Photos courtesy of Vicki Gibson
Some of the darkest skies in North America are above McDonald Observatory in Fort Davis, where an array of advanced telescopes and research equipment allows astronomers from
all over the world to study the heavens. From its founding in the 1930s to the present day, McDonald has been at the forefront of astronomical research. The Observatory is
preparing to celebrate its 75th anniversary next May.
M C D O N A L D O B S E R V AT O RY
by Bob Miles
N
ext May will mark the 75th
anniversary of McDonald
Observatory, located some 16
miles north of Fort Davis just off State
Highway 118. It is a pleasant drive
along cottonwood-lined Limpia Creek,
past Davis Mountains State Park and
the Prude guest ranch. Then the road
begins to climb and twist upward until
4
it reaches the turn-off to the Frank N.
Bash Visitors’ Center.
The observatory is situated on
Mount Locke at an elevation of 6,781
feet, spreading over to Mount Fowlkes.
It is one of the stellar (yes, pun intend-
ed) attractions of the Davis
Mountains/Big Bend area. Operated
by the University of Texas at Austin
Cenizo
Third Quarter 2013
under Dr. David Lambert, director, it
offers research facilities for astronomers
from all over the world and education-
al opportunities to the public.
In 1926, a somewhat eccentric
North Texas bachelor banker named
William Johnson McDonald died, leav-
ing the bulk of his roughly $1.26 mil-
lion to the University of Texas for an
astronomical observatory to be named
for him. After several lawsuits by nieces
and nephews questioning his compe-
tence, the court awarded the University
$840,000; however, at that time the
University had no astronomers.
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