Skyline

Information for Skyline tower

Names: Skyline

Location: Jackson-Washington State Forest, originally Jackson County State Forest or Jackson State Forest

County: Jackson

Topo quad: Vallonia

Condition: Standing, climbable up into cab

Subjective: Great tower. Good views in a couple directions but not all directions. The drive up to the tower is a little nerve-wracking because the road is well-paved but not very wide. You can park very near the tower; you don’t have to park at the tower trailhead to the east.

Maps of Skyline tower

There are two tower sites in Jackson-Washington State Forest. Skyline is the normal metal fire tower that still stands. Long ago, there was a wooden observation tower at a different location in the eastern part of the forest.

Maps of the current Skyline tower site

Above: Vallonia topo quad, 1959. (I think the word Miller on this topo is just the name of a nearby mark named after an orchard owned by a Miller, and has little to do with the tower.)

Above: detail of the Indiana Geological & Water Survey TM03 map

Indiana trail guide from 1981 showing Skyline tower in Jackson-Washington State Forest; Credit: Indiana Division, Indiana State Library

Map from 1935 of Jackson Count State Forest, showing lookout tower; Credit: Indiana Division, Indiana State Library

Map from 1940s of Jackson County State Forest guide plan, showing the fire tower; Credit: Indiana Division, Indiana State Library

Map of old observation tower site at Jackson State Forest

There was an original observation tower site — an old wooden tower — at a location in the northeast part of what was then Jackson County State Forest.

This point would be on the Tampico quad topo, but I haven’t found any edition of that map that has a marker for this old tower site.

It’s on trails 1 or 2. The old tower bases still exist.

Jackson-Washington State Forest map, north section, excerpt showing Old Tower Site

Map from 1937 of Jackson County State Forest, showing both fire tower and observation tower; Credit: Indiana Division, Indiana State Library

Links about Skyline tower

NHLR page for Skyline

NGS datasheet for mark SKYLINE LOOKOUT TOWER (JA1670) and nearby MILLER (JA1669)

Structural survey numbers 004-075-04011, 004-623-04009, 004-641-23009

Some gorgeous photos of Skyline tower at abandonedonline.net

Jackson-Washington State Forest homepage and map

Data

Data for the standing Skyline tower

Coordinates	Map	Latitude	Longitude
Mine (unofficial)		38.84325	-86.035576
NHLR	Google map	N 38° 50.595′	W 086° 02.135′
NGS JA1670 data sheet	Google map	38 50 36.52023(N)	086 02 08.29358(W)

The alidade from Skyline

The alidade (fire finder) from Skyline is on display at the Morgan-Monroe State Forest nature center.

The Houston tower site is the only other tower I could see on this alidade’s map, to the northwest of Skyline which is at the center. Not visible in these photos. (I have more photos, just haven’t uploaded them here.)

History of Skyline tower and observation tower

Land for the Jackson County state forest was purchased beginning in the 1930s.

There was a previous observation tower site at the Jackson County state forest, northeast of the current Skyline tower site. It appears to have been an old wooden tower was built at the northeastern site, and then the current steel tower was built later at the southwestern site.

The JA1669 nearby MILLER mark datasheet starts surprisingly early, in 1914. Its updates in 1914 and 1931 do not mention a tower. Its 1935 update does mention a “FOREST RESERVE OBSERVATION TOWER”.

The 1946 description from the NGS datasheet for JA1670 mentions the tower.

One of the survey pages says: “Although virtually identical to fire towers built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), this one was constructed earlier. The Department of Conservation saw to the construction of fire towers almost immediately upon acquiring a new state forest property.”

One of the other survey pages says this about the tower: “Built by Department of Conservation. Jackson County State Forest established 1931. Forty foot wooden fire tower erected on hill “near Brownstown”. A few years later, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) erected a much higher steel fire tower to the south which still stands.”

Acquisition of land in Washington County is said to begin in the 1950s.

Picture of Skyline tower at Jackson-Washington State Forest. From Jackson Washington State Forest historical files.

Above: This article states that Jackson State Forest was created in 1931. Quote: “Originally the tract was acquired for the purpose of erecting a fire tower”.

Photo of people standing on Jackson County Forest Fire Tower (aka Skyline) – I don’t know the date, nor remember where I got this

Above: A fun photo of the tower, whose source I cannot remember.

This June-July 1967 OI article describes Skyline Drive in detail and mentions the fire tower. Interestingly, the article states that people may climb the tower, suggesting that the tower is open to the public and is no longer being used for fire detection.