South Mount Hawkins is located in the San Gabriel Mountains

San Gabriel Mountains

The San Gabriel Mountains Range is located in northern Los Angeles County and western San Bernardino County, California, United States. The mountain range lies between the Los Angeles Basin and the Mojave Desert, with Interstate 5 to the west and Interstate 15 to the east...

, and contained within the Angeles National Forest

Angeles National Forest

The Angeles National Forest of the U.S. National Forest Service is located in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, southern California. It was established on July 1, 1908, incorporating the first San Bernardino National Forest and parts of the former Santa Barbara and San Gabriel...

. The mountain was named after Nellie Hawkins, a popular waitress of the Squirrel Inn located on the North Fork of the San Gabriel River

San Gabriel River (California)

The San Gabriel River flows through southern Los Angeles County, California in the United States. Its main stem is about long, while its farthest tributaries extend almost altogether...

.
Although the Squirrel Inn is long gone, Nellie has her name on Mount Hawkins and South Mount Hawkins. There are two ridge bumps between the two named summits and they are unofficially known as "Middle Hawkins" and "Sadie Hawkins".

South Mount Hawkins Fire Lookout Tower

At the top of South Mount Hawkins stood a historic Fire lookout tower

Fire lookout tower

A fire lookout tower, fire tower or lookout tower, provides housing and protection for a person known as a "fire lookout" whose duty it is to search for wildfires in the wilderness...

 that was built in 1935.
It was one of the only all-wooden towers in Southern California. It was destroyed in the Curve Fire on September 1, 2002.