This small butte is located north of Shevlin Park along the cold waters of Tumalo Creek, its namesake. The name Tumalo is derived from a combination of Klamath Indian words: ‘temalo’ meaning wild plum, ‘tumallow’ meaning icy water, and ‘temola’ meaning ground fog.
In May of 1939, the Bend Bulletin reported, “State fire warden L.B. Smith and Aaron Gabriel are building a lookout tower in the back yard of the warden’s residence here and will move it when completed to Tumalo butte.”
Eighteen years later a new improved lookout house was completed. The three-story structure, equipped with garage, had sleeping quarters on the second story and the lookout cabin on the third level. A gas cook stove and heater upgrade was a nice addition according to John and Olive Allen who had been on Tumalo Butte seasonally since 1951.
The National Guard ran guard drills on the Butte during the 1950s. In 1958, Bend Company 1 National Guard staged an attack on the butte, defended by a machinegun squad during a guard drill. The charging riflemen took the butte.