Observatory housing the Otto Struve Telescope at McDonald Observatory, an astronomical observatory located near the unincorporated community of Fort Davis in Jeff Davis County, Texas, United States. The facility, property of the University of Texas at Austin, is located on Mount Locke in the Davis Mountains of West Texas. The observatory was originally endowed by the Texas banker William Johnson McDonald (18441926), who left $850,000 - the bulk of his fortune - to the University of Texas to endow an astronomical observatory. The provision of the will was challenged by McDonald's relatives, but after a long legal fight, construction began at Mount Locke. The then-unnamed Otto Struve Telescope was dedicated on May 5, 1939, and at that time was the second largest telescope in the world. McDonald Observatory was operated under contract by the University of Chicago until the 1960s, when control was transferred to the University of Texas at Austin. Photo Credit: Photographer: Carol M. Highsmith
By Ken Bridges Special to the Herald Democrat Nestled in the Davis Mountains is one of the most important centers of learning in the world…
