Corporate Body
Williamstown Observatory (1853 - 1863)
Colony of Victoria
- From
- July 1853
Williamstown, Victoria, Australia - To
- November 1863
- Functions
- Astronomy or Space Science and Observatory
Summary
The Williamstown Observatory was established in 1853 on a site southwest, but close to the centre, of Melbourne. Its purpose was to undertake astronomical observations to provide accurate time signals so that ships's crews might correct their chronometers. Robert Ellery was Superintendent of the Observatory and, from 1858, Director of the colony's Geodetic Survey. For various reasons the Observatory's instruments were not always fit for purpose particularly in its early years. In addition the encroaching city created conditions that militated against the optimal operation of the instruments. In 1863 the Observatory merged with the Flagstaff Observatory to form the Melbourne Observatory at a new site in South Yarra, just to the south of the city. Ellery was Director of the new Observatory and Victorian Government Astronomer until 1895.
Published resources
Resource Sections
- Gillespie, Richard, 'Williamstown Observatory, 1853 - 1863', in Museums Victoria collections, Museums Victoria, Melbourne, 2008. https://collections.museumvictoria.com.au/articles/1629. Details
Theses
- Cohn, Helen M., 'Some Foundations of Science in Victoria in the Decade After Separation', MA thesis, University of Melbourne, 1990. Details
See also
- Ross, C. Stuart, 'Our Observatory: the story of its establishment', Victorian historical magazine, 6 (4) (1918), 134-44. Details
Helen Cohn
Created: 3 March 2020, Last modified: 15 February 2024