BIG BUTTE
Asotin County - Umatilla National Forest - 7N-44E-1
July 16, 1929: "A plan is on foot to construct a lookout tower on Big Butte near Anatone as soon as an abstract of title satisfactory to the government can be obtained. The site for the proposed tower has been donated by the Blue Mountain Lumber and Manufacturing company of Asotin. Big Butte is the best location for lookout purposes in Asotin county. It commands an excellent view of the larger portion of the district." (Lewiston Morning Tribune)
1929: An 80-foot native timber tower with 7 x 7 cab erected. (From a Umatilla National Forest inventory)
September 1929: "After three days on the lonesome lookout of Anatone Butte, the lookout man became ill. He was taken to a doctor and returned to the job ten days later. One day on the lookout and he became ill again and had to be replaced. There were reports to the effect that the illness was caused by goblins who came in the nighttime and made frightful noises about the weird and lonesome lookout station. G.C. Blake" (Six Twenty-Six)
2010 - 11: During the winter a wind blown tree fell across one of the guy cables causing that tower leg to shear off at one of the higher leg joints, the cab has a decided sag on that corner.
DESIGNATION - BIG BUTTE LOOKOUT TOWER
PID - RZ1637
STATE/COUNTY- WA/ASOTIN
COUNTRY - US
USGS QUAD - FIELDS SPRING (1995)
STATION DESCRIPTION
DESCRIBED BY COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY 1964 (JCC)
TO REACH THE STATION FROM ANATONE GO SOUTH ON STATE HIGHWAY 3
FOR 2.0 MILES TO ROAD INTERSECTION ON RIGHT. TURN RIGHT AND
FOLLOW MAIN TRAVELED DIRT ROAD WESTERLY FOR 6.4 MILES TO FORK AND
SIGN, BIG BUTTE L.O.. TAKE THE RIGHT FORK, AS PER SIGN, AND
CONTINUE 0.6 MILE TO THE TOWER AND STATION SITE.
THE STATION MARK, REFERENCE MARKS 1 AND 3 WERE RECOVERED AS
DESCRIBED BY J. T. J. IN 1946. AN UNDERGROUND MARK AND A NEW
SURFACE MARK WAS SET, MAINTAINING THE EXACT POSITION OF THE
ORIGINAL SURFACE MARK. DISTANCES TO THE REFERENCE MARKS CHECKED
THE 1946 MEASUREMENTS, INDICATING THAT THE ORIGINAL MARK HAD NOT
BEEN DISTURBED. A DIFFERENCE OF 3.5 METERS WAS NOTED TO THE
HEIGHT OF INSTRUMENT. THE TOWER COULD HAVE BEEN REMODELED OR
REBUILT SINCE 1946. EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE THE 1946 DESCRIPTION
IS ADEQUATE.