History > McCall Smokejumper Base

The McCall Smokejumper Base was started in 1943 when five jumpers, who were trained in Missoula, Montana, were stationed in McCall. The first fire jump out of the McCall base was made on August 14, 1943 by John Furguson and Lester Gohler at the head of Captain John Creek. The spotter was Stewart "Lloyd" Johnson who served as the base foreman through the summer of 1953.

In 1947, McCall trained 50 jumpers. As the smokejumper program grew, new buildings were added, and the base became a training center. Civilian Conservation Corps buildings were moved in for smokejumper operations, and training facilities were built.

A laundry building and three barrack buildings were constructed, and eight trailer houses were brought in for married jumpers in 1958. A new loft building was completed in 1959, and a kitchen was built in 1964. These buildings are currently located on Mission Street across from McCall-Donnelly High School. The facilities today are being used to house the telecommunications center for the Payette National Forest.

In 1948, ten jumpers were stationed at Idaho City, Idaho, with James "Smokey" Stover in charge. The Idaho City base moved to Boise in 1970. For almost 10 years, Boise had a smokejumper base until it closed after the 1979 season, swelling the number of jumpers in McCall from 55 to about 80. Again, as the crew expanded, so did the facilities. McCall saw the completion of a new smokejumper facility in 1988 at its present day location.

The McCall Smokejumpers have come a long way since its early beginnings in 1943. Today, they provide support to the Western United States and Alaska. The seven national forests surrounding this core base annually average 1,000 fires.