James Lick was a piano maker who came to San Francisco in 1948 and made his fortune in real estate. After a successful career there, he moved to San Jose and invested in farms and orchards. At one point he was the richest man in California. Upon his death, he willed a large sum of money to build the world’s first permanent observatory atop Mount Hamilton. The bequest also required him to be buried beneath it, which was a fun thing people could do in the 1800’s. He died in 1867, and was re-interred under the telescope in 1887 when the observatory opened.
All kinds of stuff is named after Lick in the Bay Area – two high schools, a freeway, and train terminal among others. He helped fund the construction of Golden Gate Park, the construction of an old folks home, and many other civic projects.
![62193febbe961a831d9fe02d_HLAS_JamesLick A portrait of James Lick. He has short, but tousled, dark hair and an extremely thick beard and no moustache](https://hereliesastory.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/62193febbe961a831d9fe02d_HLAS_JamesLick.png)
![6219403bd18e71b2aaa4981e_HLAS_LickObservatoryRefractor A photo of the telescope, shot from the floor looking up. Behind the telescope is the gridded internal structure of the domed roof](https://hereliesastory.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/6219403bd18e71b2aaa4981e_HLAS_LickObservatoryRefractor.png)