The 1857 Fitz Refracting Telescope
In 1857, the Detroit Observatory installed the third-largest refracting telescope in the world. That a new observatory in the American Midwest would be the home of such a cutting-edge instrument is a testimony to the University’s groundbreaking commitment to astronomical research, under the leadership of President Henry Philip Tappan.
The 1857 Fitz Refracting Telescope
The telescope was manufactured by Henry Fitz, America’s first great telescope maker. When an approved telescope was finally installed in 1857, Professor Brünnow immediately put it to good use. The 12-5/8” objective diameter, 17-foot-focal-length telescope became part of a research program dedicated to rigorous investigation of asteroids, double and variable stars, and planets — all critical research efforts in mid-19th-century astronomy. More than 20 asteroids and three comets were discovered using the Fitz refractor, and it was applied to detailed mapping of the planet Mars and other phenomena.
The 1857 Fitz Refracting Telescope
The Fitz refractor sits atop a limestone pier weighing four tons, which rests on a 60-foot brick masonry pillar that extends 15 feet below grade. In its original configuration, the Fitz refractor had a pine wood tube and equatorial mount that allowed it to track celestial movements. As astrophotography developed in the late 1800s, the wood tube was replaced with the more rigid steel tube that you can see today. A new equatorial mount and clock drive were also installed at that time. Interestingly, Henry Fitz’s 1857 objective lens was not reconfigured then or since. Consequently, it is the largest known Fitz lens in its original condition, making it of great historical interest.
The Meridian Circle Telescope
Think of the most advanced precision-science technology of today (electron microscopes, cesium clocks, gene lab microarrays, cesium clocks, advanced interferometers) and then consider that the Meridian Circle Telescope (MCT) was the 1800s equivalent.
The MCT was designed for one scientific function with two purposes. Its function was measuring the location of stars and other celestial bodies with extreme precision. And, because the precise location of a star is determined by two coordinates—its “declination,” i.e., its vertical angle with respect to the celestial equator, and its “right ascension,” i.e., the hour-minute-second at which it crosses a particular point in the sky—its position can also be used to set exact time. So, the MCT was a celestial-positioning tool and a time-setting tool of tremendous accuracy.
The Meridian Circle Telescope
The MCT is named for Henry Nelson Walker, the Detroit financier who, in 1852, helped Henry Tappan solicit funds to create the Observatory. Walker was interested in the telescope because of its time-setting capacity as well as its research importance. The telescope was manufactured by the German firm Pistor & Martins in 1854. It was so impressive that Franz Brünnow, who oversaw its production, said “any astronomer would be lucky to use it.”
The Meridian Circle Telescope
In addition to mapping stars, asteroids, and comets, the MCT was used to set time for Detroit businesses, the Michigan Central Railroad, and railroad stations throughout the state. Eventually, standard time zones—as proposed by Detroit Observatory alumnus Cleveland Abbe—would eliminate the need for regional observatories to set the time.
Detroit Observatory Historical Timeline
1852
Henry Philip Tappan becomes U-M's first president in Ann Arbor, collaborates with Henry Walker of Detroit to raise funds for an observatory.
1850
1853
Construction of Observatory begins.
1853
Tappan orders a 12.5" refracting telescope from Henry Fitz of New York.
1853
Tappan meets astronomers Johann Encke and Franz Brünnow at the Royal Observatory in Berlin. Brünnow agrees to oversee manufacture of a meridian circle telescope on Tappan's behalf.
1853
Tappan orders a 6" meridian circle telescope from the firm of Pistor & Martins of Berlin.
1854
Franz Brünnow is appointed first Observatory director.
1854
Observatory building is completed.
1854
Meridian circle telescope and Tiede sidereal clock are installed.
1855
Jasper Cropsey, Hudson River painter, visits campus at Tappan's invitation and paints the Observatory and a campus landscape.
1857
Following delivery of a defective Fitz telescope and use of a telescope on loan, the new Fitz refracting telescope — the current one — is installed in the dome.
1857
Franz Brünnow and Rebecca Tappan marry.
1857
James Craig Watson, Brünnow's star student, graduates.
1858
Brünnow begins publication of 'Astronomical Notices,' U-M's first scholarly publication.
1859
Brünnow accepts appointment at the Dudley Observatory in Albany, NY. James Craig Watson becomes acting director.
1860
Brünnow returns to the University of Michigan, at the request of the Regents.
1860
Franz Brünnow publishes his English translation of Part 1 of his magnum opus, Lehrbuch der spärischen Astronomie (Handbook of Spherical Astronomy). It will be a widely-used astronomy text for decades to come.
1861
Longitude of Detroit Observatory is established, via telegraphic connection and joint observations with Hamilton College observatory.
1863
Observatory time service begins this year.
1863
Tappan is dismissed by Regents; Brünnow resigns; James Craig Watson becomes Observatory's second director.
1863
Watson discovers his first asteroid, 79 Eurynome. Over the next 15 years, he will discover 21 more — out of 100 discovered worldwide during that period.
1865
Brünnow is appointed Astronomer Royal at the Dunsink Observatory in Ireland.
1867
Watson discovers asteroids 93 Minerva and 94 Aurora.
1868
A director's residence is added to the west side of the Observatory, connected via the director's office in the west wing. City of Ann Arbor improves roads around the Observatory.
1868
Watson discovers an unprecedented six asteroids: 100 Hekate, 101 Helena, 103 Hera, 104 Klymene, 105 Artemis, 106 Dione.
1869
Watson observes total solar eclipse in Iowa
1870
Watson works on Washington Zone astronomical observations for the U.S. Coastal Survey and also observes a solar eclipse in Sicily.
1871
Watson discovers 115 Thyra.
1872
Watson discovers 119 Althaea, 121 Hermione, 128 Nemesis.
1873
Watson discovers 132 Aethra, 133 Cyrene.
1874
Watson, in China for the transit of Venus, discovers 139 Juewa, allowing his Chinese hosts to name it. It is reportedly the first asteroid discovery in China.
1875
Watson discovers 150 Nuwa.
1875
1876
Watson discovers 161 Athor and 168 Sibylla .
1877
Watson discovers 174 Phaedra, 175 Andromache, and 179 Klytaemnestra, concluding his remarkable run of discoveries.
1878
U.S. Government station set up on Observatory grounds to observe transit of Mercury; it then becomes the first Student Observatory.
1878
Mary Byrd graduates from the University of Michigan. She would go on to become the first director of the Smith College Observatory and inspire generations of future female astronomers, including Harriet Williams Bigelow.
1878
Watson claims to have discovered Planet Vulcan while observing a total solar eclipse in Wyoming.
1879
Watson leaves U-M to become director of the new Washburn Observatory at University of Wisconsin-Madison. His student Mark W. Harrington is named director.
1880
Student observatory is outfitted with new telescopes, including the 3" transit telescope by Fauth & Co with Clark optics, still in the Observatory's collection.
1880
Assistant director J.M. Schaeberle discovers a comet, 1880 II.
1881
The Observatory's 3rd director, Mark Harrington, begins meterological observations at the Observatory.
1881
Schaeberle discovers another comet, 1881 IV.
1884
Harrington founds 'American Meteorological Journal.'
1890
Dome is converted: new shutter, dome cannon-ball rollers replaced with railroad-style track and wheels.
1891
Harrington becomes first Chief of the U.S. Weather Bureau.
1904
Harriet Williams Bigelow becomes the first woman to receive a Ph.D. in astronomy from Michigan. She goes on to become a leading astronomer until her untimely death in 1934.
1900
1905
William J. Hussey is appointed director. He begins to rebuild the U-M astronomy program, which had fallen behind the times in the previous two decades.
1907
Fitz telescope is converted to steel tube; new mount; drive clock added.
1908
Student Observatory moves to the west side of the Observatory.
1908
Large 1908 addition is constructed on the east side of the Observatory.
1911
37-1/2" reflecting telescope is completed and installed in dome of 1908 addition.
1911
In an effort to ward off encroaching development, the Observatory grounds are expanded to the east by a gift of 26 acres from R.P. Lamont (Eng 1861).
1912
The series Publications of the Observatory of the University of Michigan is launched.
1912
The University develops plans to construct a coal-fired power plant to the west of the Observatory. Concerned about the impact of pollution on observing, Hussey explores moving the Observatory to Huddy Hill, about 3/4-mile southeast. The power plant is eventually completed in 1924, but the Observatory never moves.
1925
A 27-inch refractor, named for R.P. Lamont, is completed and tested at the Observatory. Seeking darker and less polluted skies, Hussey will take the refractor to a new U-M observatory in South Africa. Unfortunately, he dies in transit.
1925
1927
Student Observatory moves to the roof of Angell Hall.
1927
Hazel "Doc" Losh joins Astronomy faculty.
1928
U-M's Lamont-Hussey Observatory in South Africa, with 27-inch refractor, is dedicated.
1930
Heber Curtis, protagonist in "The Great Debate," named director.
1930
McMath-Hulbert Observatory is established by amateur astronomers at Lake Angelus, Michigan. Later, a partnership with U-M is formed.
1932
Robert McMath takes first films of the sun, establishing heliokinematography as a new field of astronomy.
1954
Director's residence is torn down to make room for Couzens Hall expansion
1950
1965
The Astronomy Department moves from the Observatory to new quarters in the Dennison Building
1970
U-M proposes to raze Observatory but Friends of the Observatory are successful in protecting it.
1973
The Observatory is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
1976
1908 addition is condemned and razed but the 1854 building is preserved
1975
1994
Proposal for restoration of the Observatory is developed, and Observatory is transferred to Office of the Vice President for Research.
1997
Restoration is completed.
2005
The Observatory is transferred to the Bentley Historical Library.
2000
2009
Public viewing nights begin.
2018
Regents approve addition.
2019
Construction of addition begins.
2022
Observatory re-opens with new addition and renamed the Judy and Stanley Frankel Detroit Observatory.
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Visit the History of U-M website, which serves as a doorway to historical resources across the University that showcase 200 years of transformation.
