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Gallery: Rail transport

Photos: Buckingham Branch Railroad

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckingham_Branch_Railroad

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Gallery: AT&T Long Lines Video

Tower in Cle Elum, Washington – November 2010

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Dinwiddie, Virginia Gallery: Dinwiddie County, Virginia

Dewitt Fire Lookout

A retired fire lookout (observation) tower in Dewitt, Virginia.

Coordinates: 37.042014, -77.639823

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The history of fire lookout towers predates the United States Forest Service (which was founded in 1905). Many townships, private lumber companies, and State Foresty organizations operated fire lookout towers on their own accord.

In 1933, during the Great Depression, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt formed the โ€œCivilian Conservation Corpsโ€ consisting of young men and veterans of World War One. It was during this time that the CCC set about building fire lookout towers, and access roads to those towers. The U.S. Forest Service took great advantage of the CCC workforce and initiated a massive program of construction projects, including fire lookout towers. In California alone, some 250 lookout towers and cabs were built by CCC workers between 1933 and 1942.

The golden age of fire lookout towers was from 1930 through 1950. During World War II, the Aircraft Warning Service was established, operating in 1942 and 1943. Fire lookouts were assigned additional duty as Enemy Aircraft Spotters, especially on the West Coast of the United States.

From the 1960โ€™s through the 1990โ€™s the towers took a back seat to new technology, aircraft, and improvements in radios. The promise of space satellite fire detection and modern cell phones tried to compete with the remaining fire lookout towers but in several environments, the technology failed.

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Gallery: AT&T Long Lines

Cherry Hill Tower

This is an AT&T microwave radio relay tower located in Dewitt, Virginia. It connected Richmond to Rocky Mount and was named the “Dewitt” tower. The next tower north of Dewitt was in Matoaca, VA and the next tower south of Dewitt was in Margaretsville, NC.

Coordinates: 36-56-39.9N 077-37-12.7W
FCC ASR Registration Number: 1024227
Height: 344 feet above ground
Owner: American Towers, Inc.

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Gallery: Rail transport

RF&P 2379

Richmond Fredericksburg & Potomac car down in Wilmington, NC.