STRAWBERRY BUTTE
Lake County - Fremont National Forest - 24S-11E-01
August 12, 1930: " After a lightning storm a man is placed on each emergency lookout to gain direct visibility in sections where “holes in the ground” are located and which cannot be seen by the regular lookouts. There are two of these emergency lookouts on this forest. One is called Strawberry Lookout and is located in a spot where the visibility of the Dog Mountain man is hindered." (Lake County Tribune)
July 21, 1932: "Two steel towers have been approved for this forest, but they will not be erected until fall. One, 107 feet high. Is to be placed on Strawberry Mountain in the Dog Lake District, together with a ground cabin for living quarters for the fireman." (Lake County Examiner)
September 22, 1932: "By the fall of this year the cabin at this site had been completed. The work was done as a part of the Unemployment Relief Program, in the last days of the Hoover administration. This cabin, used for living quarters, replaced a tent shelter. A 107 foot steel tower has been purchased and will be erected next summer." (Lake County Examiner)
1932: In addition to the 12 x 16 house for living quarters, a 16 x 18 garage built. Both structures of wood frame construction.
August 3, 1933: " In August a group of eight men from the Camp Ingram CCC camp, went to erect the 100-foot steel tower. This tower being the tallest on the forest." (Lake County Examiner)
1933: The all steel model LS-40 lookout tower was prefabricated by the Aermotor Company. The total cost of construction was $3,317.74 of which $788.00 went to the actual erection of the tower.
June 1934: "The men from the CCC camp at Dog Lake were scheduled to do maintenance work at the Strawberry lookout." (Six Twenty-Six)
1936: The lookout, equipped with a #4 Osborne fire finder with vertical angle. Water located at a spring two miles distant.
1940: The lookout, an official fire-weather station, takes readings three times a day at 7 am, 12 noon and 4 pm and the observations telephoned in to the Bly Ranger Station at 4:15 pm daily.
July 29, 1942: "Mrs. Bill Harbison stopped at Bly on her way to Langell valley after a weekend with her son David, who is lookout at Strawberry. She was accompanied by her little daughter Mary." (Herald and News)
1956: The air marking number for this station, F-19.
1959: From the inspection report of the Regional Engineering Office on its September 9th visit.
"The lookout tower is steel and 100 feet in height. The cab is steel, and 7x7 in size. Tower and cab were made by Aermotor and erected in 1933. The inspection found the premises clean and orderly.
Deficiencies: Ground wire disconnected from two of the tower legs. Some of the boards on the landings need replacement. Anemometer above the tower. Cab floor needs replacement. Stairs and landings not properly fenced.
Recommendations: Fix grounds. Replace cab floor and weak platform boards. Move the anemometer and install fencing for the stairs and platform landings."
July 18, 1960: " Ralph Turner is an art teacher returning to Strawberry Lookout from Alaska. He previously manned during the 1957 and 1958 seasons." (Herald and News)
1963: From a memo from the District Ranger to Forest Supervisor on January 14th:
"The Drews Valley District has only one lookout station requiring screening of stairways and installing safety gates and trap doors. This work, on Strawberry Lookout tower, completed in June of 1960."
March 13, 1969: "Strawberry Lookout cabin should no longer be used. Should be condemned and destroyed." (From District Ranger to Forest Supervisor)
1969: The 1969 Lookout Inventory notes that the lookout is used only for emergency fire detection. And that it is a 102-foot steel tower with a 49 square foot steel cab without catwalk.
1969: There is a garage and toilet at Strawberry Butte that could be torn down since we no longer use this station except on a day to day basis. Also a small one room cabin for housing that should be torn down. By removing these structures, we would save numerous maintenance problems since these are locations of many of our vandalism problems.
We have not used these cabins for housing for several years and do not have plans to use them in the future. However, we still must maintain them to keep them in safe and presentable condition. ( A letter from the Lakeview District Ranger to the Forest Supervisor concerning the removal of these buildings.)
1972: A Civil Engineer’s report on the 1972 Lookout condition survey writes: Strawberry lookout towers to the floor approximately 107 feet, to the fire finder, 110 feet. The structural steel in the tower is galvanized metal and is in good shape, very little rusting. There is considerable rusting on the stairwells. The stairwells should be painted. Steps up the tower, in good condition. One or two need replacing.
The wire screening on the stairway is very minimum, at areas small children could fall through. This should be rescreened with heavier screens.
The paint on the interior of the cab is flaking off all over. This should be wire-brushed to remove all paint and painted at the same time the steps are painted.
Fire finder map has been removed. It should be replaced. Fire finder should be grounded to the tower. It is understood that the two buildings, the house and garage, have been sold; however, they have not been removed. The garage is in fair shape. If the contractor for removal defaults, recommend keeping the garage so when tower is used in emergency conditions there would be a place for supplies and also possibly people sleeping out of the weather.
The house should be torn down. Any painting that needs to be done can be accomplished without scaffolding or danger to personnel. This could be done by a standby fire crew. Strawberry lookout is an unguyed tower.
Removed
STATION DESCRIPTION
DESCRIBED BY US FOREST SERVICE 1931 (NS)
THIS INTERSECTED STATION IS THE TALL STEEL LOOKOUT TOWER OF THE
U.S.F.S. SITUATED ON STRAWBERRY MOUNTAIN, WHICH LIES ABOUT 30
MILES SW OF LAKEVIEW.
THE TOWER IS REPORTED TO BE 50.75 METERS (166.5 FEET) SOUTHERLY
FROM THE TREE IN APPROXIMATE AZIMUTH 12 DEG 24 MIN. FROM
LAKEVIEW PROCEED W AND SW TO DOG LAKE, 28.5 MILES, THENCE W 14
MILES THROUGH BARRY RANCH.
STATION RECOVERY (1937)
RECOVERY NOTE BY US FOREST SERVICE 1937
THIS NOTE SUPPLEMENTS INFORMATION GIVEN ABOVE. DURING 1937 THE
U.S.F.S. SET A DISK UNDER THIS TOWER, BUT THE RECORDS DO NOT
INDICATE IF THE DISK, WHICH IS A CONCRETE POST, IS ON THE CENTER
OF THE LOOKOUT HOUSE ON TOWER, OR NOT.