In 1841 several naval officers

In 1841 several naval officers including Admiral Milne, Captain Basil Hall and Captain Dall campaigned for a time ball to be set up on the Calton Hill which would supply the time to captains of ships in the Firth of Forth.

To assist the campaign Captain Dall had a brass model made based on the Greenwich time ball. In 1846 the Astronomer Royal for Scotland Professor Charles Piazzi Smyth gave his support to the project as he knew the benefits a time signal would bring, having operated a time ball when working at the Cape of Good Hope observatory.

In 1848 although the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce applied to the Admiralty for a time ball to be erected on the Nelson Monument, the request was turned down as it was felt the time signal would only be of local interest.

The government finally agreed to supply funds for the project in 1850. The time ball was finally built and erected by Maudslay, Sons & Field in 1853.

The Astronomer Royal George Biddell Airy took a great deal of interest in the Nelson Monument time ball and kept in touch with Professor Charles Piazzi Smyth regarding the it’s performance.

Photograph of the lifting machinery courtesy of Roger Kinns of the Maudslay Society.