The Observatory

[The Observatory]

History

This observatory is the John Payson Williston Observatory, built in 1881 and given in memory of the Williston's eldest son. It was built to be ready for the rare transit of Venus in 1882. It is the oldest academic building on campus.

There was an observatory on campus before this one, however. It was built in 1853 and located on a knoll slightly north of Mary Lyon's grave until it was removed when growing trees made it practically useless.

The Images

All cards are available with both front and back scans, and comments about what is written on the front or back, either by the user or by the publisher, are included below.

H12462 Observatory
front "Observatory, Mt. Holyoke College, So. Hadley, Mass."
back Divided back, unused. #H12462 from The Robbins Bros Co, Boston, Mass and Germany

John Payson Williston Observatory
front Untitled view of the Observatory.
back Divided back, unused. "John Payson Williston Observatory Mount Holyoke College South Hadley, Massachusetts" Published by Mount Holyoke College Book Store, South Hadley, Mass. and The Albertype Co., Brooklyn, NY.

John Payson Williston Observatory (1881)
front Untitled view of the Observatory.
back Divided back, stamp box, unused. "John Payson Williston Observatory (1881) Mt. Holyoke College South Hadley, Mass. Oldest building in academic use on the campus." #MA-1403 and #56327. Published by Bromley and Company, Inc., Boston 16, Mass. No ZIP code in the Boston address implies this card is pre-1963.

The Observatory
front "The Observatory, Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass."
back Divided back, stamp box, unused. Scott Photo #CC649 Made in Germany.

117-2B Observatory
front "117-2B Observatory, Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass." #A18143 Inscription: "My school is [on] the other side of this fence", which means that the author attended The Old School House.
back Divided back, postmarked Feb 2, 1909 10am in South Hadley. Published by Blanchard, Young & Co., Providence, RI, USA and Germany. "All is lovely and the goose hangs high. We got our check today! Love. F. M. B."

The Observatory
front "The Observatory, Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass."
back Undivided back, stamp box, unused. Scott Photo #649 Made in Germany.

P920 The Observatory
front "The Observatory, Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass." #P920 Published by J. B. Sutcliffe, Holyoke, Mass. Inscription: "Dear Sadie: If nothing happens I will be down Sunday and we will go some where Lena."
back Undivided back, stamp box, postmarked May 25, 1906 7:30am in South Hadley Falls. Transit mark May 25, 1906 11am in Springfield, and May 25, 1906 12:30pm in Springfield's Highland Station.

The Observatory
front "The Observatory, Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass."
back Undivided back, stamp box, unused.

H12463 Observatory
front "Observatory, Mt. Holyoke College, So. Hadley, Mass." Sender penned in "Mt. Tom" label, with a pointer to the mountain visible behind the Observatory.
back Divided back, postmarked Oct 24, 1907 5:30pm in Haverhill, MA. #H12463 from The Robbins Bros Co, Boston, Mass and Germany. "Dear H- This is where peope [sic] go "star gazing" on moonlight [sic] nights. It is some distance from the Campus & across the street. Mt. Tom & Mt. Tom House in distance. Am too busy to write a letter. With love Cathie."

P920 The Observatory
front "The Observatory, Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass." #P920 Published by J. B. Sutcliffe, Holyoke, Mass.
back Undivided back, postmarked July 23, 1984 in Boston. "July 16, 1984 Dear Charlotte, Thank you for all of the postcards and letters. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to write back, but I've been so busy. [Chinese] is a big time sink. This weekend I managed to get away - went camping on Mt. Greylock. it was great. Next week - Quebec! (actually we probably won't get there 'til August: Can you come up and see me sometime? I hope so. I'll write more soon. Give everyone my love, Love, David." Written to Charlotte Reed.

The British Astronomical Association
front Addressed to Miss A. H. Farnsworth at the Observatory at Mount Holyoke. Postmarked Mar 31, 1937 6:15pm in London.
back Undivided back. "I am sorry that all Robert's Photograph[s] are sold. Lack of space for duplicates was our trouble also. Vera Reade."

Observatory
front "Observatory, Mount Holyoke College. South Hadley, Mass." Sender penned a crescent moon, a star, a ladder to the dome, and a person with a telescope on the top of the ladder. A Gridley card.
back Divided back, postmarked Sep 27 5:30pm in South Hadley. "Dear Mr. & Mrs. Dufresne, This is a picture of me studying the stars for inspiration in my poetry course. I am already reduced to desperate straits as you can see. I thought I'd better label it so Mr. Dufresne wouldn't think I was trying to pick apples. Am very much settled now & I think the girls are getting along fine also. Virginia has made many friends & Elizabeth is improving. Thank you both for a perfectly glorious trip. "Seniorially", Frances"