Friday November 30, 1894

Col. Wheatley (Bailiff of Parks) called with M^r Jordan (Super^t Greenwich Park) with reference to improvement of west boundary of Obs^y from point of view of Park. He proposed to access[?] portion of garden between existing fence & west wall of Lawn & west side of garden house. I told him that questions of modification of boundary should be considered as a whole & explained to him the modification I should propose round Physical Obs^y and on east side. It was understood that he would raise the question of the alteration of west fence.

Sir H. Thompson dined with me at R.S. anniversary dinner.

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

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D^r Dyson made an observation of the Sun’s Transit across two plumb lines to determine the Meridian line of the New Altazimuth. The result agreed closely with the line obtained by M^r Nash by Magnetic Observations. The two plumb lines were 37^ft apart. The Centre of the Sun & the second limb crossed the line 5^s too soon: giving an error of 2^s. M^r Nash’s line was compared with Col: Tupman’s & agreed well.

Frank Dyson, Chief Assistant

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RH says..... Christie's plans for the Physical Observatory had always required that a small parcel of land from the Royal Park be brought within the Royal Observatory's boundary. His tagging of this issue onto the question of improving the western boundary around Flamsteed House is decidedly sneaky.

30 November, St Andrew's Day, is the anniversary of the Royal Society's foundation in 1660: 2010 (or technically 1 December 2009 to 30 November 2010) will be a celebration of the Society's 350th anniversary.

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Lieutenant Colonel Tupman, mentioned by Dyson, had had a connection with the Royal Observatory in 1874, having organised one of the transit of Venus observing expeditions, but archives from the Observatory in Cambridge show that he continued observing at Hillfoot Observatory in Harrow.

Saturday August 4, 1894

Sir Howard Grubb discussed mounting of 26ⁱⁿ Thompson photo-equatorial. It was arranged that the 30ⁱⁿ reflector should be mounted on other end of decⁿ axis with its axis 6^ft from centre.

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

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RH says..... These telescopes were the ones being paid for by Sir Henry Thompson to be mounted in the re-sited Lassell dome atop the New Physical Observatory. The 30-inch has now evidentally entered the equation, and the scheme has come a long way since Christie referred to the "proposed" 26-inch telescope back in April.

Friday June 8, 1894

R.A.S. Council meeting. Presided at R.S. Club dinner, Sir H. Thompson & Sir H. Trueman Wood guests.

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

Tuesday April 24, 1894

Photoheliograph taken off the 28 inch. – Instrument rebalanced.

Frank Dyson, Chief Assistant

RH says..... There were several photoheliograph telescopes at Greenwich - used for photographying the sun, as the name suggests - but I'm not sure which one this was and how long it had been attached to the 28-inch telescope. An earlier entry shows that one Dallmeyer Photoheliograph was mounted on the roof of the New Physical Observatory, while the Thompson 9-inch photoheliograph was presumably still attached to the Merz 12.8 telescope in the Lassell Dome.

Wednesday March 14, 1894

Centred crown lens of 28ⁱⁿ O.G. in photographic position, the holes having been drawn to allow of this. The inner flange of crown cell is now very exactly concentric with outer flange of flint cell to which it is bolted. Wrote to Sir H. Grubb on subject of 26in photo-equatorial.

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

RH says..... In order to correct colour distortions, telescope lenses are composites of two different kinds of glass - crown glass and flint glass. Because the corrections for photographic use or visual use are different, and the 28-inch telescope was intended to work both ways, the two glass cells had to be painstakingly adjusted - as Christie's experiments over the last few months demonstrate.

The image accompanying this post was taken with the 28-inch telescope in Greenwich - with the assistance of modern equipment. It shows a clearer and more colourful image than Christie would have managed to produce.

Thursday March 8, 1894

Sir Howard Grubb discussed with me plans for proposed 26ⁱⁿ photo-equatorial (Sir. H. Thompson’s). He also examined with me the upper pivot of Great Equatorial which was fitted in some parts along line of bearing of friction rollers & concluded that it might be left alone for the present at any rate.

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

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RH says..... Howard Grubb had taken over his father Thomas's Dublin-based Grubb Telescope Company (later Grubb, Parsons and Co.) on the latter's death in 1878. He was recognised as a world-class telescope-maker and designed Greenwich's 28-inch telescope and Astrographic Telescope as well as the telescopes donated by Henry Thompson, including the 26-inch that Christie had ordered on 14 February. The Great Equatorial was an older telescope, now in its fourth decade and relegated to the role of finder telescope. However, I think that Christie was here referring to the 28-inch: the Obervatory's new "great equatorial" and mounted, as it is today, in the Great Equatorial Building of the Royal Observatory.

Friday March 2, 1894

M^r Donough left, having fixed dew cap adaptors &c on 28ⁱⁿ telescope

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

RH says..... This entry makes it evident that Christie's Journal entries could be written in advance or retrospect. Here he is recording work done at the Observatory, even though on this day he was away in Sandwich.

A copy of the letter to the Admiralty that Christie mentioned in yesterday's entry has survived in the Cambridge archives, with a copy of Thompson's letter regarding the donation of £5000 for a new telescope. This letter, dated 25 February 1894, makes interesting reading, as Thompson outlines his reasons for his generosity. The comments about astro-photography and what could be expected from public funding are particularly interesting. Also worth noting is his view that, despite all Christie's tinkering with the lens, the 28-inch telescope was best left simply as a visual telescope.

"As you know I have been desirous for some time past, that you should have a telescope for photographic purposes ... of far higher power than you have hitherto possessed. I had the pleasure of offering you one of my own which I believe you found useful, when I gave up my Observatory at Mount Side three years ago.
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But Greenwich will be wholly unable to maintain the astronomical fame and traditions of the past achieved by our country, unless it has a far finer instrument for photographic work than it possesses. For the means of astronomical discovery ... must henceforth certainly be sought to a very great extent, in the power & projection[?] of this method of drawing the heavens.
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I fear you are not likely to obtain what is really essential from the public purse just now: I venture, therefore, from my strong conviction of the importance of the subject and my deep interest in the advance of Astronomical Science, to offer you at my own charge, the cost of such an instrument as you think will render your equipment in this direction complete and enable you to devote your new and noble 28 inch refractor solely to the purpose to which it is best adapted. After much talk and some enquiry, we have I believe estimated this as amounting to Five thousand pounds, to cover all expenses."

Thursday March 1, 1894

Wrote to Adm^y forwarding letter from Sir H. Thompson (received yesterday) offering £5000 for a large photo-equatorial to be presented to the Obs^y. M^r Dyson entered on his duties (as Chief Assistant) this morning. Reported this to Adm^y.

Went to Sandwich this evening.

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

Began work as Chief Assistant.The Astronomer Royal went away in the evening till Sunday Evening. March 4.

Frank Dyson, Chief Assistant

Wednesday February 14, 1894

Distance between crown & flint lenses of 28ⁱⁿ O.G. reduced by 3/16in from 4 1/4in to 4 1/16in (relatively to visual position) and crown lens shifted upwards by 1/22in. Wrote to Grubb about proposed 26ⁱⁿ Photo-Telescope[.] Presided at Congratulatory dinner to Prof. Turner in evening.

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

RH says.....

As Christie reported to the Board of Visitors in the summer, he and his staff spent a long time working on the adjustment of this new telescope's object glass because of its novel design (see here for more information). The OG could be reversed and the separation of the crown and flint lenses adjusted in order to alter the correction for chromatic aberration necessary for either visual or photographic use. The maker, Sir Howard Grubb declared them "the finest pair of discs of their size which have ever been made". Grubb and his Dublin firm were now in business with Greenwich again, as Christie sent off his order for the new 26-inch telescope paid for by Sir Henry Thompson.

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Turner's slow goodbye to Greenwich continued through this month as he worked out his period as Chief Assistant and trained his successor, before leaving finally and formally leaving for his Oxford professorship.

Tuesday February 13, 1894

Sir Henry Thompson came to see the Obs^y with reference to his offer of a new telescope (11.30 to 4p.m.). He definitely offered a sum of £5000 for a Photo-telescope of say 26 inches aperture & 22^ft. 6ⁱⁿ focal length similarly mounted to the Astrographic Equatorial but of double the size, to carry the Merz 12 ¾ in refractor as a visual telescope & also the Thompson 9in photoheliograph and authorized me to enter into negotiations with Sir H. Grubb about it.

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

RH says.....

For more information about Thompson and the telescopes that he donated to the ROG, see the notes page here. The sum of money Thompson offered was very considerable, as Christie's slight tone of disbelief ("he definitely offered...") suggests. As a comparison, it cost about £2000 to build each wing of the New Physical Observatory, the Astronomer Royal received a salary of £1000 and the Chief Assistant £500-600. According to the Measuring Worth website, £5000 is the equivalent of either £408,104.17, using the 2007 retail price index or £2,322,817.37, using 2007 average earnings.

Thursday 4 January, 1894

Simmons reported that some one had broken open the Lower Museum Door & the door of the Contractors’ Office in S. Ground & to the had stolen some articles belonging to the Contractors’ foreman, but no R.O. property. Saw M^r Awdry at the Adm^y about this & other matters concerning the staff. Met Sir H. Thompson at the Athenaeum and had a talk with him regarding his offer of £5000 to the Observatory for a new instrument.

William Christie, Astronomer Royal

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Rebekah Higgitt says.....

Christie was enaged with frequent discussions with the Admiralty about the Observatory's staff at this date. He aimed to increase numbers, particuarly of higher-grade staff, and to ensure longer service among the human computers by making the better permanent members of staff.

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This day also saw a meeting with Sir Henry Thompson at the Athenaeum Club on London's Pall Mall. His offer was to pay for a large, expensive new telescope. Thompson, a wealthy and distinguished surgeon and amateur astronomer, had already donated a 9-inch photoheliograph telescope to the Observatory in 1891.