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Fire lookout · Roane County, Tennessee

Mt. Roosevelt Fire Tower

Also known as Rockwood (mt. roosevelt)

Standing fire tower on Mt. Roosevelt in Roane County, Tennessee; abandoned by the state in the mid-1980s, starred since the late 1990s, and fenced off from climbers.

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. Tower is fenced off from the public and the state wildlife agency says not to climb it; the overlook beside it is the public access point

Can you climb it?
No
Road to the top?
Yes, you can drive up
Trail
Register gives 1.4 miles of paved road off US 70 to the Mt Roosevelt Scenic Lookout; the overlook has a small parking area and observation platforms
Staffing
Unknown

Facts

Status
Standing
Type
Cab on a towerFive landing International Derrick and Equipment Company towerThe design: IDECO
Built of
SteelGoing by its design; no source says so in words.
Built
1933
Height
Unknown
Elevation
2,039 ft (622 m)
Agency
State of Tennessee per NHLR; Tennessee Division of Forestry per Forest Lookouts
Land
Unknown
Location
Roane County, Tennessee
Coordinates
35.86656, −84.71443
Registers
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-tn-mt-roosevelt

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 3.2 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. 1933 BuiltRegister gives between 1933 and 1937; a Tumblr post says 1932 by the CCC, and the city says the tower is about 92 years oldSources: nhlr.org, tumblr.com, rockwoodforesttrails.com
  2. No record between 1933 and 1985
  3. 1985 AbandonedAbandoned by the state forestry division in the mid-1980sSources: nhlr.org, rockwoodforesttrails.com
  4. 1998 Altered25-foot star placed at the top: late 1990s by Rockwood Electric per the Register; around 1998 per the citySources: nhlr.org, rockwoodforesttrails.com
  5. No record between 1998 and 2026
  6. 2026 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered September 22, 2026Source: nhlr.org
  7. 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.

The Mt. Roosevelt Fire Tower stands in Roane County, Tennessee.1 The state wildlife agency says its Roosevelt Mountain wildlife area virtually surrounds the town of Rockwood.2 The National Historic Lookout Register dates its construction to between 1933 and 1937 and describes a five-landing International Derrick and Equipment Company tower.1 A Tumblr post says the Civilian Conservation Corps built it in 1932, but the post names no source for that date.3 The city of Rockwood says the tower is about 92 years old, which fits the Register's range better than the 1932 date.4

The Forest Lookouts site lists the tower under the Tennessee Division of Forestry.5 The Register lists the State of Tennessee as administrator but notes that several agencies deny ownership, so the record does not settle who controls the site.1 I found no source that names the lookout's staff or the fires it watched, so its working years are poorly documented.

The forestry division abandoned the tower in the mid-1980s, according to the city.4 Around 1998 a 25-foot star went up at the top.4 It is lit each November and December, and most people simply call the tower "Star."4 The Register dates the star to the late 1990s and credits Rockwood Electric with placing it.1

Today the wildlife agency says the tower is fenced off from the public and should not be climbed.2 The Register notes that numerous people still climb it, dangerously, and that the steps have rotted out.1 The city calls the tower structurally sound, says the rotten steps could be replaced with galvanized, slip-resistant ones, and has asked the state to donate the Star to Rockwood.4 The statewide inventory lists the tower as standing.6 The Register gives the drive as 1.4 miles of paved road off US 70.1 The wildlife agency calls the overlook the best and easiest access point.2

  1. Mt. Roosevelt Fire Tower, National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org), http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/tn/mt-roosevelt-fire-tower/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  2. Mount Roosevelt WMA, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, https://www.tn.gov/twra/wildlife-management-areas/cumberland-plateau-r3/mount-roosevelt-wma.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  3. Post by moosenotgoose on the Rockwood Fire Tower, Tumblr, https://www.tumblr.com/moosenotgoose/150760875502/now-abandoned-the-rockwood-fire-tower-stands-at (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  4. Rockwood Forest Trails, City of Rockwood, TN, https://rockwoodforesttrails.com/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  5. Rockwood (Mt Roosevelt), Forest Lookouts, https://easternuslookouts.weebly.com/rockwood-mt-roosevelt.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  6. Tennessee lookout towers, tnlandforms.us, https://tnlandforms.us/towers/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩

Photos

Photo of Mt. Roosevelt Fire Tower
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Photo of Mt. Roosevelt Fire Tower
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source

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Sources

  1. National Historic Lookout Register (NHLR) Gave us: name, location, county, elevation, what it is built of, status, 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. tnlandforms.us fire lookout towers (Tom Dunigan) -- GA, NC, TN Gave us: type, register numbers, links tnlandforms.us (Tom Dunigan) · No licence stated; facts only (coordinates, county, elevation, NGS/GFC/BLL register cross-references, status where given). · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  3. FOREST LOOKOUTS -- eastern US (easternuslookouts.weebly.com) Gave us: links easternuslookouts.weebly.com · No licence stated; facts only (county, coordinates where the page's own map widget gives them, status, height, design hints, register links). The site's own historical quotes, newspaper citations and narrative are not reproduced. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  4. 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.