Life in a fire lookout tower demanded more than detecting fire, requiring people called lookouts to endure confinement, sparse furnishings, long hours, and dangerous weather. During storms, lightning could strike the cabin, and the lookout sought safety atop a glass-legged stool, whose glass insulated the person from electricity that sizzled throughout the cabin. This restored lookout tower stood on Johnstone Peak in Angeles National Forest from 1934 to 1992. Long before lightning detectors and satellites, the fire finder was the most important tool in the tower, using a compass, vertical sights, tape measure, and map to help plot the exact location of a fire.

Photo: Craig Baker

Photo: Craig Baker

Photo: Craig Baker

Photo: Craig Baker

Photo: Craig Baker

Photo: Craig Baker

San Dimas, California · USA