ABC#052: Reach for the Sky - Astronomers of Laurel Hill

Man has been fascinated by the sky for as long as he has walked on earth.  Star gazing has been the hobby – and the profession – of millions of people from around the world. 

• One of America’s Founding Fathers David Rittenhouse was recognized in the colonies as being not only the finest astronomer in the land, but the finest builder of delicate, accurate astronomical equipment.
• Hannah Mary Bouvier Peterson was a popular author whose work “Familiar Astronomy” was the best-selling astronomy textbook in the 19th century. 
• Photography pioneer William Rau was tapped to be a photographer for the 1874 worldwide evaluation of the Transit of Venus, but most people involved in that venture would admit that photography was useless in capturing new information.
• Sarah Lee Lippincott, whose first husband was television pioneer Dave Garroway, became a beloved professor of astronomy and astrometry at Swarthmore University.