Historical Figures Photo Gallery
Robert Reynolds McMath
Robert McMath, with no formal education in astronomy, built the MHO and later went on to become a Professor of Astronomy at the University of Michigan, President of the American Astronomical Society from 1952 through 1954, member of the Royal Astronomical Society, member of the National Academy of Sciences, and a member of the American Philosophical Society, amongst many pr
Helen Dodson-Prince
Helen Dodson-Prince came to the MHO in 1947 as a professor of astronomy at U-Mich. She is credited with the success of the MHO, and published over 176 research papers including the 1971 comprehensive flare index (CFI) still in use today.
Francis McMath
Francis McMath was the president of the Canadian Bridge Company, and was introduced to astronomy, along with his son Robert, by Willard Pope. his company vice-president. Along with his son and Judge Hulbert they first built an observatory in Clarkston, MI, and later built the MHO in Lake Angelus.
Austin Keith Pierce
Austin Keith Pierce began his association with Robert McMath in 1945, when shortly after receiving his Ph.D at Berkeley, Leo Goldberg brought him to U of M and then to the MHO, where, “His prowess with instrumentation led to mapping of the infrared solar spectrum with unprecedented accuracy.”[ The construction of the solar telescope at Kitt Peak was completed by Pierce while he
Leo Goldberg
Leo Goldberg, an astronomer just three years out of Harvard, came to work at the MHO in 1941, and assisted in the bombsight development, and later became the chairman of the U of M Astronomy Department in 1946.
Henry Schoolcraft Hulbert
Judge Hulbert was a Wayne County judge for nearly 50 years, and collaborated with the McMaths to finance and build the MHO.