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Fire lookout · Linn County, Oregon

Coffin Mountain Lookout

Coffin Mountain: Willamette NF summit lookout on a coffin-shaped ridge; 1906 platform, 1921 cupola, 1936 L-4, 1984 R-6 cabin; staffed in summer.

Visit & stay

Not rentable. As far as we know, this lookout cannot be booked for overnight stays.

Access

Open to the public. Public trail to a summit lookout that the Forest Service lists as currently staffed by the Detroit Ranger District; check conditions with the Detroit Ranger Station.

Can you climb it?
Unknown
Road to the top?
No, you have to hike
Trail
Hike about 2 1/2 miles from the trailhead on Forest Road 1168; the Forest Service calls it somewhat long but easy.
Staffing
Staffed during fire season (as of 2025-03-25)

Facts

Status
Standing
Type
Ground-level cabR-6The designs: R-6, L-4, D-6
Built of
WoodGoing by its design; no source says so in words.
Height
771 ft (235.0 m)
Elevation
5,595 ft (1,705 m)
Agency
U.S. Forest Service
Land
Federal land
Location
Linn County, Oregon
Coordinates
44.62179, −122.04424
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-or-coffin-mountain

View from the cab

What you see from the cab: every ridge out to about 93 miles, the named peaks in sight, and other fire lookouts within view, worked out from terrain data in your browser.

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Or see what it could see on the map: the ground in its line of sight.

History

Then and now

  1. 1906 BuiltFirst lookout on the summit, a platform (NHLR). The local history site dates a crude pole structure to c.1905, and the Forest Service mentions structures back to 1905.Sources: nhlr.org, fs.usda.gov, oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  2. No record between 1906 and 1921
  3. 1921 Replaced by a new structureD-6 cupola cabin replaced the first lookoutSources: nhlr.org, oregonlookouts.weebly.com, firelookout.com
  4. 1921 StaffedTom Humphreys, a former city mail carrier, took a lookout post; in a reprinted letter he reported snow 25 feet deep within thirty yards of the stationSource: oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  5. 1925 FireLookout reported a fire on private land near the Calapooia RiverSource: oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  6. 1935 EventForest official announced new glass-enclosed stations for Rocky Top and Coffin Mountain in the Detroit district that fallSource: oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  7. 1936 BuiltL-4 ground cabin, 14x14 feet, built after the D-6 cupola cabinSources: nhlr.org, oregonlookouts.weebly.com, firelookout.com
  8. No record between 1936 and 1958
  9. 1958 StaffedNewlywed Reed College students spent the summer on the lookoutSource: oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  10. No record between 1958 and 1984
  11. 1984 Condition assessmentJuly 31, 1984 Register-Guard item: the 1930s CCC-era cabin had extensive deterioration from exposure at 5,771 feet; it had been abandoned for a while with windows removedSource: oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  12. 1984 Built'Built' field on NHLR detail pageSource: NHLR register entry
  13. 1984 Replaced by a new structurePresent R-6 flat-roofed cabin, 15 by 15 feet with a catwalk, completed in 1984Sources: nhlr.org, fs.usda.gov, oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  14. No record between 1984 and 2010
  15. 2010 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered on the National Historic Lookout Register on July 29, 2010Source: nhlr.org
  16. 2018 EventStatesman Journal article profiled a woman who had staffed the lookout for 29 years (as cited by a local lookout site)Source: cherylhill.net
  17. TodayStandingIt still stands, as far as our sources know.

Old maps of this spot

USGS topographic maps from the years a lookout stood may show it, often as a small symbol labelled “Lookout”. See the old topo maps around it on the Firefinder map, or find every scanned sheet of this spot on USGS TopoView (click the spot there to list them, with dates and downloads).

Story

Researched 8 Oct 2026, fact-checked.

Coffin Mountain stands in the Willamette National Forest in Linn County, Oregon.1 The Forest Service says the name comes from the long, coffin-shaped ridge the lookout sits on.2

Lookouts have stood on the summit since the early 1900s, though the sources disagree on the first year. The National Historic Lookout Register says a platform went up in 1906, while a local history site dates a crude pole structure to about 1905.1,3 The Forest Service also points to at least three other lookout structures from as far back as 1905.2 A D-6 cupola cabin replaced that first lookout in 1921.1,4

Newspaper items that the local history site reprints give a glimpse of the early staff.3 In 1921 Tom Humphreys, a former city mail carrier, took a lookout job there, and he later wrote that snow still lay 25 feet deep less than thirty yards from the station.3 A 1925 item said the lookout had reported a fire on private land near the Calapooia River.3

An L-4 ground cabin followed in 1936, about fifteen years after the cupola.1,3,4 A July 1984 Register-Guard item, reprinted on that site, said the cabin had suffered extensive deterioration from weather at 5,771 feet.3 At one stage the lookout was left unused and its windows were taken out.3 The item says the Civilian Conservation Corps built that cabin in the 1930s.3

The replacement, a flat-roofed R-6 cabin with a catwalk, was finished in 1984 and measures 15 by 15 feet.1,3 The sources also disagree on the elevation. The Register gives 5,595 feet, while the Forest Service gives 5,771.1,2

Today the Forest Service lists the lookout as currently staffed by the Detroit Ranger District.2 A field guide adds that summer staffing continues.5 A local lookout site notes that a 2018 Statesman Journal article profiled a woman who had by then staffed it for 29 years.6

The Forest Service describes the hike as somewhat long but easy, passing through an old burn, with views toward Mount Jefferson and Detroit Lake.2 To drive there, head east from Detroit on Highway 22 for about 19.5 miles, then take Forest Road 11 and Forest Road 1168 to the trailhead.2 The Forest Service says its roads are not maintained for snow and ice, and it asks visitors to contact the local ranger station for current conditions.2

  1. Coffin Mountain Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/or/coffin-mountain-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  2. Coffin Mountain Lookout, Willamette National Forest, U.S. Forest Service, https://www.fs.usda.gov/r06/willamette/recreation/coffin-mountain-lookout (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  3. Coffin Mountain - FOREST LOOKOUTS, Forest Lookouts (Oregon), https://oregonlookouts.weebly.com/coffin-mountain.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  4. Coffin Mtn. Fire Lookout Cabin, firelookout.com, https://www.firelookout.com/or/coffinmtn.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  5. Coffin Mountain Lookout, Oregon Hikers Field Guide, https://www.oregonhikers.org/field_guide/Coffin_Mountain_Lookout (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  6. Coffin Mountain – Every Lookout in Oregon, Cheryl Hill, http://cherylhill.net/firelookouts/2011/08/17/coffin-mountain/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩

Photos

Photo of Coffin Mountain Lookout
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Coffin Mtn. 1921-1936
Coffin Mtn. 1921-1936 (1921)Photo: Mark Swift, Bill Meier, and the Fire Lookout Museum, via firelookout.com · source
Coffin Mtn. in 1958
Coffin Mtn. in 1958 (1958)Photo: Mark Swift, Bill Meier, and the Fire Lookout Museum, via firelookout.com · source
Coffin Mtn. in 1976
Coffin Mtn. in 1976 (1976)Photo: Mark Swift, Bill Meier, and the Fire Lookout Museum, via firelookout.com · source
Coffin Mtn. in 1982
Coffin Mtn. in 1982 (1982)Photo: Mark Swift, Bill Meier, and the Fire Lookout Museum, via firelookout.com · source
Coffin Mtn. in 1984
Coffin Mtn. in 1984 (1984)Photo: Mark Swift, Bill Meier, and the Fire Lookout Museum, via firelookout.com · source

Photos keep their own rights and are shown with credit. Is one of these yours? You can ask for a different credit or for removal.

Where sources disagree

We show disagreements between sources instead of quietly picking one. If you know which is right, please tell us.

  • Sources disagree on the year it was built.

    • NHLR: 1984
    • firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page: 1906
    • Every Lookout in Oregon (Cheryl Hill): 1984

    Sources give different build years. Often one counts the first lookout on the site and another the structure there now.

Sources

  1. National Historic Lookout Register (NHLR) Gave us: name, location, county, elevation, register numbers, agency, ownership, dates, photos, links National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved (American Resources, Inc.); facts extracted only, no prose copied. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  2. Forest Fire Lookout Association (FFLA) - US lookout lists Gave us: type, status, register numbers, links Forest Fire Lookout Association (firelookout.org) · No licence stated; facts extracted only, no prose copied. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  3. firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page Gave us: what it is built of, design, photos, links firelookout.com · No licence stated on the site; facts only (coordinates, elevation, built/destroyed years, design, agency). Photos mirrored with the site's stated credit. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  4. FOREST LOOKOUTS -- western US (Ron Kemnow's weebly sites) Gave us: height, links Ron Kemnow's Forest Lookouts sites (westlookouts, californialookouts, idaholookouts, montanalookouts, oregonlookouts and washingtonlookouts .weebly.com) · No licence stated; facts only (county, land manager, status word, coordinates where the page's own map widget gives them, township-range-section, height and design hints, links). The site's own newspaper quotes, citations and narrative are not reproduced. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  5. Every Lookout in Oregon (Cheryl Hill) Gave us: register numbers, links Every Lookout in Oregon (Cheryl Hill, cherylhill.net) · No licence stated; facts only (name, agency, elevation, year built, design and height, status word, links). Posts' narrative and photos are not reproduced. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  6. Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, status, agency, access, staffing, visiting details, dates, links, fact-check Firefinder research (sources cited in the story footnotes) · Our own research notes; each fact cites its source in the lookout's story

More about this lookout elsewhere

Firefinder takes facts (places, dates, numbers) from these sources and writes its own words. See all sources and licences.