MOUNT EDDY
Siskiyou County - Shasta National Forest
June 29, 1912: "A lookout station for forest fires has been established on the summit of Mount Eddy for the season. From this point telegraphic communications may be had with the supervisor's offices at Sisson, Callahan and Trinity Center. From the lookout there is an excellent view of Trinity river, the entire east and west slope of Mount Shasta, and the west slope of Goose Nest mountains; in fact, fires in the entire country can be located as far as Kenniett." (Sacramento Union)
July 5, 1912: "A novelty in the way of forest fire protection has been introduced here in the order to construct a lookout station on Mount Eddy. From the station a lookout will be on duty constantly to spy any fire that might occur in the neighboring ranges.
Mount Eddy commands a view of all the surrounding country, and a fire can easily be seen with a glass at a great distance. A telephone line will be built connecting the station with the headquarters in Sisson, and reports will be sent in at all times.
The work of erecting the station is in charge of Frank Helfrich. Lumber is being carried to Mount Eddy by muleback, 1000 feet to the mule at a load." (Sacramento Union)
September 12, 1912: "In the Siskiyous, eighteen fires were started by thunder storms, three on August 1 and seventeen on August 17, and they were all discovered by the federal lookout on top of Mount Eddy. This lookout telephoned word to the federal rangers and both days men were on the way to each fire within one hour after the lightning had struck." (Siskiyou Daily News)
October 3, 1912: "Acting Supervisor Hall wrote to Mr. B.A. McCallister, Land Commissioner of Southern Pacific R.R., explaining the reason for billing the Company for suppression of a fire on S.P. lands in Etna Creek. The fire was discovered by Mt. Eddy Lookout on the Shasta Forest. Supervisor Hammatt reported it to S.P. Fire Warden Chamberlin, who said he could not take action because it was out of his area so the Klamath sent two guards because the fire was threatening N.F. lands." (Chronological History of the Klamath National Forest, Vol. II, 1911-1920)
July 15, 1915: "In co-operation with the Weather Bureau, San Francisco, Everson T. Rider, the lookout on Dry Lake mountain, is to be furnished with a wind gauge." (Siskiyou Daily News)
August 6, 1920: "J.S. McClemmons, pioneer lookout of the forest service, was at Sissons, Calif., today recovering from burns received yesterday when lightning struck the fire lookout station at Mount Eddy, the highest lookout station in the state, yesterday, forest service headquarters announced here today.
The lightning tore a four-foot hole in the station house and set it on fire. McClemmons, who was at the telephone, was rendered unconscious. When he recovered, he extinguished the fire and set out on foot for Sisson, 12 miles away." (Bakersfield Californian)
August 6, 1920: "Lookout House Struck by Lightning. The following telegram was received from the Shasta this morning:
Lookout house on Mount Eddy struck by lightning 6:15 P.M. August 4. Hole torn four feet diameter where phone line entered old lookout house. North corner of new lookout house torn into splinters. Glass in both houses badly broken. Lookout J.S. McClemmons knocked unconscious and on regaining consciousness the lookout house was on fire. McClemmons extinguished blaze. Black smoke was seen from Sisson when lightning struck. McClemmons came to Sisson today. Will recover completely within five or six days. 35 lightning fires set by electrical storm now under control." (California District News Letter)
Lookout house on Mount Eddy struck by lightning 6:15 P.M. August 4. Hole torn four feet diameter where phone line entered old lookout house. North corner of new lookout house torn into splinters. Glass in both houses badly broken. Lookout J.S. McClemmons knocked unconscious and on regaining consciousness the lookout house was on fire. McClemmons extinguished blaze. Black smoke was seen from Sisson when lightning struck. McClemmons came to Sisson today. Will recover completely within five or six days. 35 lightning fires set by electrical storm now under control." (California District News Letter)
August 7, 1920: "J.S. McClemmens, pioneer lookout of the United States Forest Service, was seriously injured when lightning struck the control station on Mount Eddy last Thursday. The lightning tore a four-foot hole in the station house, started a fire and knocked McClemmens, who was telephoning, unconscious. McClemmens recovered, extinguished the fire and walked twelve miles into Sissons for treatment.
Thirty-five forest fires, were started by the lightning storm, officials of the forest service announced. The fires did little damage." (San Francisco Chronicle)
August 10, 1920: "Forest Lookout J. D. McClenens was knocked unconscious last night during a severe electric storm which raged over Mt. Eddy.
The lookout station of the Forestry Department is 9000 feet above sea level and is the highest lookout in the state. The building was completely destroyed by fire.
Sixteen fires started in the Shasta forest reserve within two hours." (San Luis Obispo Tribune)
August 12, 1920: "A heavy thunder storm came up Wednesday evening of last week and it rained hard. The lightning struck the lookout station on Mt. Eddy. The lookout man was knocked unconscious, but recovered soon enough to fight the fire after it had done some damage." (Siskiyou Daily News)
October 14, 1920: "Some Storm! The storm of October 6 was so terrific on Mount Eddy Lookout that the wind reached a velocity of sixty-two miles an hour, and the force of the wind broke all the window panes on one side of the Lookout house. It was snowing at the time, and at least two feet of snow was blown into the building. The wind was so hard that the lookout man was unable to get outside to hang up the shutters on the windows for protection. This happened in the night, and in order to keep dry we had to put his blankets under the platform in the center of the room on which the table and map stand, and crawl in there for the night. The next day a man was sent up to bring him down. The wind bent the flag pole, which is made of pipe, to a forty-five degree angle." (California District News Letter)
October 14, 1920: "F. A. Nixon came down from the lookout on Mt. Eddy the first of the week after the storm of Monday had demolished several large windows and the glass door of the lookout station. From a 40-mile-an-hour wind at 9 in the morning, until evening when the wind was blowing at more than 60 miles an hour, it was impossible to get out of the building. At about 9:30 at night the storm blew the windows out and Mr. Nixon saved his life only by crawling under the small platform built for the lookout desk where he lay wrapped in blankets wet with snow and rain until 4 the next morning, when he made made his way to the old building about 40 feet away. There the stovepipe was filled with ice and he could not have a fire." (Siskiyou Daily News)
October 15, 1920: "Forest lookouts lead lonesome lives but not devoid of excitement. At Mount Eddy in the Shasta region of California. recently, the United States department of Agriculture Forest Service is advised, lightning struck the lookout station tore a 4-foot hole in the wall and stunned the lookout, J.S. McClemmens. He recovered just in time to save the house and his own life. Thirty-five lightning fires were caused in that vicinity the same day." (The Leavenworth Echo - Washington)
October 18, 1920: "After a forty-mile-an-hour wind had blown down the door and blown out the windows of the lookout station on the summit of Mount Eddy, near Sisson, F.A. Nixon, the keeper of the station, suffered great hardships until late in the evening, when the gale increased to sixty miles an hour.
It was impossible for Nixon to leave the partially wrecked building. He sought refuge by crawling under the small platform built for the lookout desk, where he lay wrapped in blankets, wet with snow and rain, until 4 o'clock in the morning.
Nixon then made his way to an old building forty feet away, and here the stovepipe was filled with ice and he could not build a fire." (San Francisco Chronicle)
August 25, 1922: "Refuge for Lookout Man As a refuge for the lookout man during severe thunderstorms, a tunnel is being dug on the Shasta National Forest near the summit of Mount Eddy, which is directly west of Sisson. In the course of the last few years one lookout was severely hurt and another injured in electrical storms at this exposed peak." (California District News Letter)
August 1922: "The Forest Service is constructing a tunnel at the lookout station on Mt. Eddy, in Siskiyou County. This will be used by the lookout for refuge and a place of protection during severe electrical storms. The lookout station is frequently struck by lightning, and twice within two years the man in charge has been severely injured." (The Timberman, Volume 23)
April 1, 1923: "Mt. Eddy--This lookout station is reached by a combination of auto ride and hiking. Uncle Sam's lookout man, in his glass house, is on the job all the time. This station, 9000 feet elevation, is eighteen miles from Mt. Shasta. The wonderful view from this lookout is well worth the trip." (San Francisco Chronicle)
September 27, 1923: "For the second time in the past three years, Mt. Eddy, a peak located just west of Sisson, came near to claiming human toll during a storm Wednesday evening of last week, when Forest Lookout William J. Hale and his son, John, were forced to abandon the lookout station and spend the night in a small tunnel in the mountain.
Hale took the Mt. Eddy lookout post after two previous occupants refused to return. Learning that severe storms visited the point, a small tunnel was excavated as a means of safety during the worst tempests. The storm broke suddenly Wednesday evening, and within ten minutes a driving hail and wind storm was sweeping the mountain. It was with difficulty that Mr. Hale and his son were able to reach the tunnel. The subterranean refuge has no window and when morning has come the door was opened to see how strong the storm was. It took the combined efforts of both men to close it again.
During the time the door was open a cat, which had been staying on the mountain, attempted to make its way back to the lookout station and was picked up by the wind, carried several hundred feet and dropped over the side of the mountain into a little valley hundreds of feet below.
From the lookout station on the top of this mountain, the lookout picks up many fires which start within a radius of several miles. The station is important to the forest service, but is the most dangerous of the many located in the northern part of the state. Storms will often break on Mt. Eddy when all in the valley below is quiet and pleasant.
Soon after the station was built several years ago, J. L. McClemmons, the first lookout was struck by lightning and lay stunned for many hours before regaining consciousness. Making his way toward Sisson, he was met by one of the forest service employes who had started out to see what was wrong.
McClemmons would not go on the mountain again, and the next year Frank Nixon went up as lookout. During a storm in October, 1920, the windows were blown out of the building and Nixon saved his life only by crawling into a little recess near the side of the house and staying there until morning.
Snow began falling and filled the chimney with drifted snow until a fire could not be started. The last record Nixon had of the wind gauge, the wind was blowing between 65 and 70 miles per hour. Rocks that weighed a pound or so were rolled around like marbles." (Siskiyou Daily News)
September 28, 1923: "The following terse bit of history is taken from a ten-day fire report for the period ending September 20:
'Extremely high wind. Mt. Eddy Lookout house practically total wreck. Lookout Hale and son escaped without injury, also a pet dog. Cat last seen in mid-air over Edgewood." (California District News Letter)
October 18, 1923: "While E. H. Hale, lookout on Mt. Eddy, came to Sisson during one of the heavy storms on the mountain last week, someone stole all his personal effects. The thief also packed away all the provisions at the station.
It is the first time in the history of the local forest office that anything has been stolen from a lookout station. The Mt. Eddy station is 10,000 feet elevation." (Siskiyou Daily News)
June 12, 1925: "W. J. Hale, for a number of years look-out on Mt. Eddy, will go on the mountain next week to take up his duties as lookout on that peak." (The Dunsmuir News)
June 14, 1925: "This lookout station is reached by a combination of auto, ride and hiking. Uncle Sam's lookout man in his glass house is on the job full time. This station, 2000 feet elevation, is eighteen miles from Mt. Shasta. The wonderful view from this lookout is well worth the trip." (Fresno Bee)
June 24, 1925: "C.E. Haley forest service lookout on Mount Eddy, was blown to the ground by a high wind and sustained a fractured rib. A sudden heavy gust of breeze lifted Haley completely off his feet and he dropped on his side." (Healdsburg Tribune)
June 26, 1925: "C. E. Hale, lookout on Mt. Eddy, received a probable fracture of a rib when he was blown to the ground while attempting to make a repair on a telephone line during a high wind on Tuesday of this week.
It appears that the wind hit him so hard that he lost his balance and tripped over a wire on the ground and could not break the fall, thus receiving his injury. He was taken to the hospital yesterday to have an X-ray taken." (The Dunsmuir News)
June 25, 1931: "Matt Merchant, lookout stationed atop Mt. Eddy in the Shasta National forest, broke all previous records in northern California for distance Wednesday in sighting fires from his lofty perch, Merchant located a fire burning at Miller's sawmill near Oak Run, 54 miles away. Investigation revealed that lumber slabs were being burned.
The previous record was made only a week ago, when Floyd Clemmons of North Fork lookout located a grass fire near Palo Cedro, 35 miles away. The Oak Run blaze Wednesday was also sighted by the Bonanza King lookout near Trinity Center, 35 miles away." (The Shasta Courier)
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