Speaker Program: Archeology: Lolo Lookout Restoration

November 16, 7 PM, The Hamilton House, Victor
Following the Great Burn of 1910, over 800 fire detection lookouts were constructed on
high mountain peaks across the Northern Rockies of Montana and Idaho. By the 1960s, due to
the advent of aerial detection and firefighting, most of these lookouts were intentionally
destroyed.
Sydney Bacon has been an archeologist on the Lolo National Forest for over twenty-five
years. She was hired by the Forest Service as she earned her Master’s Degree in Forensic
Anthropology at UM, and has maintained an office at Fort Missoula ever since. During that time
she has organized several projects restoring the remaining historic fire lookouts to their original
condition, most notably the Skookum Butte Lookout. Perched on an outcrop of Idaho Batholith
granite on the Montana/Idaho divide above Highway 12, it was built in 1928 and named for
Skookum Bill Woodman, an early trapper in the area. Staffed and maintained continuously until
the early 1970s, it gradually fell into disrepair over the next forty years.
Sydney led groups of volunteers over a multi-year restoration project of Skookum Butte
Lookout. They used all original materials and techniques, including fresh cedar shingles on its
gable roof, and identically manufactured metal hardware. Rotten logs were replaced with newly
peeled logs, hauled onto the butte with much difficulty using manpowered block and tackle. The
project was completed in 2022 and is now available for overnight rental.
Come hear her dynamic and entertaining presentation that documents the philosophy and
restoration of fire lookouts throughout the Rockies at The Hamilton House, in Victor, at 7 PM on
November 16. Come early and enjoy dinner with BBA Board members and friends.
(Full disclosure: Sydney is the daughter of BBA Board Member Skip Horner.)