Dear Member,
Today, on Founders Day, we mark our 90th anniversary. Oct. 15, 1932 was the first full day of Mount Washington Observatory‘s reoccupation of the summit, reinvigorating the scientific work that had begun late in the 19th century.
We recognize the dedication and achievements of our first mountain crew members: Joe Dodge, Alex McKenzie, Bob Monahan, and Sal Pagliuca. They started what has become 90 years of recording the world’s most extreme weather and building our upper-elevation data set, vital to researching our climate.
As we celebrate 90 years on the summit, the support of many friends and partners – including our many Observatory members – must be acknowledged in the celebration.
Charles F. Brooks, Harvard Professor of Meteorology, Director of the Blue Hill Observatory, and founder of the American Meteorological Society, provided weather instruments and training, taking the fledgling Observatory under his capable wing.
The Mount Washington Summit Road Company generously allowed use of its Summit Stage Office, the critical home for the Observatory in its early years. The Mount Washington Cog Railway supplied coal for heating, use of Camden Cottage, and a purpose-built structure that housed the Observatory for many decades.
The Appalachian Mountain Club permitted Joe Dodge to devote significant time and expertise to the endeavor. More recently, there have been other important collaborators, including the National Weather Service and Mount Washington State Park.
To all who help make the Observatory’s continuing activities possible, Thank You!
Sincerely,
Dr. Peter Crane
Curator, Gladys Brooks Memorial Library
