Eastbay Astronomical Society

Chabot Space and Science Center and
Eastbay Astronomical Society timeline
Compiled by Carter Roberts and Don Stone

13 Aug 1813	Anthony Chabot born in Presentation Parish near St. Hyacinthe, Quebec
05 Jan 1849	Charles Burckhalter (CB) born in Taylorsville, OH
1866	Burckhalter and his brother move to Truckee, CA
1875	Burckhalter and C.F. McGlashan (who interested Burckhalter in astronomy) plumb Lake Tahoe with a champagne bottle, get same figure (1645 ft) later measured by USC&GS.
1877	Burckhalter moves to Oakland
19 Jun 1882	Earle Garfield Linsley (EGL) born at Westmore, CO.
1882	Oakland Superintendent of Schools, Jewett Costello Gilson, having seen the 6-inch telescope at a high school in Philadelphia, decided that Oakland should have an observatory and began looking for a donor.
20 Feb 1883	Anthony Chabot letter to Board of Education offering 8-inch telescope and observatory so that "your educational department, and also the citizens of the city and other places, may enjoy the use and benefit of the observatory and its instruments."
02 Apr 1883	At the Board of Education meeting, the letter from Chabot was read by W.H. Jordan. A resolution was passed thanking Chabot for his donation and asking the City Council to permit erection of the observatory in Lafayette Square. At the City Council meeting, "the Committee on Education reported in favor of granting the request of J.C. Gilson and W.H. Jordan for permission to use one of the city squares for the purposes of the observatory and telescope to be erected and donated by A. Chabot, and they offered an ordinance to carry out the said grants."
16 Apr 1883	Oakland City Council passes Ordinance 922 giving Anthony Chabot permission to establish an observatory at Lafayette Square. Also another letter from Chabot to Bd. of Ed. giving telescope to them.
20 Apr 1883	Mayor J. West Martin signs ordinance 922.
21 May 1883	Ground breaking ceremony.
22 May 1883	Construction started. Cornerstone laid.
Oct 1883	Three telescopes arrive in Oakland on the same day; 8-inch Clark refractor for Chabot Observatory, 8.5-inch Brashear reflector for Dr. Wythe, and 10.5-inch Brashear reflector for Charles Burckhalter.
30 Oct 1883	Burckhalter observes partial Solar eclipse.
24 Nov 1883	Observatory open to the public. Anthony Chabot is first to sign guest book of Oakland Observatory. It was the desire of Chabot that his name not be attached to the observatory, but from the very beginning it was popularly called Chabot Observatory. In the first year, 1331 visitors were logged in the visitor register

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