Anyone who has driven up and down Pennant Hills Road in Sydney
will no doubt be familiar with the triangular piece of parkland with
towering Sydney Blue Gums at the intersection of Pennant Hills Road
and Beecroft Road at Pennant Hills.
This small public park is called "Observatory Park" and page 18 of the
March 2021 edition of the Hornsby Ku-ring-gai post contains a nice
article including photos about the observatory that was once there.
In 1887 the Congress of International Astronomers set forth a project to
photographically map the entire southern hemisphere night sky.
The project would eventually produce the Carte du Ceil: the Astrographic Catalogue.
The NSW government funded the project and on 21 October 1893 set aside 5
acres (2 hectares) on the corner of Pennant Hills and Beecroft Roads
for the construction of an observatory. The Pennant Hills Observatory
was completed in 1898.
The Pennant Hills site, known at the time as Red Hill, was chosen as it
was a high point at 615 feet (190 metres) above sea level and free of
wood fire smoke, with easy access to Sydney by road or railway.
The observatory, a circular building with rotating dome and 330mm telescope,
was operated for 32 years by James Short of Sydney Observatory.
One of the assistants at Red Hill was Lawrence Hargrave, who went on
to experiment with airfoils and develop the basis for aircraft wing designs
at Stanwell Park. Australians will be familiar with his image on the old $20
bills.
In 1922, I believe a large logistical exercise was performed and the entire astrograph
was relocated to Goodiwidini in southern Queensland, some 730km away, to try and capture
the solar eclipse. A temporary observatory was set up there and then the astrograph
moved back to Pennant Hills.
In 1930, with Short set for retirement and no funding to replace him, plus
with increasing light pollution and traffic on Pennant Hills Road, the
observatory was closed and in 1931 the telescope was moved back to
Sydney Observatory.
The Astrographic Catalogue was ultimately published in the 1960s,
with over a million star positions plotted.
Newspaper here, turn to page 18 :-
https://cog-aap.s3-ap-southeast-2.am...Post202103.pdf
An image of the observatory building :-
https://hornsbyshire.recollect.net.au/nodes/view/1796
A view of the observatory from the intersection of Pennant Hills Road and Park Avenue :-
https://hornsbyshire.recollect.net.au/nodes/view/2484
An image taken perhaps during the observatory construction. The figure sitting on the ground is said to be James Short :-
https://collection.maas.museum/object/372786
An image whose hand-written caption reads, "The horse team moving the telescope from Pennant Hills Observatory to Hornsby Goodsyard for Goondiwindi'.
There was a solar eclipse at Goondiwindi in 1922 and I believe the entire astropgraph may have been moved there to capture the event :-
https://collection.maas.museum/object/372804
An image of the astrograph survey telescope :-
https://hornsbyshire.recollect.net.au/nodes/view/1712
Setting up the astrograph at Goondiwindi in 1922 for the solar eclipse. Would have been a big exercise to move it there and back:-
https://collection.maas.museum/object/372810
The construction of the temporary observatory at Goodiwindi with the astrograph inside for the 1922 eclipse :-
https://collection.maas.museum/object/372812
The temporary observatory at Goondiwndi in 1922 :-
https://collection.maas.museum/object/372813
The temporary observatory and accommodation at Goondiwindi where the instrument was moved for the solar eclipse :-
https://collection.maas.museum/object/372826
Images of the 1922 eclipse and information about the temporary observatory at Goondiwindi :-
https://www.slq.qld.gov.au/blog/tota...-1922-and-2012