Schonchin Butte is a

cinder cone A cinder cone (or scoria cone) is a steep conical hill of loose pyroclastic fragments, such as volcanic clinkers, volcanic ash, or scoria that has been built around a volcanic vent. The pyroclastic fragments are formed by explosive eruptions o ...

on the northern flank of

Medicine Lake Volcano Medicine Lake Volcano is a large shield volcano in northeastern California about northeast of Mount Shasta. The volcano is located in a zone of east-west crustal extension east of the main axis of the Cascade Volcanoes, Cascade Volcanic Arc ...

in the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...

in northern

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. Frothy lava, cooled in the air, created the large cinder cones throughout

Lava Beds National Monument Lava Beds National Monument is located in northeastern California, in Siskiyou and Modoc counties. The monument lies on the northeastern flank of Medicine Lake Volcano and has the largest total area covered by a volcano in the Cascade Range. ...

. It is named for Old Schonchin, a chief of the

Modoc people The Modoc are a Native American people who originally lived in the area which is now northeastern California and central Southern Oregon. They are currently divided between Oregon and Oklahoma and are enrolled in either of two federally recogni ...

during the late nineteenth century. Erupting more than 30,000 years ago, the volcano spewed ash and cinders into the air much like a can of soda when shaken. A lava spatter rampart is at the very top. The butte's trail leads to a panoramic view from the historic fire lookout. From the lookout panoramic views of the Medicine Lake Volcano,

Mount Shasta Mount Shasta ( Shasta: ''Waka-nunee-Tuki-wuki''; Karuk: ''Úytaahkoo'') is a potentially active volcano at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. At an elevation of , it is the second-highest peak in the Cascades ...

Mount McLoughlin Mount McLoughlin is a dormant steep-sided stratovolcano, or composite volcano, in the Cascade Range of southern Oregon and within the United States Sky Lakes Wilderness. It is one of the volcanic peaks in the Cascade Volcanic Arc, within the Hi ...

, the

Clear Lake Hills The Clear Lake Hills are a mountain range in Modoc County, California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the ...

and the

Warner Mountains The Warner Mountains are an -long mountain range running north–south through northeastern California and extending into southern Oregon in the United States. The range lies within the northwestern corner of the Basin and Range Province, exte ...

can be seen. On a really clear day, the south rim of

Crater Lake Crater Lake (Klamath language, Klamath: ''Giiwas'') is a volcanic crater lake in south-central Oregon in the western United States. It is the main feature of Crater Lake National Park and is famous for its deep blue color and water clarity. The ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

is visible.

Fire lookout

The Schonchin Butte Fire Lookout is a

fire lookout tower A fire lookout tower, fire tower or lookout tower, provides housing and protection for a person known as a "fire lookout" whose duty it is to search for wildfires in the wilderness. It is a small building, usually on the summit of a mountain or ...

on Schonchin Butte, a

. The

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

built a fire lookout at Schonchin Butte during the summers of 1939 and 1940, as part of federal infrastructure development under the President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

administration during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. The site was selected for its view of Lava Beds National Monument, while the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...

wanted a lookout constructed on Hippo Butte, probably because of its view of the

Modoc National Forest Modoc National Forest is a U.S. national forest in Northeastern California. Geography The Modoc National Forest protects parts of Modoc (82.9% of acreage), Lassen (9.4%), and Siskiyou (7.7%) counties. Most of the forest was covered by immen ...

. The CCC crew manually carried all materials to the building site after constructing the trail. Roger Reid was the first to staff the lookout in 1941. The 1942 date on the doorstep of the lookout represents when it was installed, not when the lookout was built, or first staffed. The lookout has changed over the years, but its general appearance and structure have remained relatively unchanged. Linoleum, not carpet, used to cover the building's floor, and the furnishings were stained while trim was painted. Early lookouts used a radio phone, and a regular telephone was not installed for several decades. Many original items remain: the

Osborne Fire Finder The Osborne Fire Finder is a type of alidade used by fire lookouts to find a directional bearing (azimuth) to smoke in order to alert fire crews to a wildland fire. History and development The forerunner to the device was invented around 1840 by S ...

and its stand, the sink, and the insulated stool which lookouts use during thunderstorms. Through the 1980s, rangers staffed the lookout for extended periods. They used gas for light and cooking, but electricity replaced gas in the 1950s when the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

constructed a power line that ascended the cinder cone's east slope. The National Park Service removed the line in the mid-1980s when electric lines were buried along the Monument's main road. Solar panels now power a repeater, radio, and small lights. Maintenance has been done piecemeal from the building's creation through the 1990s. By 1992, the building, placed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

, showed signs of its age. In 1993, the Park Service received about $50,000 to restore the lookout. During June and July 1994, maintenance workers stripped the inside of paint and bad sheetrock. They removed old fixtures and a gas stove from the main level and various junk from the basement. The refrigerator was moved to the basement. Helicopters brought dirt and rock for the trail. Workers drained the cistern in the basement and installed new carpets and light fixtures capable of using electricity generated by solar panels. Schonchin Butte is staffed approximately from May to September from about 10 A.M. to 6 P.M., but park rangers stay longer in cases of extreme fire danger, fire activity, or significant lightning activity. Lookouts no longer live in the building and carry up daily supplies on their backs. The lack of electricity and cooking equipment also limit a lookout's tour of duty. Schonchin Butte appears as a topic in the American Park Network publication ''Oh, Ranger!''. The chapter "The Lookout Tower" describes Schonchin Butte and chronicles two storms atop the lookout. It was listed on the

in 2017. The lookout and the trail leading up to it were built by the

during 1939 to 1941. It is an active fire lookout tower, used during fire seasons.

References

External links

* {{National Register of Historic Places National Register of Historic Places in Siskiyou County, California Buildings and structures completed in 1941 Cascade Range Cinder cones of the United States Subduction volcanoes Cascade Volcanoes Volcanoes of Siskiyou County, California Volcanoes of California Lava Beds National Monument