"DUNLOP, JAMES (1793-1848), astronomer, was born on 31 October 1793 at Dalry, Ayrshire, Scotland, the son of John Dunlop, weaver, and his wife Janet, née Boyle. After primary level his education was at night-school in Beith where he worked in a thread factory. He was constructing telescopes at 17, and some ten years later an acquaintance with
Sir Thomas Brisbane developed his interest in astronomy. When appointed governor of New South Wales, Brisbane resolved to establish an observatory, and chose Dunlop and
Carl Rümker as assistants. They arrived in Sydney on 7 November 1821 and the instruments were set up in Parramatta in time to observe the solstice. A building was erected and regular observations began in May 1822. Apart from making the greater part of the observations for a catalogue of stars, Dunlop made observations of the length of the pendulum, the results of which were published with those of Captain Henry Kater in
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, 1823. In June 1822 Dunlop was the first to see the reappearance of Encke's comet. This was only the second case of the predicted return of a comet being verified, the first being that of Halley in 1758.
From June 1823, when Rümker left the observatory, to February 1827 was a busy period for Dunlop: he made about 40,000 observations which form the basis of the Parramatta
Catalogue of Stars and, with an instrument built by himself, made the observations for his catalogues of nebulae and star clusters, and double stars. He then returned to Scotland to work in Brisbane's private observatory at Makerstoun in Roxburgh.
In 1831 Dunlop was appointed superintendent of Parramatta Observatory, which had been taken over by the government. He found the equipment and buildings of the observatory in bad condition, and had to exert much effort to restore them. In the period to 1835 he reported observations of asteroids, planets and comets in
Memoirs of the Royal Astronomical Society. He made many transit observations, particularly with the new transit circle by Jones which he installed in 1835. He gave help and advice to Major
(Sir) Thomas Mitchell when he was preparing his expeditions in 1831 and 1834. However, from about 1837 Dunlop appears to have been in ill health, his activity declined and the transit work done from 1832 at Parramatta was never reduced or published. He resigned and retired to his farm on Brisbane Water in August 1847 and died on 22 September 1848. His wife, Jean Service, whom he married in 1816, survived him for eleven years. They had no children..."
http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A010322b.htm
See also:
http://www.austehc.unimelb.edu.au/fam/1527.html
and:
http://nla.gov.au/anbd.bib-an10670779