Fish Lake Guard Station Listed in the National Register of Historic Places

Built by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) for the Santiam National Forest (later Willamette National Forest) between 1906 and 1934, the centrally-located Fish Lake Guard Station provided fire crews and Forest staff with an administrative base and pack animal remount station from which to provide conservation management for the forest and fire protection. Later, the Fish Lake Guard Station served as an essential catalyst in managing designated wilderness areas near the Willamette National Forest after the passage of the Wilderness Act. Signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 3, 1964, the Wilderness Act mandated that the National Park Service, USFS, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service review all lands under their jurisdiction and designate appropriate tracts as National Wilderness areas to be protected in their natural condition. The station’s rustic-style buildings are representative examples of USFS administrative architecture built by Forest employees and the CCC using USFS and CCC plans and rustic design, made w ith local, natural materials to blend with the surrounding landscape.

Oregon’s State Advisory Committee on Historic Preservation recommended the district’s nomination in their June 2013 meeting. Over 900 properties in Linn County are now listed in the National Register, which is maintained by the National Park Service under the authority of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966.

More information about the National Register and recent Oregon lists is online at www.oregonheritage.org (click on “National Register” at left of page).