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Fire lookout · Jefferson County, Oregon

Stephenson Mountain Lookout

Jefferson County, OR three-story enclosed tower (1963) on Stephenson Mountain; Forest Service staffed; destroyed by the Box Springs Fire on July 20, 2026.

Private land

No public access. Please do not trespass; view it only from public land. Cheryl Hill and firelookout.com say private land with no public access; NHLR says ODF land transferred to the Ochoco National Forest in the late 1980s. Sources disagree.

Gone: The lookout no longer stands. Only the site is left. Destroyed by the Box Springs Fire on July 20, 2026, per ODF statement and the Register; no source describes what remains on the site

Visit & stay

Gone: site only. The lookout no longer stands, so there is nothing to climb or rent.

Access

Private land. See the warning at the top of this page.

Road to the top?
Unknown
Trail
Tower destroyed in 2026; no source describes a public route to the site

Facts

Status
Gone sources disagree
Type
Three-story buildingEnclosed three-story wooden tower (NHLR: ODF modified L-4; Oregon Lookouts: Amort Special)The design: L-4
Built of
WoodGoing by its design; no source says so in words.
Built
1931
Height
Unknown
Elevation
5,788 ft (1,764 m)
Agency
Oregon Department of Forestry; Ochoco National Forest (U.S. Forest Service) from the late 1980s
Land
Federal land
Location
Jefferson County, Oregon
Coordinates
44.58235, −120.45198 sources disagree
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 9 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-or-stephenson-mountain

View from the cab

What the lookout saw from its 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.

This lookout is gone. The view is reconstructed from its recorded site and a typical height for a lookout like it.

Downloads about 3.8 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. 1931 BuiltFirst lookout on the site, a tree platform, per NHLR and Central Oregon Daily; firelookout.com dates a crow's nest to the mid-1920sSources: nhlr.org, centraloregondaily.com
  2. 1934 Replaced by a new structureTree platform replaced by a 60-foot wooden tower with a ground houseSources: nhlr.org, firelookout.com, centraloregondaily.com
  3. No record between 1934 and 1963
  4. 1963 BuiltCurrent three-story enclosed tower; firelookout.com gives 1962 to 1963 and Oregon Lookouts dates the work from 1962Sources: nhlr.org, firelookout.com, oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  5. 1977 StaffedManned full time for the first time in four years, with joint BLM, Ochoco National Forest and state fundingSource: oregonlookouts.weebly.com
  6. No record between 1977 and 2006
  7. 2006 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered March 15, 2006 as US 659, OR 110Source: nhlr.org
  8. No record between 2006 and 2026
  9. 2026 BurnedStructure destroyed; communication towers and a radio repeater at the site were lost or affectedSources: nhlr.org, centraloregondaily.com, newsbreak.com
  10. 2026 FireBox Springs Fire reached the site at about 4 a.m. on July 20Sources: nhlr.org, centraloregondaily.com
  11. TodayGoneThe lookout no longer stands. Only the site is left.

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 9 Oct 2026, fact-checked.

The Stephenson Mountain Lookout stood in Jefferson County, Oregon, about 17 miles west of Mitchell.1,2 The National Historic Lookout Register lists it as US 659, OR 110 and says it was registered on March 15, 2006.1

Sources disagree about the first lookout on the peak. The Register and the Central Oregon Daily both describe a tree platform built in 1931 and replaced in 1934 with a wooden tower and ground house, which the Register gives as 60 feet tall.1,3 Firelookout.com instead dates a crow's nest to the mid-1920s, with a ground cabin added in 1929.2 Older reports spell the name Stevenson, and a 1925 notice announced a new lookout point on Stephenson Mountain.4

The current tower is a three-story enclosed design.1,4 The Register gives 1963 as its build year and calls it an ODF modified L-4 on an enclosed wooden tower.1 Oregon Lookouts describes work that began in 1962 on an Amort Special, a three-story enclosed lookout house, and says it was finished in May and June 1963.4 Firelookout.com gives 1962 to 1963 and places it about three-quarters of a mile west of the earlier tower.2 The two design names conflict, and we could not settle them.

The Forest Service staffed the lookout.2 The Register says the site was Oregon Department of Forestry land until the late 1980s, when it was transferred to the Ochoco National Forest, where Forest Service personnel kept up staffing and seasonal care.1 In 1977 the lookout was manned full time for the first time in four years, with joint funding from the BLM, the Ochoco National Forest and the state forestry department.4

On July 20, 2026, the Box Springs Fire reached the lookout at about 4 a.m.1,3 Crews had put retardant around the site beforehand.1 The Oregon Department of Forestry said heavy ember cast and flame exposure overwhelmed the structure anyway.3 Cheryl Hill names the Rowe Creek Complex as the fire that claimed it, where ODF and the Register name the Box Springs Fire.1,3,5 She also reports that the lookout was still staffed and that the person on duty left as the fire closed in.5 KATU reported that a radio repeater at the site was also lost.6

The structure is gone.5 The Register and the Central Oregon Daily both say the site's communication towers were affected.1,3 We found no source that describes what, if anything, remains on the site today. Cheryl Hill and firelookout.com call it private land with no public access, while the Register describes Oregon Department of Forestry land that later went to the national forest.5,2,1 Given the burn and the unclear access, nobody should try to reach the site.

  1. Stephenson Mountain Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/or/stephenson-mountain-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
  2. Stevenson Mtn. Fire Lookout Tower, firelookout.com, https://www.firelookout.com/or/stephenson.html (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
  3. Historic fire lookout burns down due to Box Springs fire, Central Oregon Daily News, https://www.centraloregondaily.com/news/wildfires/historic-fire-lookout-burns-down/article_fc62e637-91d1-4595-b80f-691bcc618bc2.html (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
  4. Stephenson Mountain, Oregon Lookouts, https://oregonlookouts.weebly.com/stephenson-mountain.html (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
  5. Stephenson Mountain Lookout Has Burned, Every Lookout in Oregon, https://cherylhill.net/firelookouts/2026/07/20/stephenson-mountain-lookout-has-burned/ (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
  6. Stephenson Mountain Lookout burned over in Box Springs Fire; radio repeater also lost, KATU via NewsBreak, https://www.newsbreak.com/news/4783459755730-stephenson-mountain-lookout-burned-over-in-box-springs-fire-radio-repeater-also-lost (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩

Photos

Photo of Stephenson Mountain Lookout
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Stephenson Lookout on July 21, 2026
Stephenson Lookout on July 21, 2026 (2026)Photo: US Forest Service Employee, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Stephenson Lookout during the Box Springs Fire
Stephenson Lookout during the Box Springs FirePhoto: Oregon Department of Forestry, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Lookout prior to the Box Springs Fire.
Lookout prior to the Box Springs FirePhoto: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · 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 location by 4.0 km (2.5 mi).

    • NHLR: 44.58235, −120.45198
    • FFLA: 44.58987, −120.50164
    • firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page: 44.58987, −120.50164

    They share a register number.

    The map uses the position from NHLR.

  • Sources disagree on whether it still stands.

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

    NHLR lists lookouts that were standing when registered. firelookout.com lists it, but not on its map of standing lookouts.

Sources

  1. National Historic Lookout Register (NHLR) Gave us: name, location, county, elevation, what it is built of, 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, dates, 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: 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: ownership, 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: 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, 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.