Butler Butte - Cowlitz County Washington

Located near Elk Mountain, Butler Butte is mentioned in 2 different historical accounts regarding Elk Mountain Lookout. One gives the impression that Butler Butte could have had some significance to the lookout, maybe a patrol point. But further looking, it seems that the old Elk Mountain Trail came over Butler Butte from the Coweman CCC Camp and the Coweman Ranger Station (see maps below). Just in case, I visited and took a look. Below are the two documents.

Year 1929: “Some six miles of telephone line was constructed from the Kalama River, at a point on Section 20, Twp. 7, Range 3 East, to the Elk Mountain temporary Lookout on Sec. 32, Twp. 8, Range 3 East, and on to Butler's Butte on Section 31." (22nd Annual Report of the Washington Forest Fire Association)

Year 1936, the 29th Annual Report of the Washington Forest Fire Association reported about getting to Elk Mountain…. "We also constructed a tower on Elk Mountain in Section 32, Township 8, Range 4 East. This tower, built a decade ago of white fir, became dangerous, and the point lost much of it's effectiveness for this reason. A new tower of hewn cedar, sixty feet high was erected, the material being horse packed for some two and a half miles. The actual trail from the end of the road is approximately nine miles, but it was found possible to so re-locate the trail, with some additional swamping, as to make it possible for our tractor to pull a fully loaded wheeled trailer to Butler's Butte. This helped very materially in the problem of feeding men and horses as well as hauling equipment at an elevation of 4,650 feet.”