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Fire lookout · Josephine County, Oregon

Sexton Mountain Lookout

Also known as Sexton Mountain (Aka Crony Mtn), Sexton Mt.

Steel lookout on Sexton Mountain, Josephine County, Oregon; the 2006 vandal-destroyed tower was replaced in 2007, and it is fenced and unmanned by 2021.

Visit & stay

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

Access

Restricted access

Access is seasonal, gated or needs a permit. Check before you go. Summit road is gated; the tower is fenced and the 2021 visitor found no way to gain access. No reopening found.

Can you climb it?
No
Road to the top?
No, you have to hike
Trail
About 5.3 miles of spur road to a gate, then about 0.8 mile on foot to the summit (2021 visit); the tower is fenced
Staffing
Unknown

Facts

Status
Standing
Type
Cab on a towerFlat-roof cab on a 40-foot steel tower, built 2007; an older D-6 cupola cabin from 1921 still stands on the summitThe design: D-6
Built of
Wood sources disagree
Height
40 ft (12.2 m)
Elevation
3,798 ft (1,158 m)
Agency
Oregon Department of Forestry
Land
Unknown
Location
Josephine County, Oregon
Coordinates
42.60012, −123.36535
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-or-sexton-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.

Downloads about 3.5 MB of terrain data the first time.

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

History

Then and now

  1. 1914 BuiltFirst lookout on the summit was a tent, per the registerSource: nhlr.org
  2. 1919 BuiltGrants Pass newspaper item mentions a newly completed lookout station on Mt. SextonSource: oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  3. 1921 BuiltCupola cab ground house, per the registerSource: nhlr.org
  4. 1921 FireFire near Galice, about 30 acres, reported by the Sexton Mountain lookoutSource: oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  5. 1930 StaffedMr. and Mrs. Nealy in charge of the lookout for the season (June 1930 item)Source: oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  6. 1932 BuiltWeather station with cupola built on the summit; the cupola was meant for a state lookoutSources: nhlr.org, oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  7. No record between 1932 and 1962
  8. 1962 Replaced by a new structure30-foot tower with lookout cab; the register gives 1963Sources: nhlr.org, oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  9. No record between 1962 and 2006
  10. 2006 DestroyedVandals destroyed the lookout and three ODF repeater antennas on the night of April 1, 2006Sources: nhlr.org, oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  11. 2007 Condition assessmentJoint survey with ODF on moving the 1921 D-6 cupola cabin to the Tillamook Forestry CenterSource: firelookout.org
  12. 2007 Built'Built' field on NHLR detail pageSource: NHLR register entry
  13. 2007 Replaced by a new structureFlat-roof cab on a 40-foot steel tower; completed October 2007 and in service for the 2008 fire seasonSources: nhlr.org, oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  14. 2008 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered June 18, 2008 as US 741, OR 113; nominated by Howard VerschoorSource: nhlr.org
  15. 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.

Sexton Mountain Lookout sits on a summit in Josephine County, Oregon, at about 3,800 feet.1 The register says the Oregon Department of Forestry first used the peak with a tent in 1914, followed by a cupola cabin in 1921.1 A Grants Pass newspaper item from 1919 already mentions a newly finished lookout station on Mt. Sexton, so the early dates do not line up neatly.2

A 1921 fire near Galice, reported by the Sexton Mountain lookout, covered about 30 acres before it was put under control.2 In June 1930, Mr. and Mrs. Nealy were in charge of the station for the season.2

In 1932 a weather station with a cupola on its roof went up on the summit.1,2 The cupola was to be used by the state forestry department as a lookout, but a March 1932 item said an investigation had found construction errors that would make it almost impossible to mount a fire finder within the tower.2 A 30-foot tower with a lookout cab took its place in 1962 or 1963, and the sources disagree on the year.1,2

On the night of April 1, 2006, vandals destroyed the historic lookout and three Oregon Department of Forestry repeater antennas.2 The register also says vandals burned it that year.1 In 2007 a 40-foot steel tower, topped by a flat-roofed cab, replaced it.1 The Forest Lookouts history page dates the completion of that steel tower to October 2007, with service beginning in the 2008 fire season.2 A 2007 Oregon chapter report also mentions a joint survey with the Forestry department on moving the 1921 D-6 cupola cabin to the Tillamook Forestry Center.3

The register lists the Oregon Department of Forestry as the administering agency.1 A 2021 visitor described the lookout as unmanned and said it did not appear to be in regular use.4 The road to the summit is gated, and the visitor drove 5.3 miles to the gate before walking about 0.8 mile to the top.4 A fence surrounds the tower, and the visitor found no way to gain access.4 An older D-6 cupola cabin still stands on the site, though its cupola is gone.4 No source describes a reopening, so please do not try to climb the fenced tower, and check with the Oregon Department of Forestry before planning a visit.

  1. Sexton Mountain Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org), http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/or/sexton-mountain-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  2. Sexton Mountain, Oregon lookouts history (Forest Lookouts, oregonlookouts.weebly.com), https://oregonlookouts.weebly.com/sexton-mountain.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  3. Oregon Chapter Report 2007, Forest Fire Lookout Association, https://firelookout.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/cr-or-2007.pdf (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  4. Sexton Mountain, Every Lookout in Oregon (cherylhill.net), https://cherylhill.net/firelookouts/2021/07/07/sexton-mountain/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩

Photos

Photo of Sexton Mountain Lookout
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Photo of Sexton Mountain Lookout
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Sexton Mtn. L.O.
Sexton Mtn. L.OPhoto: the Fire Lookout Museum, Howard Verschoor collection, and Dominic Luebbers, via firelookout.com · source
Sexton Mtn. in 1960
Sexton Mtn. in 1960 (1960)Photo: the Fire Lookout Museum, Howard Verschoor collection, and Dominic Luebbers, via firelookout.com · source
Sexton Mtn. cupola cabin
Sexton Mtn. cupola cabinPhoto: the Fire Lookout Museum, Howard Verschoor collection, and Dominic Luebbers, via firelookout.com · source
Sexton Mtn. L.O.
Sexton Mtn. L.OPhoto: the Fire Lookout Museum, Howard Verschoor collection, and Dominic Luebbers, via firelookout.com · source
Sexton Mtn. L.O.
Sexton Mtn. L.OPhoto: the Fire Lookout Museum, Howard Verschoor collection, and Dominic Luebbers, via firelookout.com · source
Sexton Mtn. in 2007
Sexton Mtn. in 2007 (2007)Photo: the Fire Lookout Museum, Howard Verschoor collection, and Dominic Luebbers, 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: 2007
    • firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page: 1920
    • Every Lookout in Oregon (Cheryl Hill): 2006
    • Forest Fire Lookout Association chapter reports: 1921

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

  • Sources disagree on what it is built of.

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

    Sources name different materials. Often one describes an earlier structure.

Sources

  1. National Historic Lookout Register (NHLR) Gave us: name, location, county, elevation, register numbers, agency, 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, 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 Fire Lookout Association chapter reports Gave us: design, dates, links Forest Fire Lookout Association, chapter and restoration-grant reports (firelookout.org) · No licence stated; facts only (dates, names, the kind of work done). Every note is our own wording and every event links to the FFLA report it comes from. Positions are copied from the NHLR, FFLOS and FFLA records. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  5. 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
  6. Every Lookout in Oregon (Cheryl Hill) Gave us: 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
  7. Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, height, status, agency, access, 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.