Thomas Cooke telescope for RAS in 1865

 In 1865 the Royal Astronomical Society at Somerset House, Strand, London ordered a 4.25 inch telescope from Thomas Cooke &Sons. It was mounted on an iron pillar and had a driving clock.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

Northern Astronomy The Darlington Telescope

The story of the telescope begins in 1890, when the vicar of Eryholme, in Richmondshire, North Yorkshire the Reverend Walter Stewart, had it installed in his home, Ellcott House, in Hurworth near Darlington.

It was "a 5-inch equatorially mounted refractor" built by T Cooke and Sons of York.

It cost £374, (£60,000 at 2024 prices) and was regarded by one and all as a very fine instrument ,this was  a vast amount of money at the time.

In 1904, Mr Stewart, who was born in Hurworth, was offered a new posting in Longley, Gloucestershire. Because Longley is a long way, the telescope had to remain, and so Mr Stewart offered it to Darlington council for about £130 (£20,000 at 2024 prices).

It seemed natural to place the telescope at the new technical college in Northgate, built in 1896, but the college was still in 1904 £2,163 (£330,000) at 2024 prices) in debt and the councillors were in no mood to increase its overdraft for the sake of a telescope.

At the last minute, 29 of the town's leading citizens emptied out their pockets and scraped together enough money to prevent the telescope being sent to the saleroom.

They formally presented it to the town on November 8, 1904, and the following year it was set up in the college's back yard. I don’t know if it was installed in a small observatory or was left outside but covered up against the weather.

But its view of the skies was not good, and it was planned to move it to the college roof for "an uninterrupted view of the heavens".

But an astronomical advisor reported: "If the telescope is to be regarded as a pastime, then that position would be satisfactory enough, but if a scientific use is to be made of the instrument the position is absolutely unsuitable. The ordinary tram and other forms of traffic set up a great deal of vibration."

North Lodge Park, next to the college was dismissed as a site because town centre smoke would have obscured the night sky. So, a site at South Park was next to the bowling green was chosen

 

The telescope was installed in December 1906 in its wooden, revolving observatory. Students of the skies had to pay 6d (£3.00 at 2024 prices) each, and inform the park superintendent if they intended to arrive after the park gates were locked in the night. In February 1908, Professor Dixon, one of the telescope's supervisors, even started an astronomy class at the technical college to make use of the instrument.

But in October 1910, the class was discontinued because it had no students. Unfortunately it was reported in 1912, that "very little use is being made of the telescope", and following World War 1  there was even less. In January 1931, the Darlington and Stockton Times reported: "The telescope is seldom used now; in fact, very few people know of its existence."

At the request of Darlington Grammar School, which is now the Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College, the telescope was removed to playing fields off Abbey Road. There, the site of the observatory was not very popular with residents of Westbourne Grove. I assume it affected their skyline in some way.

More problems occurred in February 1951 when the observatory was broken into, but fortunately police recovered the stolen equipment a couple of months later in June of 1951.

I have no information following 1951and it would be over 20 years in 1979 that it was reported by Barry Hetherington then chairman of the Cleveland and Darlington Astronomical Society, that the telescope needed a major overhaul. This can hardly be surprising if it had been laying around for decades not being used.

The final and sad end to the story of the Darlington Cooke telescope was that  in 1992, there was a fire which destroyed the wooden observatory which housed the Cooke telescope. I don’t know how it started. After the fire a lump of melted metal was sold as scrap. Six months later, someone seems to have realised that this lump was in fact the remains of the Darlington Telescope!

There was some vague talk that one day a new observatory for Darlington should be built, the price of the telescope and observatory being around £50,000, at late 1990s prices, today that would be well over £100,000 but that that idea was quietly eclipsed.

                                                     www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

Cooke eyepieces for Devon in 1865

 In 1864 Dr  William T Radford of Sid Mont, Sidmouth, Devon purchased  from Thomas Cooke & Sons an equatorial mounting for his French 4.25 inch Steinheil telescope. He also purchased in 1865 two Cooke & Sons eyepieces for above telescope.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

Charles Pritchard and his Thomas Cooke telescope

 Charles Pritchard FRAS (1808-1893)  Hurst Hill on the Isle of Wight purchased from Thomas Cooke & Sons in 1865 an equatorial mounting for his Cooke telescope. I can only assume he wanted to upgrade the mounting for the telescope he had . 

In the late 1850s Pritchard purchased from Cooke & Sons a 6.75 inch telescope. 

Pritchard was elected Savilian professor of Astronomy at Oxford University in 1870. 

In 1882 he undertook the study of the brightness of 2,784 stars, this was an important  project at the time and for this work he was presented with the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1886.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

Thomas Cooke telescope and Worcester Sauce

 If you think of Worcester Sauce you may think of Lea & Perrins, what you might struggle to find is a link with astronomy. However in 1867 James Dyson Perrins (1823-1887) purchased a 3.25 inch educational telescope from Thomas Cooke & Sons York. 

James Dyson Perrins was the son of William Henry Perrins who joint founded the company in 1837 with John Wheeley Lea. He would help run the company after the death of his father. 

James was keen to increase the educational institutions in Worcester. He also supported the Public Library and many charitable institutions in Worcester. 

As is often the case I have no further information on what happened tom the telescope

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

 

 

The Astronomy Show

 Join me, Martin Lunn MBE tonight and every Monday evening from 7.00 pm-9.00 pm on the Astronomy Show on Drystone Radio, probably the only regular astronomy show on any radio station in the country.

 I will take my weekly look at the night sky and look at all the latest news in astronomy. There will be the astronomical anniversaries this week plus the A-Z of Constellations 

The Astronomy Show every Monday evening only on Drystone Radio live on line at www.drystoneradio.com DAB radio in Bradford and East Lancashire, or 102 and 103.5 FM and can also be heard later on the Drystone Radio Podcast.

 

Northern Astronomers the Rev J Chadwick Bates

 The Rev J Chadwick Bates (1826-1901) was born in Oldham on June 16^th 1826. He was educated at Manchester Grammar School which was founded back n 1515 and is still going strong today. Later he went to Queen’s College Oxford. 

He was ordained by the Bishop of Manchester in 1850. Between 1851- 1856 he would  move over to Yorkshire where he would have a curacy in Hull. He would then move back to what was then Lancashire to the village of Castleton where he would spend the rest of his days. Castleton is near  to Rochdale. 

Originally in charge of a small mission, he helped to fund for a new church, St Martin’s which was built in 1862. That church is still in Castleton today and is a conspicuous land mark in the village. 

Not surprisingly like many men of the church during the 19^th century he was interested in science, these interest included geology, meteorology and astronomy. 

In 1865 he had an observatory built, I believe that he built the dome himself which says something about the man. I cannot be certain if he built the rest of the observatory or whether someone else built it. The construction of the observatory was timed to coincide with the purchasing of instruments to be housed in it. 

In that same year 1865 he purchased from Thomas Cooke & Sons of York a blank glass disk. I assume that he fashioned this himself into a lens suggesting some pretty technical skills  I would assume it would have been of either a 3 or 4 inches in size. This was a fairly standard size for an amateur astronomer of the time. He also purchased an equatorial stand also from Cooke & Sons and also in 1865. The observatory had a transit room but I don’t know which instrument was located there. 

To date I have not come across any observations made by the Rev Chadwick Bates, this is not surprising as so many records from amateur astronomers just don’t survive today.

 He died on the 14^th December 1901 at St Martin's vicarage 

 

 

Thomas Cooke telescope for Cambridgeshire banker in 1864

 Algernon Peckover FRAS (1803-1894) was a banker from Wisbech, Cambridgeshire and in 1864 he purchased a Thomas Cooke & Sons 5.5 inch telescope. 

There were 5 astronomical eyepieces and it came with a plain equatorial mounting. The cost was £130 (today 2024 that would be £20,700). 

In 1865 he purchased a driving clock for the equatorial.

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Cooke Barlow lens for Blackpool in 1865

 In 1865 the Rev James Parkes of Adelaide Street, Blackpool purchased a barlow lens in a tube from Thomas Cooke & Sons  York. 

I don’t know what kind of telescope he had or which church he was vicar of as there appears to be more than one church in Adelaide Street in the 19^th century.

                                                     www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

OG theft in London in 1863

 On Saturday evening the 3^rd January 1863, a respectable clerical looking man, called at Mr Slater’s in Euston Road, and inspected the telescope which that gentleman exhibits in front of his house. He was particularly interested in the mountings, and also in the manner of  fitting  the object glass into their cells.

 After making several remarks on the grandeur of the Science of Astronomy, the wonderful works of the creator &c, he proposed to give Mr Slater’s assistant 5 shillings and sent him into the house to get change for a sovereign, at the same time asking Mr Slater to be so good as to call a cab for him. This was done, and he drove off “to the Paddington Station”. Scarcely was he out of sight, when it was discovered that the object glass of the telescope, which had elicited so much praise was missing. 

In great haste Mr Slater pursued with a Hansom and met the cab returning, the driver stating that the gentleman had suddenly recollected an engagement, and had got out in Portland Place. The object glass was one of 6 inches in diameter, in preparation for the Rev Professor Sellwyn.

 

Thomas Slater 1817-1889 was an instrument maker based in London

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Accident to Lord Rosse in 1864

We regret to hear that a serious accident happened to Lord Rosse on the 19^th March 1864, while superintending the felling o some trees at Parsontown, one of which in falling, struck him and rendered him insensible for a quarter on an hour. It is reported that he is progressing favourably.

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Thomas Cooke telescope for St John's Wood , London in 1859

In 1859 W. Mitchell of St.Johns Wood , London purchased a 3.5 inch telescope from Thomas Cooke. The telescope had a focal length of 4 feet and 4 inches, plus 4 astronomical and 1 terrestrial eyepieces, It cam with an equatorial mount. The cost was £60. In 2024 prices that would be £9.450. 

I have no other information at the moment about W Mitchell.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

Eclipse of the Sun in 1887 seen from a balloon above Russia

 The Russian chemist Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleef (1834-1907) travelled on August 19^th 1887 in a balloon to a height of 11,500 feet to get above the cloud limit to observe an eclipse of the Sun in Russia.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

The Astronomy Show

 Join me, Martin Lunn MBE tonight and every Monday evening from 7.00 pm-9.00 pm on the Astronomy Show on Drystone Radio, probably the only regular astronomy show on any radio station in the country.

 I will take my weekly look at the night sky and look at all the latest news in astronomy. There will be the astronomical anniversaries this week plus the A-Z of Constellations

The Astronomy Show every Monday evening only on Drystone Radio live on line at www.drystoneradio.com DAB radio in Bradford and East Lancashire, or 102 and 103.5 FM and can also be heard later on the Drystone Radio Podcast.

 

Cooke & Troughton telescope for sale in Ormskirk in 1968

 A Cooke & Troughton 5 inch telescope was being offered for sale in Ormskirk by W A Howe in 1968. There was also a 14 foot diameter dome observatory for sale. 

The fact that this was advertised as a Cooke Troughton telescopes suggest it was  a relatively modern instrument being a post 1922 instrument.

                                                        www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

Northern Astronomer Arthur Bennett and his Thomas Cooke telescope

Arthur Frederick Bennet (1871-1937) was by profession an engineer. The son of John Bennett ship owner of Grove House, Goole East Yorkshire. Although a Yorkshireman his astronomical activities were made while living at Leiston in Suffolk. 

He was apprenticed at Earles Shipbuilding & engineering Co in Hull. In 1902 he left Earls and became general manager  of Williams & Robinson at Rugby. In 1921 the firm amalgamated with the English Electric Company, where he remained until it went into receivership in 1932. His colleagues at Willian & Robinson presented him with a 3 inch Watson refractor telescope. 

He may have already had an interest in astronomy and hence to gift of the Watson telescope. 

He would soon get a larger telescope, it was sometime before 1924 that he acquired a  6 inch Cooke & Some telescope. I don’t know where he obtained this instrument from. We know that this instrument was used to observe  the transit of Mercury on May 7^th 1924. A transit occurs when a planet close to the Sun than the Earth passes in n front of the Sun. This only happens to Mercury and Venus. 

His main area of interest was the Sun and in particular spectroscopic studies of solar prominences. This as done using equipment attached to the Cooke telescope. In addition to solar work Bennett also used cameras mounted on the Cooke telescope to look for comets, asteroids and other faint objects. 

There were two transits of Mercury visible in the 1920s and Bennett observed both of them. The first I have already mentioned in 1924 the second in 1927. He did try to observe the total eclipse of the Sun on June 29^th 1927 from Leyburn in Yorkshire. Sadly it was cloudy. His solar observations would carry on until 1929. On of his last major contributions were of observations of Nova Hercules in  1934 which had been discovered by JPM Prentice 

Arthur Bennett died on May 14^th 1937.

                                                     www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two Thomas Cooke telescopes for sale in Newcastle

 Two Cooke telescopes were being offered for sale in Newcastle in 1945 by Hartley Hopper. One was a 4 inch and the other was a 5 inch. I don’t have any information regarding the histories of these two telescopes.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

Second failure of X 15 in 1964

 On August 14^th 1964 the second X -15 craft suffers a mission failure when its nose wheel is prematurely released some 60 seconds following the rocket motor’s 80 second burn period. Pilot Rushworth managed to land the aircraft safely in spite of suffering visibility troubles due to burning rubber. The nose wheel released itself at 88,000 feet while the craft was travelling at 3,069 mph.

 Just prior to this the vehicle had reached atop speed of 3,580 mph. Maximum altitude during the abortive flight was 99,000 feet.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

The Super Sturgeon Moon

 In August we will see the first of four supermoons visible in 2024. 

This month’s full moon is called the ‘Sturgeon Moon’. This is the month when, in past centuries, sturgeon would have been caught in the rivers of Britain. They were considered to be royal fish and the first caught had to be given to either the King or the King’s representative.

When the Moon rises on August 19, it will be closer to the Earth than normal, and consequently will appear to be 7% larger than usual; a spectacular sight. If the weather is cloudy you will have three other chances to see a supermoon this year, in September, October and November.

The August supermoon will be 224,917 miles (361,969km) from the Earth. The October supermoon will be the closest full moon of the year.

www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

First asteroid discovered in South America in 1901

 On the 14^th August 1901 the asteroid Ocllo was discovered by D Stewart at the Arequipa observatory. The asteroid was named after the first Inca queen who was considered by tradition to be the daughter of the Sun. 

In addition this was the first asteroid discovered in South America and also the first discovered in the southern hemisphere.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

The Astronomy Show

 Join me, Martin Lunn MBE tonight and every Monday evening from 7.00 pm-9.00 pm on the Astronomy Show on Drystone Radio, probably the only regular astronomy show on any radio station in the country. 

I will take my weekly look at the night sky and look at all the latest news in astronomy. There will be the astronomical anniversaries this week plus the A-Z of Constellations.

The Astronomy Show every Monday evening only on Drystone Radio live on line at www.drystoneradio.com DAB radio in Bradford and East Lancashire, or 102 and 103.5 FM and can also be heard later on the Drystone Radio Podcast.

Anders Angstrum and Spectroscopy

On August 13^th 1814 Anders Angstrom (1814-1874) was born in Sweden. An astronomer and physicist, he pioneered the study of spectroscopy. The unit the angstrom which is used to measure wavelengths of light is named after him.

His studies of the solar spectrum led to the discovery in 1862 that hydrogen is present in the Sun’s atmosphere. He was also the first in 1867 to examine the spectrum of the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

Thomas Cooke telescope for sale in Manchester in 1952

 In 1952 a telescope with a 5 inch lens made by Thomas Cooke & Sons was for sale. It was the property of Mr H L Dilks who I believe had been a previous president of the Manchester Astronomical Society. As is often the case I don’t know who might have owned the telescope before Mr Dilks.

 Although the lens and equatorial mount, iron pillar and clockwork drive were made by Cooke the tube and finder telescope had been made by Wary. 

In addition to the telescope a small portable wooden observatory was also offered for sale.

                                                         www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

 

Small Thomas Cooke telescope for Macclesfield

 Thomas Davenport of Macclesfield purchased from Thomas Cooke & Sons  in 1864 a small telescope. It had a lens of 2.5 inches and came with a terrestrial eyepiece and leather sling case. I assume this was not for astronomical work.

Davenport later in 1868 purchased from Thomas Cooke a brass pillar and claw table stand and two astronomical eyepieces. I don’t know if this was to mount the telescope he purchased in 1864 or if it was for another instrument.

                                                        www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

S Delphinus observed from Manchester by Mr Baxendell

Mr Baxendell who came from Manchester read a communication on the variable star S Delphinus at the meeting of the Literary and Philosophical Society of Manchester on the 9^th November 1865. The report stated that he had seen the maximum brightness occur on August 9^th 1865 with a magnitude of brightness of 8.9, the average period between maximum brightness being 332 days and the minimum brightness being magnitude 13.5.

Mr Baxendell’s results were confirmed by Mr G Knott of Cuckfield. The colour of the star seen was reddish and is a more intense red colour as it approached its minimum brightness.

Note:- Today S Delphinus is known as a Mira type red giant variable star with a magnitude range of 8.3-12.4. The star returns to brightest every 277 days and lies about 2,700 light years away and its spectral class in between M5 – M8. It cannot be seen with the naked eye you would need a telescope to see it.

The Mira class of stars were first identified by the Dutch astronomer David Fabricius in 1596 when he saw a fairly bright star in the constellation of Cetus the Whale.

In 1603 the German astronomer Johann Bayer saw this star and in his Uranometria star atlas he allocated it the Greek letter Omicron. In his system the brightest star in each constellation was given the Greek letter alpha, the second brightest beta and so on through until omega the 24^th and the last letter in the Greek alphabet and the faintest star that can be represented under this system.

I should point out that this system does not always work according to plan, because sometimes alpha is not the brightest star in a constellation.

In the following years astronomers noted that omicron Cetus changed in brightness and sometimes could not even be seen with the naked eye. As this was the first time that this had been noted by astronomers the star was given the name of Mira which in Latin means the Wonderful

I don’t think that Joseph Baxendell discovered the variability of S Delphinus, but he was one of the earliest observers of this star. As the star is not one of the brightest of the Mira class of stars I am not t sure how much it is observed today. All that being said though, the fact that Baxendell saw S Delphinus  just goes to show how good an observer he actually was.

                                                     www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

Eclipse of Sun in 1133, death of Henry I and civil war in England

 One of the most celebrated eclipses of mediaeval times. The eclipse which occurred on August 2nd 1133, lasted for over 4 minutes and 38 seconds and maximum was at 12h 08m 38s it was total across a large part of Scotland and parts of North and East Yorkshire. 

It was considered as a warning of misfortune to Henry I of England as was recorded by William of Malmesbury. The predictions were correct because Henry I would die on December 1^st 1135 while campaigning in France apparently by eating too many lampreys or eels against the advice of his physicians advice. 

His death would lead to the English Civil war between his daughter Matilda and his nephew King Stephen.  

                                                        www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

The Perseid Meteor Shower - The Tears of St Lawrence

 The most anticipated meteor shower of the year, the Perseids, will peak on the night on August 12/13 when around 80 meteors per hour might be seen. At the present time only the Geminids in December and the Quadrantids in January produce more meteors. Some meteors will be seen a few days before this date and a day or so after.

Many people know meteors as 'shooting stars', but they have nothing at all to do with stars. They are tiny grains of dust that burn up when they enter Earth’s atmosphere. They travel at speeds ranging from 20 to 50 miles per second and we see the result of their destruction in the form of a brief streak of light across the sky.

Although a few sporadic meteors can be seen on any night of the year, there are periods when many can be seen, and these are referred to as meteor showers. These meteors are connected with comets. Comets are essentially very large, dirty snowballs travelling around the Sun. Comets leave a trail of dust behind them and if Earth happens to pass through one of these dust trails we see a meteor shower.  There are several major meteor showers during the course of the year.

The Perseids are connected with comet Swift-Tuttle, which was discovered by the American astronomers Lewis Swift and Horrace Tuttle in 1862. This comet takes 133 years to obit the Sun. The Perseid meteor shower has a very long history.  The meteors are called Perseids because if you track their paths across the sky they all appear to come from the constellation of Perseus.  It should be possible to see the Perseids after about 11pm, at first from the north east, but as the night goes on, all over the sky. 

An old name for the Perseid meteors shower is 'the Tears of St. Lawrence'. In 258 in Rome a Christian named Laurentius, sometimes referred to as Lawrence, offered the Roman Emperor Valerian 'all the wealth of the empire'. Valerian believed that he meant gold and treasure, but Laurentius meant the people of the empire. Valerian was very annoyed when he did not get the treasure he was expecting and had Laurentius murdered barbarically, by being roasted alive.

The execution was on August 9, and when, the following evening, the Perseids came through on schedule, people thought these meteors were tears from heaven, hence the name ‘the Tears of St. Lawrence’.

The story then goes forward to August 1535 when the French explorer Jacques Cartier was exploring the part of the ‘new world’ that today we call Canada. While camped beside a large river he saw the Perseid meteor shower. Knowing the story of St. Lawrence and being the first European there, he named it the St. Lawrence River. Thus this great river in Canada owes its name to a French explorer and a meteor shower.

                                                     www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

The Coleman Cooke telescope becomes the Rev TER Phillips Cooke telescope, then the Port Elizabeth telescope

William Coleman 1824-1911 was the owner of Solton Manor near Dover, he had a strong interest in astronomy. He erected at his residence The Shruberry, Buckland near Dover an observatory housing an 8 inch Thomas Cooke and Sons of York telescope which was made around 1891. His main interest was in double stars. 

He had work published in the Royal Astronomical Society Memoirs vol Iiii containing the measurement of his double stars made in the years between 1893-1896 using the 8 inch telescope. The list included 161 double stars. Another list published I the Memoirs vol Iiv for the years 1897-1899 looked at 131 double stars. Again using the 8 inch telescope. 

William Coleman also had a smaller 4 inch Cooke and Sons telescope  plus other accessories  which were sold by auction after his death. 

Following William Coleman’s death in 1911 his estate which was worth over £40,000 left numerous bequests including that the Thomas Cooke and Sons 8 inch telescope and observatory were offered to the Royal Astronomical Society who then leased them to the Rev T.E.R .Phillips who then re erected them at Ashtead in Surry. The telescope and original observatory would be moved again in 1916 when Phillips became rector of Headley also in Surrey. Phillip’s work on the planets and in particular Jupiter and Mars using the 8 inch Cooke was particularly important. 

The Rev TER Philips died in 1942 but the story of the Coleman/Philips telescope continued. In 1947 a group of people the Port Elizabeth Astronomical Society in South Africa wanted to establish an observatory there. By 1948 the money needed had been raised and the telescope went to Port Elizabeth. Originally housed in a run off shed by 1953 it was housed in an observatory and at the time was the largest telescope in South Africa used for public viewing nights. 

The telescope was used through until the 21^st century when a combination of lack of ageing membership and light pollution plus the age of the telescope meant that it was used less and less. With the possibility of it being scrapped. The the Antique Telescope Society came to the rescue and through their help Daniel Mobati of Oakland California in 2016 purchased the 8 inch Cooke telescope with the plane to have the telescope fully restored and placed in an observatory in the San Francisco Bay area. As of 2021 I do not know if the project has yet been completed.

                                                       www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

 

 

 

 

The Astronomy Show

 Join me, Martin Lunn MBE tonight and every Monday evening from 7.00 pm-9.00 pm on the Astronomy Show on Drystone Radio, probably the only regular astronomy show on any radio station in the country. 

I will take my weekly look at the night sky and look at all the latest news in astronomy. There will be the astronomical anniversaries this week plus the A-Z of Constellations

The Astronomy Show every Monday evening only on Drystone Radio live on line at www.drystoneradio.com DAB radio in Bradford and East Lancashire, or 102 and 103.5 FM and can also be heard later on the Drystone Radio Podcast.

North of England observatory with a Thomas Cooke telescope

 There is a rather splendid Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope at Rossall School on the Fylde coast of Lancashire. The school was founded in 1844. In 1860 a 4.5 inch telescope was installed in an observatory at the school. This would be one of the first public schools to have an observatory. 

I am not sure of the maker of the telescope but I believe it was purchased from the optician J B Dancer of Manchester. 

In 1904 Ralph Assherton, Lord Clitheroe of Downham Hall generously donated a 6.25 inch Thomas Cooke & Sons telescope to Rossall School. The telescope was made around 1865. I am not sure who the telescope was originally  made for or when Lord Clitheroe acquired it. 

The observatory was refurbished by Cookes and in addition to the telescope a small transit telescope of 2.5 inches which I believe was also made by Cookes was installed. 

The telescope and observatory was used until World War 1 after which it appears to have fallen into disuse It was used briefly during the early 1930s but then with the approach of World War 2 it again fell into disuse. 

After the war in 1948 the telescope and observatory were again refurbished and in 1950 it was described as being in perfect condition. The telescope was used in 1956 to observe the very close approach of the planet Mars that year. 

Following this the telescope was less used and sadly in 1962 and 1965 it would be damaged by vandals. In 1966 the Fylde Astronomical Society started to repair the observatory and telescope and by 1971 it had been restored to its former glory. 

Today the 6.25 inch Cooke or Assherton telescope can be used for views of the night sky as part of the Lawrence House Astronomy and Space Centre at Rossall School

                                                      www.theramblingastronomer.co.uk

 

  

Early photo of the Moon taken by John Phillips in York with a Cooke telescope

 John Phillips 1800-1874 was an eminent geologist. He would become the first keeper of the Yorkshire Museum which was built by the Yorkshire Philosophical Society in 1829, he also had a great interest in astronomy and photography. 

He brought a Thomas Cooke 6.25 inch telescope in 1852 which he set up in the Museum Gardens and in 1853 took some of the earliest photographs of the Moon. One very early one was taken on July 15^th 1853. He was a keen observer of the Moon and the Sun. He used the 6.25 inch Cooke to observe both objects.

He left the Yorkshire Museum in York around 1854 and moved to work at the University of Oxford firstly as deputy reader in geology and then in 1856 he became professor of Geology.

He was still using the 6.25 inch in the early 1860s, but as with so many Victorian telescopes after his death in 1874 it just disappeared and I have no idea what happened to it.

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A Cooke telescope for sale in Scotland in 1924

 The Scotsman Saturday 5^th April 1924 

Costly astronomical telescope with 5.5 inch aperture with equatorial mounting and case as new by T. Cooke and Sons York and London, with camera, microscope and special eye pieces which belonged to the late G J G Todd, Gowan Lean, Newhaven Road. 

The advert was repeated on Saturday 12^th April and Wednesday 16^th April

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Did Lewis Carroll use a Thomas Cooke telescope ?

 Edward Litton, appointed rector in 1860 at St. Andrew the Apostle Naunton, Cheltenham, was a noted writer on theology and a friend of Revd Charles Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) who is said to have stayed several times at the rectory. 

In 1866 the Rev Linton purchased a 4.5 inch telescope from Thomas Cooke & Sons, I wonder if the Rev Charles Dodgson aka Lewis Carroll ever used that telescope to look at the stars when he was staying with Edward Litton?

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William Ladd with Cooke telescope and electrical equipment

 In 1865 William Ladd (1815-1885) of London purchased a 4 inch telescope from Thomas Cooke together with 6 eyepieces.

Ladd brought and sold scientific instruments from 1842-1882. I am not sure if this telescope was for his own personal use or was for sale.

William Ladd experimented with electricity and from 1860 onwards electrical apparatus became a big part of his retail business.

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