{"nrhp_refnum":"06001145","name":"Hurricane Mountain Fire Observation Station","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"Hurricane Mountain Summit","address_restricted":false,"city":"Keene","county":"Essex County","state":"NY","lat":44.19613304400005,"lon":-73.70808758036222,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2007-01-29","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Entertainment/Recreation","Conservation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A steel fire lookout tower, built in 1919, on the 3,694-foot summit of Hurricane Mountain in the Adirondack Forest Preserve, town of Keene, Essex County, New York. The nominated area also includes two trails and the ruins of the observer's cabin site.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the station is significant under Criteria A and C for its association with the New York State Forest Preserve's fire protection system and as a representative example of an early 20th century fire observation tower. It is a typical 'heavier type' Aermotor steel tower with integral staircase, one of 13 erected in the state in 1919. Only the Hurricane and Owl's Head towers from that group remain on their original sites under state ownership.","narrative":"Atop the open rock summit of Hurricane Mountain in Keene, Essex County, a 1919 steel fire tower looks out over the High Peaks, the Champlain Valley and Vermont's Green Mountains. Fabricated by the Aermotor Company, it is a 'heavier type' tower with steel stairs and a glass cab, one of 13 erected by the state that year. The nominated area also takes in two trails to the summit and the ruins of the observer's cabin. A lookout station had operated on the summit since 1910, after serious fires in the region, and observers watched for smoke from the cliffs before the tower was built. The state closed the tower in 1973 once aircraft took over surveillance. Later plans to remove it drew petitions and public protest. It was listed for its link to the Forest Preserve's fire protection system and as a representative early twentieth-century observation tower. Stair treads, windows and part of the roof are missing, but the steel frame is largely intact.","period_of_significance":"1919 - 1956","architect_builder":"AerMotor Company (manufacturer)","architectural_style":"NO STYLE/Utilitarian (fire tower)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Listed as not in use. The state closed the tower in 1973; it is largely intact but has missing stair treads, windows and part of the cab roof, and the observer's cabin was removed in 1985, leaving only ruins.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:53.425527-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/06001145.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/06001145/57d26f0ae7-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/06001145/57d26f0ae7-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Mwanner","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hurricane_Mountain_fire_tower.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Mwanner</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hurricane_Mountain_fire_tower.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75312894","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Mountain_Fire_Observation_Station","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5948116"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/essex-county/hurricane-mountain-fire-observation-station-06001145/"}