Mills Observatory
Mills Observatory is the first purpose-built public astronomical observatory in the UK, located on the summit of Balgay Hill in Dundee, Scotland. Built in 1935, the observatory is classically styled in sandstone and has a distinctive 7 m dome, which houses a Victorian refracting telescope, a small planetarium, and display areas. The dome is one of two made from papier-mâché to survive in the UK, the other being at the Godlee Observatory. The observatory is currently operated by Leisure & Culture Dundee.
History
Initial plans
The history of the observatory starts with John Mills, a manufacturer of linen and twine in the city of Dundee, and a keen amateur astronomer. As a young man and a member of the Original Secession Kirk, he had been greatly influenced by the Reverend Thomas Dick, philosopher and author of a number of books on Astronomy and Christian Philosophy. Dr Dick attempted to harmonize science and religion, and believed that the greatness of God could best be appreciated by the study of astronomy, to which he devoted his life after a period as an ordained minister at Methven. He advocated that every city should have public parks, public libraries and a public observatory.Mills built his own private observatory on the slopes of Dundee Law, near what is now Adelaide Place. An old print still exists showing the ruins of the building minus its dome. There would appear to have been, in addition to the main telescope, a transit room, and what was probably a study to record and write up his observations. The fact that he had a transit instrument signifies that he must have been doing timings of the passage of stars across the meridian, and was not just a casual observer. One of John Mills' telescope is on display in the Visitor Centre attached to the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh. It is a brass instrument manufactured by George Lowden, a Dundee instrument-maker of that period, who supplied Mills with a number of his instruments.
When Dundee Town Council received the bequest they were in something of a quandary. There was no precedent for any bequest of this nature, and their first thought was to offer the money to the University College, Dundee, in the hope that they would be able to fulfil its terms. They, in turn, sought expert opinion from, among others, the Royal Greenwich Observatory, regarding the feasibility of such a project. The advice they received envisaged that only very limited public access would be possible. Evidently the college decided that the project did not fit into their plans, so they declined the offer. A Trust was then set up with the Town Council, and plans were drawn up to build the Observatory on the summit of Dundee Law. However, the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 put the whole project in pause, and the site it was intended to occupy was instead reserved for the War Memorial, which was erected after the end of hostilities. No further progress was made during the 1920s.
The onset of the Depression in the 1930s caused the matter to be raised once again, since it was felt that the project would provide much-needed work for the depressed building industry. Professor Sampson, Astronomer Royal for Scotland, was brought in as consultant. After examining several sites including the Dundee Law, Stobsmuir, Reres Hill in Broughty Ferry and a site close to King's Cross Hospital, he came down strongly in favour of Balgay Hill as being by far the most suitable site, both in terms of astronomical suitability and for public access. This decision has stood the test of time, since other observatories have had their seeing conditions ruined by sodium lighting and other forms of modern pollution.
The concept of a public observatory is, in a way, a contradiction in terms, since by definition, an observatory should be as far away from the public as possible. Most of the modern research observatories are situated on mountain-tops or desert areas. However, the geography of Dundee is unique, in that it has Balgay Hill overlooking a river estuary, protected from the main lights of the city by trees which also help to provide a purer atmosphere, and at the same time very accessible to the public. Around 40% of all nights are observable from the observatory.
Planning, construction and opening
collaborated with James MacLellan Brown, the City Architect, in designing a much more modern building than the one originally planned before the war. The structure is of sandstone blocks quarried from Leoch, near Rosemill. Initially planned to open in the summer of 1934 but pushed back to the autumn as a result of problems surrounding the adjustment of the dome, it was formally opened by Professor Sampson on 28 October 1935, and presented to the Town Council by Mr. Milne of the Mills Trust in the presence of Lord Provost Buist.A message of congratulation was sent by the Astronomer Royal at Greenwich, Sir H. Spencer Jones. Articles on current celestial objects were written in the local press by the Reverend John Lees, who usually acted as chairman at public lectures given at the Observatory by visiting astronomersThe first Curator was J. Grant Bruce FRAS, an instrument-maker from Newport, Fife. This was a part-time post, with a small salary. A full-time caretaker, George Dorward, was also appointed. Hours of opening were fixed, with special arrangements for visiting parties, and for qualified persons at other times. In the winter evenings, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays were for the public, with Tuesdays and Thursdays reserved for private booked parties. During the day and throughout the summer, visitors could view the scenery from the balcony, using two four-inch Turret telescopes by Ross, suitable for terrestrial viewing. These were excellent telescopes, also very suitable for wide-field, low-power astronomical work. Unfortunately these are no longer functioning and only parts of one remain.
In the dome, the original telescope given by the Mills Trust was an. Newtonian reflector by Grubb Parsons, electrically driven.
The dome itself, also built by Grubb, is hand-operated and made of papier-mâché on a framework of steel. Grubb also built other notable observatory domes such as the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh and the David Dunlap Observatory’s dome, in Richmond Hill, near Toronto.
The only part of the dome which has had to be replaced over the years is the shutter, where the papier-mâché perished and marine plywood was substituted. The 18-inch telescope was rarely used at full aperture, due to its tendency to be affected by reflections from street lights caused by the open lattice-work tube.
One of the problems that restricted the astronomical work of the Observatory during this period was that Balgay Park was enclosed, and the gates were locked at dusk. Special arrangements had to be made with the Parks Department to have a gatekeeper on duty during the nights when the telescope was in use, and for him to supervise entry and exit of public and cars, and ensure no-one was left in the park after the observatory was locked up. This meant that all children had to be accompanied by an adult. For this reason the Council placed the Observatory under the administrative control of the Parks Superintendent, under whom it remained until reorganisation brought a transfer to the Museums Department. The railings were removed during the War, since when the park has had "open access." During the years 1935 to 1939 there was one staff change - Mr. Dorward retired and was succeeded by Mr. McDonald. Shortly after the outbreak of the Second World War the Observatory was closed for the duration and the staff re-deployed to work of more immediate national importance. After the war, when the Observatory re-opened, the telescope underwent a radical transformation.
Professor E. Finlay Freundlich of St. Andrews University, together with his colleagues R. Waland, W. Threadgill and Curator Bruce, were planning the half-scale pilot model of the Schmidt Cassegrain reflecting telescope now installed in the James Gregory building at St. Andrews. This was of a much more advanced design than the standard Schmidt telescopes then in use. The Americans were also working on a similar design and the St. Andrews team were keen to be the first to have it in operation.
The problem was that they did not have a suitable mounting available in St. Andrews for the pilot model. They became interested in the Mills Observatory's Newtonian telescope as its mounting appeared ideally suited for their purpose. Permission was given by the Town Council for the Newtonian to be removed and the new instrument built in its place, on the assurance that:
"this would give Dundee a much superior instrument for direct public observation as the pilot instrument would be left permanently mounted in Dundee and available for public use."
1940s: Early years
During the next three years the telescope room was closed to the public while the work proceeded. Only the balcony was available and observations were carried out with small instruments. The telescope was completed in 1950 and described as "the first of its kind in the world." Unfortunately, it was purely for photographic work, which rather contradicted the above assurance.However, matters took a different course. The expansion of the city north and west and the development of sodium and mercury street-lighting hampered the work of stellar photography, so in February, 1951 Bruce and Professor Freundlich suggested that the pilot telescope be transferred to St. Andrews University Observatory, to the south, for better conditions and proximity to the workshops.
Mills Observatory would then receive in exchange the Cooke refracting telescope formerly used as a student training instrument and now surplus to requirements. At first the Town Council refused, and there was much correspondence in the local press, and indignation among local amateurs, that the university should interfere with the affairs of a public institution. Professor W.H.M. Greaves, had succeeded Professor Sampson as Astronomer Royal for Scotland, was called upon to advise on the matter. In view of the scientific benefits of the move, and lack of interest shown by University College, Dundee, he recommended that the transfer take place. This was done at the university's expense, and on the understanding that the two telescopes were on mutual loan.
The refractor had to be modified slightly to fit the Mills dome, and the dew-cap cannot safely be used. However, it proved to be a much superior instrument for public viewing than the old Newtonian reflector. Originally built in 1871 it was, at one time, privately owned by Walter Goodacre, president of the British Astronomical Association, who lived in the village of Four Marks, near Winchester. The telescope was used there by many famous amateurs involved in the work of the BAA and was always described by them as "the excellent 10-inch Cooke refractor". It is particularly good for observing fine lunar and planetary detail and although not basically designed for photographic work, the lens is so good that, with modern cameras, good photographs can be taken. The Observatory has also acquired a number of smaller telescopes over the years.