In 1884 the Ballarat School of Mines Council reserved a three acre site on a spur of the White horse Ranges known as Mount Pleasant. The Vice-President of the Ballarat School of Mines, James Oddie undertook at his own expense (said to be 4,000 pounds) to erect and equip the observatory. By 1886 seven rooms, a workshop and a cottage had been erected. The first large telescope built in Australia, the Baker Telescope, opened 1888. In 1913 the Council of the Ballarat School of Mines handed over the Observatory to the Ballarat East Town Council. A number of images as depicted in a newspaper. The top image shows the Carlver Equitorial Telescope. Middle left is a stained glass window at the observatory (donated by the Ballarat Courier), middle right is 'fire mist'; lower left shows Saturn, and lower right is 'in pleiades'.ballarat observatory, telescope, stained glass window, jelbart telescope, equalateral telescope, meterological apparatus, john brittain

A magazine supplement of the Ballarat Courier containing articles, images and advertisement. Images include: St Patrick's Day March, Eight Hour Day procession Advertisements include: Morris undertaker, Olivers, Miller, Hanrahan's Hotelst patrick's day, ballarat townscape, st patrick's day parade, ballarat st patrick's day parade, ballarat courier, hanrahan, morris, labour day, 8 hour day, eight hours day procession, st patrick's day procession, mrs captain ellis, picture palace, grenville college, berry united company ullina, lewis s. smith architect, bolster brothers, buninyong butter factory, aquatic carnival, george e. deeble machinery, cape nelson portland, jelbarts, jelbart's telescope, lin hillman, presbyterian church snake valley, miss a.m. abrams, berry anderson and co, j.a. reynolds, maypole, w.f. coltman, ballarat boot palace, ben nevis elmhurst, jonathan reeve, victorian producers co-operative, r.u. nicholls, f.w. barnes and son, ballarat steam laundryballarat water reserves, yarra river warburton, erskine river lorne, john bray, eden studios, lake wendouree