Professor Joseph Henry, Smithsonian Institution, to Leander J. McCormick, 1870 December 29

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An eleven page letter full of advice on building an observatory and a program of astronomical study from the beginning, written in response to a letter from McCormick dated December 29, 1870, and with the benefit of Henry's recent trip to Europe which included visits to several observatories. He urges McCormick to build a physical observatory, whose "primary object is to investigate the physical phenomena of the Earth and the heavenly bodies, in contradiction to an ordinary astronomical observatory which is principally devoted to the observation and discussion of the motions of the planets and the determination of the relative positions of the fixed-stars." He also emphasizes the new opportunities for research with a physical observatory due to the application of the spectroscope and other recent inventions; the importance of the study of emanations from the sun, including light, heat, chemical, and phosphorogenic emanations; other important areas of study aided by a physical observatory, such as the magnetism of the earth and meteorology; and the vital importance of the selection of the director of the observatory. Finally he recommends Mr.[Joseph Norman?] Lockyer as a candidate for the director of such an enterprise and the University of Virginia as a site for the observatory if erected in Virginia.

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