Adolf Repsold
Adolf Repsold was a German astronomical and scientific instrument maker, son of the astronomer and fireman Johann Georg Repsold. He established the company A. & G. Repsold along with his brother and it was continued by his son Johann Adolf Repsold under the name of A. Repsold & Söhne in Hamburg.
File:Círculo meridiano. Observatorio Astronómico de Quito.jpg|thumb|209x209px|Meridian circle at the Quito Astronomical Observatory. Built by Repsold and sons, 1889.
Repsold was born in Hamburg, the son of fire-brigade captain and astronomer Johann Georg Repsold who died in a fire in 1830 after which he took his father's place in the fire service. Along with his brother Georg Repsold, they continued their father's instrument business as A. & G. Repsold company specializing in the fabrication of astronomical and scientific instruments. Collaborations with Carl August Steinheil led to several innovations including a measuring graticule within the eyepiece. Repsold's instruments were widely in use in astronomical observatories across Europe and included the Oxford Heliometer. A universal instrument made by Repsold was used in the geodetic surveys of Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve. Repsold made his son Johann Adolf a partner in 1858. Repsold left the company in 1867 to his sons Johann Adolf and Oscar. The company continued in existence until 1919 when it was shut down.