NEW YORK LOOKOUTS
PILLSBURY MOUNTAIN
Hamilton County
1918: "Steps were taken to establish a secondary observation station on Pillsbury Mt., near West Canada Lakes, in cooperation with the Champlain Realty Co. This station will be manned during periods of extreme dry weather when necessary." (8th Annual Report of the Conservation Commission)
January 3, 1924: "In District Ranger Roberts' territory the steel for a new observation tower for Pillsbury mountain has arrived and will be erected and in use during the coming season. This tower is a very important addition to the Conservation Commission's observation stations, as it covers a very wild, remote section of valuable timber land." (Adirondack Record-Elizabethtown Post)
1924: "The last of the new towers erected during 1924 was erected and paid for by a landowner and the tower was placed on Pillsbury mountain in central Hamilton county. A secondary station has been operated on this mountain for some years and this has served to demonstrate the suitability of the mountain for a observation station. The new tower will be operated as an observation station by the Conservation Commission." (Conservation Commission Fourteenth Annual Report)
November 2, 1983: "There are two issues dealing with Pillsbury Mountain, located in the southern portion of the Perkins Clearing acquisition, that must be addressed in addition to the issue of road and float plane access. First, wilderness designation of Perkins Clearing would require removal of the Pillsbury Mountain fire tower; and, second, it would preclude future use of Pillsbury Mountain for a communications relay facility, if constructed, would improve radio communication into the West Canada Lake Wilderness and accelerate the removal of existing non-conforming telephone lines.
Although these issues may not outweigh the importance of a wilderness designation, some may well disagree. An easy and manageable alternative exists -- designate approximately 250 acres on the south slopes and peak of Pillsbury Mountain as Wild Forest and the remainder of the area as Wilderness." (Tribune-Press)