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| Alternative names | Springfield Telescope Makers |
|---|---|
| Organization | Springfield Telescope Makers |
| Location | Springfield,Windsor County,Vermont |
| Coordinates | 43°16′42″N72°31′10″W / 43.278278°N 72.519475°W /43.278278; -72.519475 |
| Altitude | 1,290 feet (390 m) |
| Weather | Variable weather – clear dark night skies |
| Established | August 12, 1920 (1920-08-12) |
Stellafane Observatory | |
   | |
| Location | Breezy Hill, Springfield, Vermont |
| Area | 3.5 acres (1.4 ha) |
| Built | 1923 (1923), 1930 |
| NRHP reference No. | 77000107 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | 7 November 1977 |
| Designated NHL | 20 December 1989 |
| Website | https://www.stellafane.org |
 Location of Stellafane Observatory | |
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 Related media on Commons | |
TheStellafane Observatory is an astronomical observatory inSpringfield, Vermont, founded in 1920 byRussell W. Porter. The Pink Clubhouse was built in 1923 at the site by the Springfield Telescope Makers. The nameStellafane, suggested by Porter at the club's December 1923 meeting, is derived from the Latin wordsstella andfanum meaning "Shrine to the Stars",[1] and originally referred specifically to the clubhouse, but has since come to refer to all of the club's land and buildings on the summit of Breezy Hill, west of downtown Springfield.
TheStellafane Convention, a gathering ofamateur telescope makers andamateur astronomers is the longest running astronomical convention in the United States,[2] having been held nearly every year at the location since 1926. The clubhouse and observatory became listed on theNational Register of Historic Places in 1977, and became aNational Historic Landmark in 1989, in recognition of the club's pioneering role in the popularization of astronomy and the amateur construction of telescopes.[3][4]
Russell Porter was born in Springfield in 1871, and in 1919, upon returning to the town, began constructing telescopes with the assistance of employees and equipment from the factories in Springfield. The Springfield Telescope Makers Club grew out of an instructional class on how to make telescopes that was started by Porter the following year, on 12 August 1920.
On December 7, 1923 (101 years ago) (1923-12-07), the members of this small group held their first meeting, deciding to build a clubhouse[5][6] on a 3.5-acre (1.4 ha) plot belonging to Porter on the 1,270-foot (390 m) summit of Breezy Hill outside of town.[7]
The original 20-by-24-foot (6.1 by 7.3 m) clubhouse, with an 11-by-13-foot (3.4 by 4.0 m) ell added in 1926, included a meeting room, a kitchen, a workshop, and bunk rooms on the second floor. The building incorporated a polarCassegrain telescope, atransit telescope (no longer functional), asolar telescope, and asundial on the south wall.[citation needed]
Besides the historic Stellafane "pink clubhouse", the original site includes Porter's uniquely designed Porter Turret Telescope, a 12-inch (300 mm; 30 cm) f/17Newtonian reflector built in 1930, consisting of anequatorially rotated concrete dome with the telescope mounted on the outside, with the observer on the inside working in heated comfort.[citation needed]
In 2017, the SimoniSpectrohelioscope Solar Observatory was constructed near the Turret Telescope, named after long-time convention attendee Andrew E. Simoni (1918–2013).[citation needed]
Stellafane West is still the location where the Springfield Telescope Makers hold most of their meetings and telescope competitions.[citation needed]
Although the amateur telescope competition and display is still held on the original site around the clubhouse, most of the convention activities since the 1980s have taken place at Stellafane East, an annex to the original land about1⁄4 mile (400 m) away.[8]
Stellafane East includes the more recent McGregor Observatory, built between 1986 and 1991, which boasts a 13-inch (330 mm; 33 cm)Schupmann telescope, the Breuning Domed Observatory built in the early 2000s, the Flanders Pavilion, built in 2005 and named after founding club member Ernest Flanders, the "Amphitheater" hillside presentation area, the "Bunkhouse", which contains radio communications equipment, and several other buildings on the eastern site.[8]
Over 10 acres (4.0 ha) of land at Stellafane East are reserved as a camping area, with plots for tents, campers, and RVs to reside during the multi-day convention and other gatherings.[citation needed]
The Stellafane Convention is held every year on the club's land and buildings on the summit of Breezy Hill.[9] It was started by Porter and the Springfield Telescope Makers in 1926, as an occasion for some 20 amateur telescope makers to compare telescopes and exchange ideas. It has since become Thousands of amateur telescope makers from all over the world gather to share their innovations, join in competitions, and enjoy the night sky. The convention is generally held over the weekend of thenew moon closest to the height of thePerseid meteor shower, usually in early August.[citation needed]
The convention has been held nearly every summer since 1926, with the exceptions of:
The convention has been attended by several notable figures in the fields of astronomy and space exploration, includingAlan Bean,David H. Levy,Alan Stern,Clyde Tombaugh, and Samuel D. Hale, grandson ofGeorge Ellery Hale.
Media related toStellafane at Wikimedia Commons
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