POWERHOUSE COLLECTION

WJ Macdonnell at the Gardonal Observatory 1907

Object No. P3549-175

In this photograph we see William John Macdonnell sitting next to a 4 ¾-inch telescope installed at his 'Gardonal Observatory'. Macdonnell, a keen amateur astronomer, had set up this observatory in the backyard of his home in Shadforth Street in the Sydney suburb of Mosman. The photograph was taken on the 15th December, 1907 and shows the observatory telescope, made by Parkes of Birmingham. It had a 72-inch focus and is here fitted with a Thorp solar eyepiece. Macdonnell had a keen interest in astronomy and, as early as 1874, was one of four amateurs invited by H.C. Russell to take part in the Transit of Venus observations. Macdonnell was also a member of the Astronomical Section of the Royal Society of New South Wales from its inception in 1876, a member of the Royal Astronomical Society from 1873, until the 1890s and a founding member of the NSW branch of the British Astronomical Association. This rare image is a significant record of some of the amateurs who played an important role in shaping Australia's early scientific history. Geoff Barker, Curatorial, October 2007 Andrew Jacob, Curator, May 2022 References Haynes, Raymond, Haynes, Roslynn, Malin, David, McGee, Richard, Explorers of the Southern Sky, Cambridge University Press, 1996 Holland, J., 'Microscopical Discoveries', Macleay Museum Newsletter, Issue 2, 2004, p.5 Orchiston, W., William John Macdonnell and the development of astronomy in New South Wales, Journal of the British Astronomical Association, vol.111, no.1, p.13-25 Russell, H., C., Observations of the Transit of Venus, 9 December, 1874; made at Stations in New South Wales, Charles Potter, Government Printer, 1892