FirefinderFire lookouts of the US

Fire lookout · Oneida County, Wisconsin

Lake Tomahawk Lookout

100-foot Wisconsin standard tower built September 1939 in Oneida County; listed as standing, long out of service, with no access record found.

Visit & stay

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

Access

Access unknown

We do not know the access rules. Check with the land manager before you go.

Can you climb it?
Unknown
Road to the top?
Unknown
Staffing
Unknown

Facts

Status
Standing
Type
Cab on a towerWisconsin standard tower with an external protected ladderThe design: Wisconsin standard tower
Built of
SteelGoing by its design; no source says so in words.
Built
1939
Height
100 ft (30.5 m)
Elevation
1,735 ft (529 m)
Agency
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Land
Unknown
Location
Oneida County, Wisconsin
Coordinates
45.83564, −89.61029
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-wi-lake-tomahawk

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 4.3 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. 1939 BuiltBuilt September 1939 per the NHLR detail page; originally called Tomahawk Lake LookoutSource: nhlr.org
  2. No record between 1939 and 2017
  3. 2017 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered August 28, 2017; NHLR US 1245, WI 40Source: nhlr.org
  4. 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 9 Oct 2026, fact-checked.

The Lake Tomahawk Lookout is in Oneida County, Wisconsin, at an elevation of 1,735 feet (529 m).1 The National Historic Lookout Register describes a 100-foot Wisconsin standard tower with an external protected ladder, built in September 1939.1 The register notes that the tower was originally called Tomahawk Lake Lookout.1

According to a WJFW feature, Civilian Conservation Corps workers erected many of the towers that survive in Wisconsin during the 1930s.2 The sources I read do not say who built this one.

The register lists the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources as administrator.1 The register says the tower never received a cable fall-arrest system like those on other DNR ladder towers, and that it has not seen active service in decades.1 Roof damage is visible from the ground: the register describes a large hole, and one cab floorboard is missing.1

In 2015 the 72 towers still in use were decommissioned, according to the WJFW feature.2 The sources I read do not say whether this tower was one of them.

Orange paint covers alternating sections of the frame and cab.1 The register thinks the paint likely identifies the tower as an aviation hazard, because a private airfield is about half a mile away.1

The Forest Fire Lookout Association lists the tower as standing.3 I found no source saying whether the public may visit or climb it. Given the damage the register describes, do not climb it, and ask the DNR before visiting.1

  1. Lake Tomahawk Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/wi/lake-tomahawk-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
  2. Connecting the dots: the fire towers of Wisconsin, WJFW, https://www.wjfw.com/news/connecting-the-dots-the-fire-towers-of-wisconsin/article_fd447056-4b4e-11ed-b245-cf384385e71f.html (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
  3. Wisconsin Lookouts, Forest Fire Lookout Association, https://firelookout.org/lookouts/us/wi/ (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩

Photos

Photo of Lake Tomahawk Lookout
Photo: Tyler Bormann, via 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, 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. OpenStreetMap -- fire lookout structures Gave us: links © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL 1.0. (c) OpenStreetMap contributors. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  4. Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, height, status, agency, 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.