Perched atop Little Flat on Tussey Mountain in Rothrock State Forest, the Little Flat Lookout Tower stood as a sentry in Pennsylvania.
Perched atop Little Flat on Tussey Mountain in Rothrock State Forest, the Little Flat Lookout Tower stood as a sentry over the Pennsylvania woodlands. Constructed in 1922, the 60-foot steel structure replaced a wooden tower built in 1915. Nearby, a three-room warden’s cabin was constructed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps, which was restored in 1999 and 2000. A heliport was later added in 1965 to aid firefighting during high-risk periods.
The development of fire towers in Pennsylvania dates to 1899, when the U.S. Geological Survey established the first such structure in Tioga County. By 1902, private efforts like the Pocono Protective Fire Association began constructing wooden towers to safeguard forested lands. The state’s first official observation tower arose in Franklin County in 1905, and by the 1920s, fire detection from towers had become standard practice. Under the guidance of figures like Gifford Pinchot, fire towers—eventually dubbed “Pinchot Towers”—spread rapidly across the Commonwealth. Though budget cuts in the 1970s diminished their number, renewed interest in the 21st century has led to preservation and reconstruction efforts, recognizing the enduring value of these forest lookouts.
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