SILVER BUTTE
Douglas County - Douglas County Fire Patrol - 31S-6W-23
July 19, 1923: "A new lookout station for Douglas county has been established at Silver Butte, nine miles west of Riddle, by Walter Leve of the National forest service and Charles Martindale of the Douglas county fire patrol association. These two men returned here yesterday after spending the last two days in erecting a fire finder set and installing a telephone. The new station covers an important part of the county which has not had a station in the past and is located near the Cow and Canyon creeks. The scope will include all the territory between north and south Myrtle creeks and covers an important section of county timber. The building for the lookout is being constructed and a man will begin work immediately as a lookout for that station." (Roseburg News-Review)
August 11, 1923: "The County patrol has constructed a lookout station on the summit of Silver Peak, has built several miles of trail and has extended the Camas Valley telephone line and installed a new exchange." (Roseburg News-Review)
June 28, 1928: “Neil Tripp, who has been attending Forestry school at Roseburg, returned to his home Sunday, to spend a couple of days with his parents, before taking his post at the Silver Peak Lookout station for the summer.” (The Glendale Log)
June 28, 1928: “Neil Tripp, who has been attending Forestry school at Roseburg, returned to his home Sunday, to spend a couple of days with his parents, before taking his post at the Silver Peak Lookout station for the summer.” (The Glendale Log)
October 6, 1928: "Harvey Brown, fire warden, was down from Roseburg Tuesday attending to matters relative to his office. Neal Tripp, lookout on Silver Peak, was called in and left Tuesday for his home at Azalea." (Roseburg News-Review)
July 5, 1930: "Quinlan Brown of Gardiner arrived here Wednesday to take up his duties as lookout at the Silver Butte station at Silver Peak." (Roseburg News-Review)
September 27, 1930: "Quinlan Brown, who has been stationed at the Silver Butte lookout during the summer, left for his home at Gardiner, Wednesday. He was accompanied by his father, Will I. Brown, who has been spending several weeks with him on the mountain." (Roseburg News-Review)
August 17, 1933: “Edward Lawson returned home last week from the Silver Butte Lookout, near Riddle, where he has been visiting his father for several weeks.” (The Glendale Log)
August 17, 1933: “Edward Lawson returned home last week from the Silver Butte Lookout, near Riddle, where he has been visiting his father for several weeks.” (The Glendale Log)
September 14, 1933: “Emmett Belcher drove to Silver Butte Lookout Station Sunday, taking Mrs. Tom Lawson and son Edward to visit Mr. Lawson. The Matthews children also made the trip. Edward remained to spend a week or ten days with his father at the Lookout.” (The Glendale Log)
October 12, 1933: “Thomas Lawson spent Saturday night and Sunday here visiting his family. He returned to his duties as Lookout at Silver Butte, near Riddle, Monday morning.” (The Glendale Log)
October 12, 1933: “Thomas Lawson spent Saturday night and Sunday here visiting his family. He returned to his duties as Lookout at Silver Butte, near Riddle, Monday morning.” (The Glendale Log)
November 14, 1933: "Thomas E. Lawson has returned to his home here after spending the summer on Silver Peak as a lookout for the Douglas County Fire Patrol association." (Roseburg News-Review)
February 1934: "A small side camp of CCC boys under the direction of the wardens of the Douglas County Association have been busy for the past few weeks constructing a trail and telephone line to the Silver Peak lookout. They expect to complete the work within a short time." (The Forest Log)
August 1934: "The wisdom of having lookouts living in the towers was proven recently when Lookout Wm. Brown reported a fire at 10:30 p.m., from his station on Silver Butte. As a result, District Warden Southwick and a crew of men were on the fire at daylight and succeeded in controlling it within a short time. Brown also topped the list last year by reporting a fire at midnight. Both fires were of incendiary origin and had evidently been set at a time when it was supposed the lookout would not discover them until sometime the following day. Lookout Brown is a son of the late Harvey Brown, who was district warden of Douglas county for a number of years." + "Warden Carl Thornton, of Hinkle creek, recently suffered injuries to one of his feet when he became entangled in a pack rope. He was packing supplies to the Silver Butte lookout and in the process of loading the horse, the animal became frightened and started to leave the country. The pack rope wrapped around Carl's leg and he was dragged some distance before things let loose and released him." (The Forest Log)
September 25, 1934: "Elmer Dent, of Roseburg, passed through town Thursday on his way to Silver Peak to take charge of the Silver Butte lookout station, relieving Bill Brown, who is leaving to attend Oregon State college this winter." (Roseburg News-Review)
August 21, 1935: "Mrs. Edna Brown left Tuesday for Riddle to spend the remainder of the week visiting her son, Bill Brown, who is stationed at the lookout there by the Douglas County Fire Patrol association." (Roseburg News-Review)
September 27, 1935: "David Weaver, son of Mrs. D.O. Weaver of this city, has accepted employment with the Douglas County Fires Patrol association as lookout at the Silver Peak station near Riddle." (Roseburg News-Review)
September 30, 1935: "William Brown who has been stationed at the Silver Peak lookout station where he was working with the Douglas county fire patrol association has returned to Corvallis to continue his work in forestry at Oregon State college. Young Brown had spent the summer at work on the peak." (Corvallis Gazette-Times)
October 5, 1935: "David Weaver returned to his home in this city yesterday, following the closing of the Silver Butte lookout station near Riddle, which he has been in charge of for the past few weeks." (Roseburg News-Review)
1936: "The present lookout house on Silver Butte is of log construction, built a number of years ago, has depreciated to such an extent it is of little value." (Douglas FPA - Oregon Department of Forestry Annual Report - 1936)
1937: "Recommendations: The construction of a new lookout house on Silver Butte. The house should be built on a 25 foot tower. All material and labor covering the above recommendation should be furnished by the CCC camps." (Douglas FPA - Oregon Department of Forestry Annual Report - 1937)
1941: "A new lookout should be built at Silver Butte. The material is now on hand to construct this lookout but some new road and trail will have to be built to move the material to the lookout point." (Douglas FPA - Oregon Department of Forestry Annual Report - 1941)
1942: "A 14 x 14 standard lookout house and a 28 foot tower was constructed at Silver Butte, cost $184.00 for materials. Most of the work was done by the CCC." (Douglas FPA - Oregon Department of Forestry Annual Report - 1942)
Activated: October 14, 1942; Deactivated: October 16, 1943. Roseburg Filter Center.
September 9, 1942: "The Army has requested that Silver Butte be activated as yearlong AWS observation post as soon as possible." (Letter to State Forester from James Frankland, USFS Engineer)
September 10, 1942: "Silver Butte observation post is connected by 12 miles of Association grounded line from Riddle commercial switchboard. We are informed that this switchboard is not open for 24-hour service so it is apparent that a better line of communication must be opened up. The Army informs us that it would be advisable to obtain direct connection with Roseburg if this can be done. The Army does not usually request a telephone company to give 24-hour service at a switchboard which serves only one post, such as Silver Butte.
An alternative would be to report via radio through the Marshfield relay station which operates a standby radio at all times. It would be appreciated if Warden Southwick would contact the telephone company and then inform us if a direct connection can be made. Since sufficient radio sets will be available after the fire season, this means of communication could be used." (Letter to State Forester from James Frankland, USFS Engineering)
September 11, 1942: "The construction of a 12' x 15' building has been approved for AWS purposes on Silver Butte in Douglas County. The lookout site is located about one-half mile from the end of the present road and it will necessitate the packing of the material for the cabin the last half mile.
Mr. Southwick advises me that the right of way was cleared by the CCC on the top and for about $200.00 or $300.00 he could extend the road to the lookout. This would enable him to haul the material to the building site and it would also provide a service road for the winter. The cost of packing the material in by horse would no doubt cost nearly as much as constructing the road." (A letter from the Oregon State Board of Forestry to James Frankland, USFS)
September 12, 1942: "Use of $300 AWS funds for construction of the one-half mile of road to the Silver Butte Lookout is approved." (Memo from James Frankland, USFS, to the State Forester)
October 16, 1943: Effective 1800 hours this date the Army deactivated this AWS post.
July 31, 1944: "Ialo D. Stephens, of the Stephens Auto company, spent Sunday visiting at Silver Butte, southeast of Riddle, where his daughter, Miss Marge Stephens, is employed by the Douglas Forest Protective association as fore lookout." (Roseburg News-Review)
1958: The radio number for this station, 502. The telephone connections were through Pacific Telephone to the Roseburg headquarters.
1960: "The new type lookout house roof installed on Silver Butte Lookout at a cost of $428.53." (Douglas FPA - Oregon Department of Forestry Annual Report - 1960)
June 4, 2012: The tower removed due to advanced state of decay.