Crane Flat Fire Lookout
Encyclopedia
The Crane Flat Fire Lookout in Yosemite National Park
was built in 1931. An example of the National Park Service Rustic
style, the lookout is a two-story structure with a lower storage or garage level and an upper observation level, with an overhanging roof. Design work was carried out by the National Park Service
Landscape Division.
The lookout was the first in Yosemite, and was still in use in the 1980s. It was designed in the National Park Service Rustic
style, and is one of only four similar structures in California, with the Henness Ridge lookout being the only other in Yosemite. These lookouts were specifically designed to blend with their surroundings, in contrast to the metal towers used by the U.S. Forest Service. The Crane Flat lookout was included in an influential portfolio of park structures assembled by Thomas Chalmers Vint
, chief landscape architect of the National Park Service
to be used as prototypes for general use.
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park is a United States National Park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States. The park covers an area of and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain...
was built in 1931. An example of the National Park Service Rustic
National Park Service Rustic
National Park Service rustic, also colloquially known as Parkitecture, is a style of architecture that arose in the United States National Park System to create buildings that harmonized with their natural environment. Since its founding, the National Park Service consistently has sought to provide...
style, the lookout is a two-story structure with a lower storage or garage level and an upper observation level, with an overhanging roof. Design work was carried out by the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
Landscape Division.
The lookout was the first in Yosemite, and was still in use in the 1980s. It was designed in the National Park Service Rustic
National Park Service Rustic
National Park Service rustic, also colloquially known as Parkitecture, is a style of architecture that arose in the United States National Park System to create buildings that harmonized with their natural environment. Since its founding, the National Park Service consistently has sought to provide...
style, and is one of only four similar structures in California, with the Henness Ridge lookout being the only other in Yosemite. These lookouts were specifically designed to blend with their surroundings, in contrast to the metal towers used by the U.S. Forest Service. The Crane Flat lookout was included in an influential portfolio of park structures assembled by Thomas Chalmers Vint
Thomas Chalmers Vint
Thomas Chalmers Vint was a landscape architect credited for directing and shaping landscape planning and development during the early years of the United States National Park System. His work at Yosemite National Park and the development of the Mission 66 program are among his better known...
, chief landscape architect of the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
to be used as prototypes for general use.