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History of the Twin City Amateur Astronomers


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1960 - The Founding of the Twin City Amateur Astronomers1

In 1960 the group to become known as Twin City Amateur Astronomers was founded. John2 H. and Bertha3 L. Kieviet provided impetus for the new club after they moved to Normal (715 N. School Street) in 19574. Both John and Bertha had been very active in the Galesburg Amateur Astronomers5 of Galesburg, Illinois, with John only recently having served as president. This was a club whose members came from the local community, including Galesburg High School students and professors from Knox College. John’s work as an architect6 eventually drew him to the Twin Cities. Upon arriving in their new community, the Kieviets discovered much to their chagrin that no astronomy club existed in their new town. With the passing of the next three years, the lack of an astronomy club seemed to be a growing omission in light of the fact that so many space-related “firsts” were happening: Sputnik, Leika the space dog, the satellites Explorer and Vanguard, the selection of the Mercury astronauts, the Luna 2 hard landing, and the first pictures of the Moon’s far side taken by Luna 3. John and Bertha resolved to rectify the situation.

The Kieviets began by contacting Mr. George Sperry, recreation director for the Normal Parks and Recreation Department. It was their hope to establish an astronomy club under the sponsorship of the town of Normal. A meeting was set up with Mr. Sperry to discuss the proposed club. Mr. Sperry visited the home of John and Bertha on January 23, 1960, to discuss details. On January 30 a meeting announcement was made in the local newspaper, The Pantagraph, calling for “amateur moon watchers and star gazers” to assemble in the Normal swimming pool bathhouse “to meet fellow novice astronomers.” According to Mr. Sperry, “any person of junior high school age and over interested in astronomy” was invited to attend the meeting. The meeting was set for Thursday, February 4, 1960, at 7:30 p.m.

At this organizational meeting Mr. Sperry introduced Mr. Kieviet as the person best qualified to guide the new club through its formative period. Mr. Kieviet then explained what he saw as club goals. The main themes would be observing and the sharing of observations with each other and the general public. The club would be a social organization, and never a moneymaking endeavor. Dues were set at $3.50 for the first adult family member, $1 for each additional adult family member, and $3.00 for students. Dues would cover what small expenses the club would have. By way of Mr. Sperry, the town of Normal offered support for a club newsletter if such a newsletter was to be established. Sky & Telescope magazine was adopted as a benefit of membership.

John Kieviet was selected as temporary chairman of the club because the election of officers was pending. Mrs. Eileen Jetton7 and Mr. Lee Brooks were appointed to serve as a nominating committee, and Mrs. Judy Walker and Mr. Robert Courtney were appointed to a constitution committee. In other business, the 20 individuals present at that meeting agreed to meet on the first and third Thursdays of each month at 7:30 p.m. At this first meeting, the membership agreed to meet two weeks later to elect officers and adopt formal articles.

February 18, 1960, was the date of the first regular meeting of the club. John Kieviet was elected as the club’s first president; Henry (Hank) F. Janecek, vice-president; Judy Walker, recording secretary; Eileen Jetton corresponding secretary and treasurer; and Robert Courtney, librarian.8 Norma Fese9 suggested the name “Twin City Amateur Astronomers”. Norma attended the first few meetings of the organization but never officially joined. The first dues payments were collected at this time.10 A newspaper article making these announcements appeared two days later in the Pantagraph.

Figure 1: Pantagraph announcement carrying official club title on Saturday, February 20, 1960
Figure 1: Pantagraph announcement carrying official club title on Saturday, February 20, 1960

Under John Kieviet’s able leadership, the first year of the club’s existence proved to be very active. An attempt at monthly public viewing sessions was made and the sky – with it’s many and varied celestial events – was very accommodating. On the night of March 12-13, club members viewed a total lunar eclipse with the general public at Fairview Park. This was followed by an August 1 observing session featuring Jupiter and Saturn. Seven telescopes were used to exhibit the wonders of the solar system to some 200 attendees. Later that month, members watched the annual Perseid Meteor shower. On September 5, a total lunar eclipse and the Aurora Borealis were observed simultaneously. On September 20, club members viewed a late afternoon partial solar eclipse, and three days later the public was treated to another peak at Jupiter, Saturn and, this time, the crescent moon. October 8 marked the date for the first ever club trip to the Adler Planetarium in Chicago. On November 7, members successfully observed the transit of Mercury across the face of the Sun11. On December 1, two films describing the Moon and “featuring sound” were presented to club members and visitors.

During the first years of the club, there were only a few notable telescopes among the membership. Among them were a 6-inch reflector built and owned by John Kieviet, a 3-inch refractor owned by Robert Courtney, and a 3-inch Newtonian reflector owned by high school student David B. Williams. Nonetheless, the membership of this new and lively club made excellent use of very limited resources.

Figure 2: Club members demonstrate telescopes February 5, 1961
Figure 2: Club members demonstrate telescopes February 5, 1961

In addition to attending observing sessions at Fairview Park in Normal, at Oakland School in Bloomington, and at the homes of club members, John Kieviet encouraged TCAAers to prepare “Vital Statistics” for every meeting. These “Vital Statistics” (Julian date, moon phase, age, sidereal time, location of planets, sunset, end of twilight, and other current information) became a part of regular club meetings through the late 1970s.

During wintertime the Fairview Park bathhouse12 was converted into a recreation hall because bathers were not then using it. During the summer the cabana was not available and so club members met in any of a variety of locations – in the Police Department of the Town of Normal city hall, Fairview Sanitarium, Citizens Savings and Loan, Victory Hall, Felmley Hall of Science at Illinois State University (ISU), and Sherff Hall of Science at Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU).

Figure 2: First Annual Meeting at the Fairview Park cabana
Figure 3: First Annual Meeting at the Fairview Park cabana

The astronomy club had an auspicious beginning under the able leadership of John and Bertha Kieviet; the membership of the club (having grown to 23 by the end of the year) certainly agreed, for at the end of 1960 the club membership presented John with a gaveled plaque recognizing him as founder and first president, and Bertha received a corsage in recognition of her interest in and support of the TCAA. The first anniversary of the club was celebrated at the Fairview Swimming Pool cabana with a large photograph appearing in The Pantagraph newspaper the next day. During this first year of the TCAA, The Pantagraph carried no less than 15 articles chronicling the activities of the newly formed club. Thanks to David Williams,13 the next five years of TCAA activity was chronicled quite carefully in a club newsletter.


Next Section: The Years of Activity, 1961-1965

1 In an interesting side note, the TCAA was not the first astronomy club in the Twin Cities. During the early 1900s a small group was formed in Bloomington. See Appendix 1 for details.

2 b. October 22, 1908, Chicago, son of Nicholas and Cora Owens Kieviet; d. October 28, 1981. John is interred in the Park Hill Cemetery Mausoleum (west exterior) in Bloomington. Bertha was laid to rest beside him after her death.

3 b. February 24, 1912, Bremen Township, Cook County, IL, daughter of Ewald and Niesja Dyk Ziebell; d. October 6, 1994.

4 John and Bertha married on May 26, 1934, in Harvey, IL. They had two daughters when the club was founded, Valeria (18; later married Vernelle Armour; Valeria passed away on January 1, 2010) and Kora (13; later married James Searcy). There was also a son, Victor, who was stillborn in 1939. Both daughters spent their lives in Bloomington-Normal. Both John and Bertha were of Dutch extraction.

5 A newspaper clipping from the late 1950s provided by Vernelle Armour titled Astronomers Group Hears Description of California Telescope reads as follows: “A report on their recent visit to the telescope at Mount Palomar, Calif., was given Wednesday night by John Kieviet and Bertha Kieviet at the July meeting of the Galesburg Amateur Astronomers in the Lowell Whitsitt home at Abingdon. After the meeting, which was conducted by Kieviet as vice president in the absence of Ralph Sabetti, president, the members participated in viewing through portable telescopes. Providing the telescopes were Carl Sand, Harlowe Horein and Kieviet. The next meeting will be held Aug. 3.”

6 After graduating from Lindblom High School in Chicago on June 24, 1926, John went on to become a licensed architect. He did so following personal study; he never attended college. After moving to Normal, he worked for Schaefer, Wilson & Evans, Architects, 108 West Monroe Street, Bloomington, Illinois, for 16 years, retiring in 1973. He was frequently involved in the work of Bloomington’s Elks Lodge, the Loyal Order of Moose, and the Corn Belt Stamp Club.

7 At the time of this writing (December 2009), Eileen Jetton is 99 years old and still living in Bloomington, IL.

8 See Appendix 4 for a listing of major club office holders by year.

9 Norma Verlee Fese was one of the last surviving adults associated with the founding of the TCAA. She passed away on December 24, 2009 – almost 50 years from the founding of the club. She was 88 years old. Norma always enjoyed discussing “science, space and many of life’s mysteries” according to her obituary appearing in The Pantagraph on December 28, 2009. At that time Norma was a 38-year-old mother of three.

10In order of dues payment on March 4, 1960, here are the founding members of the club as they appear in the minutes of that meeting: Owen Brooks, Taylor Cisco, Robert Courtney, Spencer DePauw, Jim Engan, Henry Janecek, Eileen Jetton, Bertha Kieviet, John Kieviet, Mary Knickerbocker, Sue Remsburg, Pearl Reynolds, Judy Walker, and David Williams. Warren Light was present at this meeting, but paid his dues on March 17 along with Dennis Soebbing, and Dan L. Hovis. Karen Mishler joined on April 7, Michael Ryder joined on April 23, and Wilma Dickman joined on September 1.

11Sue Remsburg Bassett fondly remembered observing the projected image of the sun and Mercury using John Kieviet’s reflector as well as Robert Courtney’s refractor (using an eyepiece solar filter) when she spoke about this event with the author on April 20, 2010.

12According to Kora Searcy – the Kieviets’ daughter – her father absolutely hated the word “bathhouse”. He insisted on using the word “cabana” whenever talking about this meeting location.

13 Years later, David would become president of the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) for two terms running from 2005-2007. Further, David would serve on the AAVSO Council for more than ten years during which time his efforts included the purchase of the Sky & Telescope building at 49 Bay State Road for the new AAVSO Headquarters. In addition, he discovered several variable stars while researching in the Harvard College Observatory plate stacks.