Ruidoso Lookout Tower

Ruidoso Lookout Tower
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
NM State Register of Cultural Properties
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Location	Lincoln National Forest, Ruidoso, New Mexico
Coordinates	33°19′54″N 105°39′43″W
Area	less than one acre
Built	1940 (1940)
MPS	National Forest Fire Lookouts in the Southwestern Region TR
NRHP reference No.	87002485[1]
NMSRCP No.	1447
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	January 27, 1988
Designated NMSRCP	March 4, 1988

Ruidoso Lookout Tower was completed in 1940 by the U.S. Forest Service to serve as a fire lookout tower within Lincoln National Forest, New Mexico, United States.

Background

It remains in active use for the detection of urban/suburban fires in the town of Ruidoso, which has grown over the years to surround the tower. The structure is a 30 feet (9.1 m) Aermotor tower with metal catwalks and is topped with a 14 by 14 feet (4.3 by 4.3 m) wooden cab.[2]

The structure is listed on the National Register of Historic Places,[1] as well as the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties.[3]

The first detonation of a nuclear device by the Manhattan Project at Trinity Site was observed by Herbert Lee Traylor,[4] the forest ranger on duty at the Ruidoso Lookout tower at the time of the explosion.

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Lincoln County, New Mexico

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
2. "Ruidoso Lookout Tower". nhlr.org. Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved April 6, 2010.
3. "New Deal Properties Listed in the State Register of Cultural Properties" (PDF). Retrieved April 6, 2010.
4. Traylor, Herbert Lee. Tales of the Sierra Blanca: Stories of Long Ago. Pioneer Publishing Company, 1983.