Backyard Voyager
Telescope History
Thomas Grubb, who, along with his son, Howard, contributed at least as much to the world of astronomy as anyone in the nineteenth century and beyond. In one incarnation or another, their company produced telescopes for roughly 150 years, beginning in 1833 and ending in 1985 when Grubb Parsons produced the optics for their last telescope, the 4.2m William Herschel Telescope, largest of the Isaac Newton Group at the Canarian Observatories. It was, in fact, the largest telescope in western Europe. More...
In 1950 Tom Cave began the Cave Optical Company in his garage in Long Beach California. Over the next thirty years Cave Optical would produce over 53,000 mirrors and 15,000 complete telescopes. Although the company pioneered the mass production of telescopes, Cave Optical became known for the quality of their mirrors and the overall quality of the telescopes and mounts. Their reputation led to the production of observatory class telescopes and government contracts, but their main focus was always the production of medium to large ... More... 
The Clark family built their first telescope in 1844 when the eldest son George brought home a broken dinner bell from school, and melted the metal down to create a mirror for a reflecting telescope. His father, Alvan, became so interested in the project that telescope creation became a hobby that within two years evolved into a family business that endurd for nearly a hundred years. More... Carl Zeiss
Celestron International
Coulter Optical Company
Questar
Meade
Guan Shen Optical (GSO)
