tower he imagined 100 years ago. I’ll have to settle for a walk over his bridge.
David C. Smith
NOTE (6/6/2013): abockheim raises an excellent point in a comment on the post I linked to above about the identity of the tower that led to the naming of Tower Hill. Can anyone shed light?
An illustration of the view from Cheever’s Tower in 1857 by Edwin Whitefield. The lithographer was W. Endicott & Co. (Digital gallery of the New York Public Library.)
Here’s the link to the above illustration. I can’t picture this view from the campus or Tower Hill.
Cappelen was a Public Servant
The hat is often exaggerated in size and height to add a sense of whimsy and mystery to the overall appearance. The towering witches hat serves as a visual representation of the stereotypical witch character. It evokes a sense of intrigue and spookiness, making it a popular choice for Halloween enthusiasts looking to create a spooky atmosphere. Additionally, the hat has also become a popular motif in various forms of media, including literature, films, and television shows, further cementing its association with witchcraft and Halloween. Overall, the towering witches hat is a recognizable and symbolic image that has become deeply ingrained in Halloween culture. Its tall and pointed silhouette perfectly captures the essence of the witch archetype and adds an element of magic and enchantment to the Halloween season. Whether worn as part of a costume or used as a decorative prop, the towering witches hat continues to evoke a sense of mystery and fascination..
Reviews for "The occult origins of the towering witches hat"
1. Cindy - 2 stars - The "Towering witches hat" was a major disappointment for me. I was expecting a spooky and thrilling experience, but it was far from it. The actors were lackluster and the storyline was weak. The production value was also quite low, with shoddy props and poorly designed sets. Overall, it felt like a low-budget haunted house that failed to deliver any scares or entertainment. I would not recommend it to anyone looking for a truly immersive and thrilling Halloween experience.
2. Alex - 1 star - I had high hopes for the "Towering witches hat", but it turned out to be a complete waste of time and money. The scares were incredibly predictable and lacked any real creativity. The whole attraction felt rushed and poorly put together. The actors seemed disinterested, and the poorly lit corridors made it difficult to see what was happening. I expected a lot more from such a highly promoted event. Save your money and find a different haunted attraction that actually delivers on its promises.
3. Emily - 2 stars - The "Towering witches hat" was nothing more than a disappointing and underwhelming experience. The scares were few and far between, and when they did happen, they were incredibly cheesy and uninspired. The whole thing lacked the atmosphere and ambiance that a haunted house should have. The ticket prices were steep for what you actually get, and I left feeling like I had wasted my time and money. I would not recommend it to anyone looking for a genuinely scary Halloween experience.
4. Mike - 2 stars - I was left unimpressed with the "Towering witches hat". The whole experience felt disjointed, as if someone had thrown together a bunch of random spooky elements without any thought or purpose. The actors were not convincing in their roles, and the overall concept of the haunted attraction was confusing and poorly executed. It was clearly not well-planned or thought out. I expected much more, and I left feeling completely underwhelmed. Save your money and go elsewhere for a better Halloween experience.