Kentucky Residents Raise Money to Rebuild 1934 Fire Tower
By Margaret Foster | Online Only | Oct. 29, 2009
The Tater Knob Lookout Tower after an arson fire in December 2008
Credit: USDA Forest Service
An Appalachian community in Kentucky is slowly raising money to rebuild its 1934 fire tower, which has been closed since an arson fire on Dec. 3, 2008.
Rising 35 feet high, the Tater Knob Fire Tower in the Daniel Boone National Forest was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps and operated until the 1970s. In 1993, most of the wood structure was reinforced with metal. Today warped metal is all that's left of the upper structure, or cab.
"The main structural components of the tower [are] intact. The cab is heavily damaged," says Danny Blevins, director of the Kentucky chapter of the Forest Fire Lookout Association.
A grassroots group formed last year to resurrect the beloved Tater Knob Lookout Tower.
Much of the wood tower was replaced in 1993.
Credit: Danny Blevins
"It's been a rite of passage to go up there," says Landon Dickerson, who organized a fundraiser for the tower. "My dad brought me there. It's pretty much like someone coming to my back yard and burning down my playhouse. … [The view from the tower] is majestic; it's beautiful."
About 300 people attended a concert on Oct. 10 (sponsored by the Morehead Tourism Commission), donating about $1,000, according to Dickerson. So far the community has raised about $2,000. Dickerson hopes to raise between $3,000 and $5,000 to fully restore the tower.
Fans of the tower may be able to climb its 263 steps again next year. Dickerson says construction of its wood floor will begin this spring.
"We're talking about rebuilding the floor of the structure just so we can get it open to the public, and then, later on this summer, rebuilding the entire cab," Dickerson says.
The U.S. Forest Service is offering a $2,500 reward for information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the arson case.
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Comments
Submitted by Tower Climber at: February 27, 2011
A Facebook Group on this... http://www.topix.com/forum/city/salt-lick-ky/TAQQ532QAI6VREUT2