The practice of using trees as lookouts was widespread in the western United States during the early 20th century, as there was no need to build a foundation or to pack and assemble a tower structure.

For transient use this could be all that was done, but for more permanent use the top 10 feet (3.0 m) of the tree could be lopped, and a platform constructed on the resulting stump.

[1] A Multiple Property Submission survey of lookout trees in Kaibab National Forest and Grand Canyon National Park in northern Arizona was carried out in 1987 as an addendum to a survey of fire towers in Arizona.

Surviving trees with significant remains of their lookout function were individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places and were described in the MPS.

No lookout trees were noted in Grand Canyon National Park, though some had existed.