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Manuscripts

Michael Thacher collection on Mount Wilson

Description

Correspondence, photographs, and ephemera related to Mount Wilson and the observatory located there, collected by writer Michael Thacher. Correspondence includes letters from astronomer Harlow Shapley related to potential talks and appearances, book publication, and salary difficulties for scientists; and letters from a variety of astronomers involved with the Mount Wilson Observatory, either as administrators, visiting astronomers, or lecturers. The collection also includes a photograph album of black and white photographs taken by astronomer and photographer Ferdinand Ellerman; press photographs of Edwin Hubble, James Jeans, Albert Michelson, Seth Nicholson, and John Strong; postcards depicting Mount Wilson Observatory, trails, hotel, and views; and brochures and other ephemera.

Type
Manuscripts(Opens in new tab)
Date
1903-1970.
Call number
mssThacher
Creator
Thacher, Michael(Opens in new tab)
Provenance
Gift of Michael Thacher, September 2025, October 2025, and November 2025.
Restrictions
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.
Rights
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
Find out more
View in the Library catalog(Opens in new tab)
View in the Online Archive of California(Opens in new tab)

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    Postcards, photographs, and ephemera

    Manuscripts

    Six binders of Mount Wilson postcards, historical brochures, and other ephemera such as stickers, admission tickets, and flyers; related to the hotel and resort once located there as well as Mount Wilson Observatory. Photographs are also interspersed throughout the binders, primarily press photographs of the observatory telescopes, and astronomers including Edwin Hubble, James Jeans, Albert Michelson, Seth Nicholson, and John Strong.

    mssThacher

  • Image not available

    Ferdinand Ellerman album

    Manuscripts

    Black and white photographs of Mount Wilson taken by astronomer and photographer Ferdinand Ellerman (1869-1940) between 1907 and 1920. Images depict snowfall on the mountain, structures and surrounding woods, and views from the mountain.

    mssThacher

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    Correspondence

    Manuscripts

    Primarily correspondence, including a group of individual letters from astronomers associated with Mount Wilson Observatory about a variety of subjects. Authors include Olin Wilson, Halton Arp, Horace W. Babcock, William A. Baum, George Ellery Hale, Walter Adams, Ira Sprague Bowen, Armin Joseph Deutsch, Robert Kraft, Seth Barnes Nicholson, Robert Howard, and Allan Sandage. A press photograph of James Jeans and Edwin Hubble is also included with this group. There are also two photographs of Harlow Shapley, and 14 letters from Shapley to a variety of correspondents, related to potential talks, book publication, salary difficulties for scientists, possible TV series work, and other appearances.

    mssThacher

  • Sir James Hopwood Jeans and Edwin Powell Hubble at the 100-inch telescope, Mount Wilson Observatory

    Sir James Hopwood Jeans and Edwin Powell Hubble at the 100-inch telescope, Mount Wilson Observatory

    Manuscripts

    Sir James Hopwood Jeans and Edwin Powell Hubble at the 100-inch telescope, Mt. Wilson Observatory. Note in the hand of Grace (Burke) Hubble: "EPH and Jeans at 100 inch. Huntington Library"

    mssHUB 1073

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    Photographs of South Pasadena, Mount Wilson, and Mount Lowe Railroad

    Visual Materials

    Consists of ten photographs. Subjects include Major H. N. Rust, W. L. Hardison's home, Mount Wilson, and Mount Lowe. Areas of focus on Mount Wilson are Strain's Camp and Mount Wilson Observatory. Areas of focus on Mount Lowe include the railroad, Rubio Canon, Rubio Pavilion, the Mount Lowe Searchlight, and the Great Incline.

    photPF 220-229

  • L1.1 - Lighting, misc. - city lights as seen from Mount Wilson in 1911

    L1.1 - Lighting, misc. - city lights as seen from Mount Wilson in 1911

    Visual Materials

    L1.1 - Lighting, misc. - city lights as seen from Mount Wilson in 1911 - Copyright 1925 by Ferdinand Ellerman .

    photCL SCE 02 - 13524