Slough is a countryside town in about 30km from the center of London. William Herschel, who had been appointed to the Royal Astronomer, looked for a dwelling near the royal castle in Windsor and set up his residence which was called "Observatory House" later. Remarkable events of Herschels' lives such as William's marriage at fifty, his son John's birth and Caroline's discovery of eight new comets were all happened in this town and William even died in his residence here in Slough in 1822.

Observatory House before demolition

Later William's grandchildren and their grandchildren had lived in Observatory House. However, the building was demolished in early 1960s in spite of the preservation movement in vain, swallowed in the tide of urbanization after the World War II. At first the company buildings of Xerox were developed in the estate, and in 1990 they were reconstructed to the buildings of ICL, a subsidiary company of Fujitsu. Today a memorial plaque is the only reminder of Observatory House. To our regret, we almost cannot find anything remained on the renewed streets in Slough as the time when Herschel family lived.

William and his wife, and his grandchildren who died in Slough (John's children Alexander Stewart, Isabella and others) were buried in Upton St Laurence Church in Slough.

Please read "Memories of Observatory House" in the Archive.