MARYLAND LOOKOUTS
SHILOH
Dorchester County
July 12, 1937: "The completion of a fire tower between East New Market and Shiloh the latter part of August will make a total of nine towers for the Eastern Shore, according to Nelson H. Fritz, district forester. The 120-foot structure is being erected on the Samuel Webster farm by CCC men from the Snow Hill camp housed at the Vienna camp while the tower is being built.
Fritz said the tower which is being constructed by the International Derrick Company is set on cement piers, the four foundation blocks weighing from 7 to 8 tons each. The fire table in the pointed-top observation room will be furnished with a map to enable the towerman to sight fires in a radius of 15 miles of the tower, each inch on the map representing a mile.
The entire structure will require one-half acre of land when the guy wires have been attached, Fritz said." (The Daily Times)
Fritz said the tower which is being constructed by the International Derrick Company is set on cement piers, the four foundation blocks weighing from 7 to 8 tons each. The fire table in the pointed-top observation room will be furnished with a map to enable the towerman to sight fires in a radius of 15 miles of the tower, each inch on the map representing a mile.
The entire structure will require one-half acre of land when the guy wires have been attached, Fritz said." (The Daily Times)
July 30, 1937: "The completion of a fire tower near East New Market, the second one built in Dorchester County, will be complete a circle of ten such towers built on the Eastern Shore by the State Department of Forestry.
William E. Seeders, district forest warden for the Eastern Shore, said the new tower will be ready for use on Aug. 1 with a towerman stationed there for six months of each year, three in the spring and three in the fall. The tower will be equipped with a telephone and a fire map covering a 16-mile area, to aid in determining the location of a blaze." (The Morning News)
March 16, 1939: "The Shiloh tower, the first to be equipped with short wave radio, opened yesterday as the spring fire season began officially. District Forester Nelson H. Fritz said the tower radio will be put into operation as soon as it is connected with a power line.
Towerman Charles Mosely, stationed at Shiloh, and a forest guard in a car also equipped with a short wave set, will, for the first time on the Eastern Shore, initiate a recent aid adopted by the State Department of Forestry for use in fighting fires. Eventually all forest towers will be equipped with short wave, Mr. Fritz said. Several Western Shore towers already have demonstrated the efficiency of this method.
Installation of radio equipment was made at the Shiloh tower because it is centrally located for the counties of Caroline, Dorchester and Talbot, the Central Shore. Mr. Mosely has qualified as a radio operator." (The Daily Times)