JACKSON COUNTY
WHETSTONE POINT (BALD)
Crater National Forest > Rogue River National Forest
32S-2E-14
32S-2E-14
September 23, 1913: "The Bald Mountain Ranger Station included all of a relinquished homestead, but the part that we need is merely a meadow. There are 27 acres in the meadow but in order to include practically all of the meadow in 10 acre legal sub-divisions the area will be 40 acres.
This station is the headquarters for the lookout and patrolman on top of Bald Mountain. Usually 1 or 2 horses are kept there the summer long. The meadow has been badly overgrazed in years past and it furnishes very poor feed. All of the meadow and timber feed adjacent will be needed. The altitude is 5400 feet. There is no possibility of agriculture on top of this mountain." (Letter to District Forester from Supervisor, Crater National Forest)
This station is the headquarters for the lookout and patrolman on top of Bald Mountain. Usually 1 or 2 horses are kept there the summer long. The meadow has been badly overgrazed in years past and it furnishes very poor feed. All of the meadow and timber feed adjacent will be needed. The altitude is 5400 feet. There is no possibility of agriculture on top of this mountain." (Letter to District Forester from Supervisor, Crater National Forest)
1914: A crows nest constructed on the top of an 80-foot tree.
August 17, 1914: "George Hall, Prospect: Bald Mountain lookout: phone, Bald Mountain, call Prospect." (Ashland Tidings)
1916: "On Bald Mountain lookout the observer has constructed a crow's nest which is approached by climbing upon the horizontal limbs of the Douglas fir tree on the top of which it is placed." (The Fire Lookout System on the Crater National Forest, Harold D. Foster, 1916)
July 28, 1924: "The forest service is putting in a new standard lookout house on top of Bald Mt. in the Crater forest above Prospect. Horace Geppart has charge of the lookout station." (Medford Mail Tribune)
1924: A lookout house was built on Bald Mountain. The lumber was cut at the Medford warehouse. Charles Cook and Howard Ash built the Bald Mountain house in September on the Rogue River District. (History of the Rogue River National Forest, Volume 1 - Carroll E. Brown)
June 25, 1930: "It was learned today that Harry Richards, the lookout on Whetstone Peak, or Old Baldy, as it is more commonly known, early Sunday morning killed a 200 pound panther that was prowling outside his lookout cabin at the top of the 4685 foot wooded mountain, four miles northwest of Prospect.
He killed the big varmint by shots from his six-chamber pistol and fired the shots from the cabin. This is all that is known of the occurrence, as Richards only phoned these details to the ranger station at Trail, which in turn phoned them to the Crater National Forest office here.
By killing this panther Richards is $35 richer, as that sum is the bounty on a panther. Richards, it is said, recently told that there are quite a number of wildcats on Old Baldy." (Medford Mail Tribune)
He killed the big varmint by shots from his six-chamber pistol and fired the shots from the cabin. This is all that is known of the occurrence, as Richards only phoned these details to the ranger station at Trail, which in turn phoned them to the Crater National Forest office here.
By killing this panther Richards is $35 richer, as that sum is the bounty on a panther. Richards, it is said, recently told that there are quite a number of wildcats on Old Baldy." (Medford Mail Tribune)
1934: The lookout house elevated on a ten foot tower.
June 25, 1940: "Nils Olson has resumed his post on Bald mountain. This is his eighth year there as lookout patrolman." (Medford Mail Tribune)
1958: Burned by a forestry crew after a short period of abandonment. The duties were replaced by the recently constructed lookouts at White Point (ODF - 1951) and Halls Point (USFS - 1956).