Caroline Herschel (1750-1848)

Although Caroline Herschel was born into a German family of musicians, her mother thoroughly disapproved of any education for girls.  Caroline was a real life Cinderella downtrodden with housework and chores until at age 22, her brother William invited her to live with him in England.  He, too, needed a housekeeper--and a singer for his choir.

However, unlike his mother, he soon recognized a thirst for learning in Caroline and taught her mathematics (algebra, trigonometry, geometry) and English.  His hobby in astronomy led to his making powerful telescopes on his own, which Caroline learned to do as well.  When William became famous for discovering Uranus, he became a full-time astronomer with Caroline as his apprentice.  At age 36, she discovered her first comet. She received a salary from King George III as an assistant astronomer. She continued to discover more comets as well as complete an ambitious catalogue of currently known stars. 

Later, she would apprentice William's son, John Herschel, who became famous astronomer as well.  Together, they completed a catalogue of 2500 nebulae, which earned a Gold Medal from the Royal Astronomical Society.  She was also awarded a Gold Medal for Science by the King of Prussia.

Her tombstone carries an epitaph she wrote herself:

"The eyes of her who is glorified here below turned to the starry heavens."

Agnes Scott College

University of St. Andrews, Scotland

Cometography

Caroline Herschel's deep sky objects