National Register of Historic Places

Rock Rift Fire Observation Tower

Tompkins, Delaware County, New York
Listed
December 7, 2018
Type
Structure
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
100003231

About this property

Rock Rift Fire Observation Tower, also known as the Rock Rift Fire Tower, is a historic fire observation station located in the Town of Tompkins, Delaware County, New York. The tower stands at the summit of Tower Mountain at an elevation of 2,376 ft (724 m) and rises above the Cannonsville Reservoir, part of New York City's extensive water supply system. It was built in 1934 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places # 100003231 in 2018. The Rock Rift Fire Tower is also listed on the National Historic Lookout Register of the Forest Fire Lookout Association. Its listing numbers are US 1183, NY 41. The tower was transferred to the Town of Tompkins from New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in 2017. The land that the tower rests on is owned by New York City as part of their West of Hudson Watershed. The tower was decommissioned from active use in 1989.

Location

Tompkins, Delaware County, New York
42.10387, -75.22675

Categories

ARCHITECTURECONSERVATION
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Overview
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The Land
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The Civil War
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The Soldiers
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Native Heritage
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Settlement
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The Community
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Nearby Historic Sites

Second Walton Armory (Thrity-third Separate Company)
Industrial
6.5 mi
Walton Grange #1454-Former Armory
Pre Contact
6.5 mi
Gardiner Place Historic District
Listed
6.8 mi
US Post Office-Walton
Industrial
6.8 mi
Christ Episcopal Church
Industrial
6.8 mi

Nearby Battles

Destruction of Onaquaga (NY frontier)
1778Revolutionary War
14.4 mi

Questions about this property

When was Rock Rift Fire Observation Tower listed on the National Register?

Rock Rift Fire Observation Tower was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 7, 2018.

What type of historic resource is Rock Rift Fire Observation Tower?

Rock Rift Fire Observation Tower is classified as a structure in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Rock Rift Fire Observation Tower?

The period of significance for Rock Rift Fire Observation Tower is recorded as the industrial era.

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