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Temple Chevallier - Early Astronomy
A black and white architects rendition of how Durham Observatory would look when completed. 1839
Illustration of male students studying in the library of Durham University in 1832

1833

Teaching commences in the newly founded Durham University, including lessons in Natural Philosophy, the closest thing at the time to modern science. It is largely amateur and there are few Scientific Journals. University College and Kings College in London are pioneering science teaching. UCL which opened its doors in 1828, has professors in Chemistry, Physics and Botany. Johnston, a chemist trained in Glasgow where science is booming, arrives in Durham, encouraging the teaching of science.

Portrait of Temple Chevallier

1834

Temple Chevallier arrives from Cambridge with experience to his name. He is a fellow of Pembrooke College Oxford, a tutor at Catherine Hall, and a parish priest, invited to Durham by Archdeacon Charles Thorpe, warden of the University. He comes with the intention of teaching divinity, but within a year takes the title of Professor of Mathematics. Despite his new vocation, he retained his link with religion, believing in cultivating his mind, only so that he might better appreciate God's creation.

A sketch by Cuthbert Bede, a student at Durham University in the 1840s.

1836

The first Durham Graduates include 3 B.A.s in Mathematics and Physical Sciences

A black and white architects rendition of how Durham Observatory would look when completed. 1839

1838

Chevallier created an engineering class, eventually choosing his first three ‘Observers’ from its graduates for his observatory. He believed in mastering a natural progression of subjects in mathematics, beginning with geometry, before using mathematical reasoning to explain physical concepts, such as time, space, and motion. He also believed they should be exposed early to more exciting elements of physical science to 'render the study less repulsive'.