Built in 1934. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
“Jacob Lake Lookout Tower is located in the North Kaibab Ranger District 30 miles (48 km) southeast of Fredonia, AZ.”
Wikipedia article Jacob Lake Lookout Tower, CC BY-SA 4.0.
One of 140 National Register listings published here for Coconino County · listed in 1988 · category: Structure · built in 1934.
Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 243 fires within 5 miles of Jacob Lake Lookout Tower between 1992 and 2020, burning about 63,238 acres in total. 179 started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Natural | 179 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 41 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 9 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 6 |
| Debris and open burning | 5 |
| Smoking | 3 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 1996 | Natural | under an acre | Kaibab National Forest | CAN |
| 8 September 2006 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Kaibab National Forest | HILLSIDE |
| 8 September 1994 | Natural | under an acre | Kaibab National Forest | not named |
| 7 September 2014 | Natural | under an acre | Kaibab National Forest | HIDDEN |
| 7 September 2013 | Natural | under an acre | Kaibab National Forest | MO |
| 7 September 1998 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Kaibab National Forest | CAMPGROUND |
| 6 September 1999 | Recreation and ceremony | under an acre | Kaibab National Forest | THREE LAKES |
| 5 September 2016 | Natural | 429 acres | Kaibab National Forest | LABOR |
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 6 workings within 5 miles of Jacob Lake Lookout Tower: 6 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Copper, Gold, Silver, Manganese, Silver, Iron, Iron, Manganese. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mackin Group | Copper, Iron, Manganese | Past Producer | ||
| Petroskey Group | Copper, Manganese, Silver, Iron | Past Producer | ||
| Kaibab Group | Copper, Gold, Silver | Past Producer | 1942, 1950 | |
| Mackin Group | Copper, Gold, Silver | Past Producer | 1942 | |
| Petoskey Group | Copper, Gold, Silver | Past Producer | 1903, 1963 | |
| Kaibab | Copper | Past Producer |
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Jacob Lake, the town this property stands in, in 10 storm reports between 1998 and 2025: 2 heavy rain, 2 wildfire, 2 flash flood, 1 tornado. The reports record 2 deaths and 1 injury. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2013 | Lightning | Jacob Lake | 2 killed, 1 hurt | Lightning struck three people at LeFavre Scenic Overlook along Highway 89 about eight miles north of Jacobs Lake. Two people died and the third person sustained non-life-threatening injuries. |
| August 2025 | Flash Flood | Jacob Lake | - | Forest Service officials report flooding with ash laden water through House Rock Wash along Buffalo Ranch Road (Forest Road 8910). The road was impassable and blocked access for BAER team members performing work in the area. The White Sage burn scar was upstream from this location. |
| August 2010 | Flash Flood | Jacob Lake | - | The Bureau of Land Management reported flash flooding along House Rock Road--the road was river of water. Coyote Wash flooded over House Rock Road. |
| August 2010 | Hail | Jacob Lake | - | Penny sized hail was reported in the Buckskin Gulch and Coyote Buttes areas. |
| June 2000 | Heavy Rain | Jacob Lake | - | Heavy rain caused a mud slide in the same area where the Outlet Fire had burned. The slide caused several Forest Service roads to close. |
| June 2000 | Heavy Rain | Jacob Lake | - | A weather spotter at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon reported water flowing across Highway 67 in the area of the Outlet Fire. |
| May 2000 | Wildfire | Jacob Lake | - | The Outlet Fire began as a prescribed burn on April 25. On May 9, the fire was still within the planned enviromental conditions when it was declared a wildland fire. This was done in order to begin fire suppression efforts because of high wind predicted on May 10. High wind on May 10 forced the fire out of project bounderies about 30 miles south of Jacob Lake. This caused the closure of Highway 67 from Jacob Lake southward and the evacuation of the developed area at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Highway 67 to the North Rim was reopened on May 21. The fire was declaired 100% contained the evening of May 21. In all, 13,350 acers burned, over 1,200 fire personel were invovled, and nearly 35 miles of hand line were constructed around the fire. The fire fell over the canyon rim in some areas and was suppressed with aircraft where terrain was too rugged for crews to operate safely. The fire continued to burn inside fire lines long after containment. On June 4, strong wind pushed the fire off the canyon rim. This fire then burned back up onto the canyon rim and burned an additional 500 acres outside the fire lines. This part of the fire was contained again on June 5. |
| May 1998 | Tornado (F0) | Jacob Lake | - | Three NWS employees observed this weak tornado on the Kaibab Plateau. |
| August 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Jacob Lake | - | no account filed |
| June 2000 | Wildfire | Jacob Lake | - | no account filed |
No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.
Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.
| Photograph | Property | Distance | Listed |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Jacob Lake Ranger Station | 1.1 miles | 1987 |
| Cooper Ridge Lookout Tree | 3.2 miles | 1992 | |
| Fracas Lookout Tree | 4.2 miles | 1992 | |
| Corral Lake Lookout Tree | 7.2 miles | 1992 |
| National Archives record | The nomination case file for reference 87002477 in Record Group 79. |
| Wikipedia article | Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA. |
| Coconino County | All 140 listed properties in this county. |
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