This butte was first called Pyramid Peak. It was named Steptoe for a commander in the Indian wars at a battle in 1858 near the present town of Rosalia. In the 1880s James S. Davis built a resort and observatory on the butte’s top, where a powerful telescope stood on the roof. He was called Cashup Davis because he bought only with cash, and the town of Cashup was named for him. After Davis’ death the hotel was lost by fire. In 1945 Virgil T. McCroskey donated the land to form Steptoe State Park. A road winds to the summit and a panoramic view of the Palouse Country.