Delphos in Van Wert County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Leslie C. Peltier
Photographed By Duane Hall, October 1, 2013
1. Leslie C. Peltier Marker
Inscription.
Leslie C. Peltier. . A farm boy with a tenth grade education, Leslie Peltier, born near Delphos in 1900, achieved fame as one of the most famous astronomers of the twentieth century. In 1916, he raised $18 dollars by picking 900 quarts of strawberries on his father's farm in order to purchase his first telescope. His stargazing abilities led Harvard Observatory's Dr. Harlow Shapley to proclaim him "the world's greatest non-professional astronomer." During his 65 years of stargazing, Leslie Peltier discovered 12 comets and two novae and made 132,000 variable star observations. Peltier made his discoveries on his homemade "merry-go-round" observatory that rotated on a child's merry-go-round track and housed the optics from a 6-inch, f/8 telescope on loan from Princeton University. To recognize his achievements, the Astronomical League created the annual Leslie C. Peltier Award in 1980 to recognize an amateur astronomer who contributed to astronomy observations of lasting significance.
A farm boy with a tenth grade education, Leslie Peltier, born near Delphos in 1900, achieved fame as one of the most famous astronomers of the twentieth century. In 1916, he raised $18 dollars by picking 900 quarts of strawberries on his father's farm in order to purchase his first telescope. His stargazing abilities led Harvard Observatory's Dr. Harlow Shapley to proclaim him "the world's greatest non-professional astronomer." During his 65 years of stargazing, Leslie Peltier discovered 12 comets and two novae and made 132,000 variable star observations. Peltier made his discoveries on his homemade "merry-go-round" observatory that rotated on a child's merry-go-round track and housed the optics from a 6-inch, f/8 telescope on loan from Princeton University. To recognize his achievements, the Astronomical League created the annual Leslie C. Peltier Award in 1980 to recognize an amateur astronomer who contributed to astronomy observations of lasting significance.
Erected 2003 by Ohio Bicentennial Commission, the Longaberger Company, People of Delphos, and the Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 5-81.)
Location. 40° 50.615′ N, 84° 20.555′ W. Marker is in Delphos, Ohio, in Van Wert County. Marker is at the intersection of W. Second Street and N. Jefferson Street, on the left when traveling west on W. Second Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 309 W Second Street, Delphos OH 45833, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on July 22, 2023. It was originally submitted on October 3, 2013, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas. This page has been viewed 1,003 times since then and 58 times this year. Last updated on May 24, 2018, by Michael Baker of Lima, Ohio. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on October 3, 2013, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas. 5. submitted on July 10, 2023, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
