Lee A. Farnsworth, Jr.

There are lots of names that stand out from the design and construction era here on Palomar. Often lost in their shadows are the people who actually made things happen on the mountain by making roads, welding steel, laying pipe and more.

One of those people was Lee A. Farnsworth, Jr. Lee worked here, driving a tractor and doing other jobs, from around the very beginning of the observatory up until the completion of the construction phase in 1949.

During his time at Palomar Observatory Lee documented a lot of history through his photos, letters and other things. I have had the pleasure to meet some of his family which has graciously allowed me to digitize some of his collection. It is a vast treasure trove of history that displays common every-day life on Palomar and provides an insiders look at the people, tools and techniques of the construction of the observatory.

There is a lot to go though and from time to time I will be sharing some of it here. In case you hadn't guessed, the photo above is a zoom of the photo below of Lee on a tractor in front of "Utility Hill" here at the observatory.

Thanks go out the Lee's family who have given me a look into their family history and have allowed me to share it with the outside world.