91 years ago to the day, the first Tillamook Burn was sparked
Ninety-one years ago to the day, a logging crew at the end of a railroad spur in the upper reaches of the Gales Creek Watershed sparked a wildfire. That spark became the Tillamook Burn.
Ninety-one years ago to the day, a logging crew at the end of a railroad spur in the upper reaches of the Gales Creek Watershed sparked a wildfire.
That spark became the Tillamook Burn.
It changed Oregon forever: altering the economy, giving rise to communities and decimating others, changing how we fight wildfires, sparking myths of a curse steeped into the Coast Range, and killed one very unfortunate man.
It created the Tillamook State Forest as we know it today.
As fire crews continue mopping up the 290-acre Lee Falls Fire near Cherry Grove, it serves as a reminder that wildfires, both natural and human-caused, are a fact of life here.
Read last year's recap here for some interesting news clips taken from local newspapers, giving a blow-by-blow account of the first fire.
Chas Hundley
