1994 marked the centenary of weather recordings at the Maison St. Louis Observatory.
The Jesuits
first set up a headquarters in Jersey in 1880 but it was in 1893
that Father Marc Dechevrens
arrived in
the island and thought of building an Observatory here. A Swiss
national, he had previously been in charge of a Jesuit
Observatory in China and wanted to continue and develop his
studies of the weather. His superiors gave permission for the
construction of an Observatory and also a tower to house some of
the instruments.
Father Dechevrens wasted no time in starting his work in Jersey. A full programme of observations commenced on 1st January 1894 but it was not until later that year that the Observatory itself was built. The original account paid in November 1894 still exists, showing that the building cost a total of Ł531. The tower was also built in 1894 by a Belgian company and finished at more or less the same time as the Observatory. It was more expensive costing a total of Ł1,260 but formed a very impressive sight on the skyline above the Maison St. Louis (now the Hotel de France), standing 50 metres high and looking very much like a miniature version of the Eiffel Tower. With Father Dechevrens as it's Director, meteorological activities at the Observatory developed quickly; an annual summary of the weather recordings was published, Dechevrens himself wrote many scientific papers on a wide range of topics and he designed some new instruments of his own.
The outbreak of war in 1914 made the work of the Observatory more difficult when many of the masters and students left to join the army or returned to their own countries. The weather observation programme was able to continue but on a reduced scale and a brief resume of the recordings was published in the Annual Bulletin of La Societie Jersiaise. The original handwritten manuscripts from those times still exist but they ceased at the end of 1920 and, after a period of failing health, Marc Dechevrens died in December 1923.
From 1920 until 1924 no recordings were made but soon after
the death of Father Dechevrens, another Jesuit came to the
rescue. Father Christian Burdo
had
previously studied in the island and keenly interested in science
he championed the cause of the Observatory, effectively saving it
from permanent closure. Later in his life he became well known in
local circles for his archaeological knowledge. Recordings
started again on the first day of 1925 and Father Burdo remained
as the Director for a total of 8 years, although the number of
recordings was reduced to 3 per day, compared to the 8 per day in
the Observatory's heyday under Marc Dechevrens. However the cost
of keeping the tower in good repair soon proved too much and
after some discussion a decision was made to demolish it. So it
was that on 20th February 1929, the Jesuit Tower (as it had
become known) fell to the ground to be sold for scrap.
In 1934 another Director took over from Father Burdo and he
too had previously studied in the island, at times under the
guidance of the original Director.
Father Charles Rey
was a scientist with a wide range of skills and
was to remain in charge of the Observatory for nearly half a
century. Meteorology was his speciality but previous experience
in seismology in Madagascar led him to introduce a seismograph to
the Observatory, where it remains and still records, though it
underwent some modification in the 1980's. Father Rey was also
skilled in the making of instruments
and several
of those which he constructed are still in good working order
today. During the war his talents were put to another good use in
making crystal wireless sets, one of which was built intŁo a
pocket watch which he had a habit of looking at in the presence
of the Germans!
In 1954 the Jesuit training college at the Maison St. Louis closed but Father Rey remained as the sole occupant of the Observatory continuing his work with meticulous care and when Highlands College closed in the early 1960's he became the only Jesuit remaining in Jersey. In 1969, when the Weighbridge Gardens instrument site was removed to allow an extension for the bus station, Father Rey willingly augmented his recording programme and the Observatory became Jersey's official Health Resort station. It is these readings which appear each day in the national newspapers.
The States' of Jersey bought the Observatory in 1974, recognising it's importance in terms of a very long series of recordings but also recognising that the Director, Father Rey, would not be able to continue indefinitely and that plans should be made for the long term future of the Observatory. In the event Father Rey spent another 5 years in charge of the weather observing until he had the misfortune to fall and break a leg in December 1979. He was forced to retire and died in France in March 1981. During his lifetime a number of honours were conferred on Father Rey by the French government and others in recognition of his work in various fields.
Members of the Meteorological Department at the Airport helped out with the recordings when Father Rey left, to ensure continuity of the records, then early in 1982 Mr Syd Rogers took up residence. He had recently retired from forecasting at the Meteorological Department and following in the traditions of his predecessors has spent a lifetime studying the weather. The Observatory had changed little since it was built nearly 90 years before, so to make life a little more comfortable for Mr Rogers and his wife, some modernisation of the living accommodation was undertaken, though the main instrument room and other parts of the Observatory remain little changed even now.
Meteorological Department
Jersey Airport
March 1994