The Hume Cronyn Memorial Observatory - London, Ontario - Astronomical Observatories on Waymarking.com

From the website:


from the original history by D.F. Gray

Located on the campus, this facility is used extensively for undergraduate laboratories and for the 'Public Night' and 'Exploring the Stars' programs.

It currently houses three telescopes on the same mounting: the original 25.4 cm refractor and small Schmidt camera as well as 30 cm reflector. When it was built by the Perkin-Elmer Corporation of New York, the glass objective lens of the 25.4 cm refracting telescope was one of the larger lens elements to have been manufactured in the western hemisphere at that time. The Perkin-Elmer corporation became a world-renowned scientific instrument company, having manufactured the mirror for the Hubble Space Telescope, and also having developed the gold film coating for astronaut Neil Armstrong's space helmet visor, to name just two of their many accomplishments.

On Friday, October 25th, 1940, a bright sunny day, this observatory and its 25-centimeter refractor were dedicated in a ceremony held in front of the new building. The observatory was presented by Mrs. Frances Amelia Labatt Cronyn in memory of her husband (Hume Blake Cronyn) who had considerable interest in science even though he worked in the financial world as general manager of the Huron & Erie Savings and Loan Company (later to become the Canada Trust Company), and president of the Mutual Life Insurance Company. Elected in 1917 as a Member of Parliament, he helped establish the National Research Institute of which he remained a member until his death in 1933. This remarkable gift to Western cost $40,000, a considerable sum in those days. The telescope itself cost $7,500.

A.T. Little, Esquire, Chairman of the Board of Governors, accepted the gift on behalf of the university. Remarks and greetings were given by Professor H.R. Kingston (UWO host department: Mathematics & Astronomy), C.A. Chant (Toronto), and S.A. Mitchell (Virginia). Officiating were Canon Q. Warner (Rector), Colonel H. Cockshutt (Chancellor), and W. Sherwood Fox (President). Commissioning the instrument was R.H. Cronyn,the eldest son.

And if you are a videophile you will want to know that the Hume Cronyn we enjoy as an actor, the one who married Jessica Tandy in 1942, is the fourth child of Hume Blake Cronyn.

Observatory Purpose: Research Optical / Infrared Telescopes?: No Radio Telescopes?: Yes Open to the Public?: Yes Is this a Club Observatory?: No Public Viewing Allowed?: Yes Active Observatory?: Active Number of Telescopes or Antennas: 2 Site URL: [Web Link] Year Dedicated or Opened: 1939 Solar Telescopes?: Not listed Altitude (meters): Not Listed

Visit Instructions:
Note the time of day of your visit, and your own photo of your favorite part of the observatory. This might be the view from the observatory, picture of your favorite building or favorite exhibit. (Be mindful of flash photography rules!)

If you participated in an observing session, let everyone know what you saw!

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   12/29/2016 Keldar5 visited it