While many of the city street names have links to families from the pioneer era–Alexander, Brashear, Lassen, etc.–that is not the case with Cook Street in the Inspiration Point neighborhood.

John Warren Cook, better known as Jack, could be considered a pioneer of sorts, since he built the first house on the street that bears his name, and was initially designated as 404 Pine Street. It should be duly that on June 29, 1914, Cook purchased the property in Long’s Addition from Charles and Frank Odette for an undisclosed amount. On May 23, 1938, he sold it to Edward L. and Margaret Spaulding.

Cook had a varied career beginning in 1913 when he came here from Missouri and went to work at the Odette sawmill located near the present day intersection of Highways 36 and 44.  However, with the arrival of the Red River Lumber Company and other large mills, small mills like Odette went out of business. Cook then went to work for the Susanville Water Company until 1928 when the Cady family sold it.  In that same year, the Lassen National Forest Service established  Durbin Nursery, now the site of Diamond View School, where he worked for many years. He passed away at the Lassen County Hospital at the age of  79 on November 14, 1957.

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