LANE COUNTY
FRISSELL POINT
Willamette National Forest
15S-6W-33
15S-6W-33
c.1914: An Alidade established for locating fires.
June 27, 1920: "Wild animals and lonely mountains will not stand between Dorothy Dickey and a university education. Thus sophomore from Eugene will earn part of her was through the university next year by serving as fire lookout on the top of Frisell point, a lonely station on the McKenzie watershed, 71 miles from Eugene and 15 miles from McKenzie Bridge, the nearest postoffice. This distance can only be covered on foot or with a packhorse, and the food and supplies for the young woman and her mother and sister, who will accompany her, must be packed in when they take up their watch, July 1.
Miss Dickey has supported herself during the past year through work in the university dining hall." (The Oregon Daily Journal)
July 4, 1920: (For the 1919 season) "Miss Dorothy and Miss Martha Andrews, twin sisters, served in the Cascade forest, Miss Dorothy at Frissel Point and Miss Martha on Horsepasture mountain. They could see each other with the aid of field glasses and when lonesome would communicate by means of their field telephone sets. Miss Dorothy is principal of schools at Wendling and Miss Martha taught at McKenzie Bridge, near where their stations were located. Both girls live at Eugene." (The Sunday Oregonian)
September 1, 1920: "N.F. MacDuff, supervisor of the Cascade national forest, left yesterday for McKenzie Bridge and from there will make a trip of inspection of several trail projects and of a number of lookout points. He will go to the top of Frissell Point and will determine then whether to continue this point as a lookout post. It has been used as such for the past two years." (Morning Register)
September 15, 1920: "Walter Sackman, lookout at Frissel Point, came down Sunday." (Morning Register)
August 6, 1921: "After being lost for two days, Miss Sybil Wakefield, 16-year-old daughter of Joe Wakefield, manager of Cook McKenzie Inn near Vida, was found on the river trail yesterday afternoon. A searching party of 30 men had been hunting all day Friday for her.
Miss Wakefield left McKenzie bridge about 7:30 o'clock Thursday morning to visit Ethel Neal, lookout on Frizzle point, the lookout being about seven miles from McKenzie bridge. Miss Wakefield was advised by friends to take a short cut by a sheep trail, whereas she should have followed the well traveled plainly marked government trail. Miss Neal and her sister being advised by telephone of Miss Wakefield's coming up, started to meet her. Failing, they came on to McKenzie bridge, arriving about 7 o'clock in the evening.
A searching party was immediately organized by Deputy Forest Supervisor Smith Taylor at McKenzie bridge and search all night, finding no trace of the missing girl except a footprint and her name written on a toadstool.
They continued the search Friday morning and until 2 o'clock, when she was found by Jack Sheasley on the River trail near a note left by some of the searchers, telling her to wait there. She seemed none the worse for spending a night in the open more than one-half way up to the lookout and with no food since the morning before except a sandwich." (The Eugene Daily Guard)
August 14, 1921: "Supervisor N.F. Macduff, of the Cascade National forest, returned to Eugene yesterday after spending a week on tour of inspection that took him to the summit of the range.
One of the lookout stations visited was on Frissel Point, seven miles above McKenzie Bridge. This station is 'manned' by a plucky feminine watcher--Ethel Neil--who not only leads a lonely life at the top of the earth but occasionally is visited by 'varmints' that are calculated to scare the average woman out of a year's growth.
She related that recently as she strolled out from her cabin she was surprised to see a big cougar come out on a rocky ledge a short distance from her. She did not indulge in melodrama, but stepped back to the cabin for her rifle, thinking about a nice cougar pelt rug. However, the animal made his getaway before she could get her weapon into action." (Morning Register)
One of the lookout stations visited was on Frissel Point, seven miles above McKenzie Bridge. This station is 'manned' by a plucky feminine watcher--Ethel Neil--who not only leads a lonely life at the top of the earth but occasionally is visited by 'varmints' that are calculated to scare the average woman out of a year's growth.
She related that recently as she strolled out from her cabin she was surprised to see a big cougar come out on a rocky ledge a short distance from her. She did not indulge in melodrama, but stepped back to the cabin for her rifle, thinking about a nice cougar pelt rug. However, the animal made his getaway before she could get her weapon into action." (Morning Register)
October 8, 1924: "Wallace Halsey, Forest Ranger at Frissell point, lookout station, was in town during the week-end, visiting with his parents." (The Eugene Guard)
July 17, 1930: "A forest fire lookout house will be erected on Frissell point, north of McKenzie bridge, as soon as possible, it was announced at the office of the Cascade national forest. Actual construction will start as soon as men are released from forest fire fighting." (Morning Oregonian)
August 10, 1930: "Completion of the patrolman's cabin at Gold lake, near the summit of the Cascade mountains, was announced by Cascade forest officials this week. Crews now are cutting material for the lookout cabin, which will be established on Frissell point, north of McKenzie bridge. This will be a primary lookout point in the Cascade forest.
Materials are cut into small sizes and taken to the top of the point by pack horses. Up to this time the lookout at Frissell point has been stationed in a tent.
The Cascade service is constructing six buildings through the forest this year. Last year the only buildings constructed were two lookout houses." (Morning Oregonian)
August 4, 1931: "Robert Smith has returned home after spending a month with his father, Horace Smith, who is fire lookout at Frizelle Point, eight miles from McKenzie river bridge. Mrs. Smith left Sunday morning for a fortnight stay with her husband at his lookout post." (Daily Capital Journal)
September 25, 1933: "H.J. Smith visited at his home here for a few days the past week, on a combined business and pleasure trip. Smith has been employed the past summer at a fire look-out station on the McKenzie Pass. He returned to his station again where he will assist in the building of government shelter sheds which will take about six weeks. Smith is the new clerk of the Hayesville school district." (Daily Capital Journal)
1967: "McKenzie's AD-112 for disposal of Frissell Point lookout (Section 33, T15S,R6E, W.M.). This is an old standard type lookout, 196 square feet, built in 1931. It'[s now 35 years old and hasn't been manned for a couple years. It is not in the present detection system and there are no plans for it being used in the future. Fire Control concurs in disposal. Disposal will be no problem but before doing so McKenzie must consider the application of FSM 5663.23, R6 Supplement No. 68, dated June 1960. This directive concerns the destruction and/or removal of bench marks such as triangulation stations and lookouts. To avoid the loss of such stations, it may be necessary to reset the bench mark. Our current maps indicate that Frissell Point Lookout is a triangulation station and a permanent lookout. If it is necessary to reset the marker, the directive requires a report to be submitted to R.O. Engineering before destruction of the original marker. Suggest the AD-112 be returned to the district as indicated in proposed memorandum attached." (Memo to H.B. Middlewood)
1968: The lookout disposed of by burning.