The group of Vermont amateurs that became the focal point of the telescope-making movement in North America is celebrating a milestone anniversary. A ny anniversary involving a zero is noteworthy, but when it involves two zeros it's time for a special celebration. And that's what Vermont's Springfield Telescope Makers (STMs) is planning for its Stellafane Convention this coming August. These annual events held atop Breezy Hill on the outskirts of Springfield, Vermont, have grown to become one of the oldest and most widely known gatherings of amateur astronomers in the world. It's something that the handful of telescope makers could hardly have imagined when they officially formed their club a century ago on the evening of December 7, 1923. The club's roots, however, go back several years to the summer of 1920, when Springfield native Russell W. Porter offered to teach a group of 15 men and one woman how to grind and polish telescope mirrors. It was something that he'd taught himself with the help of scant published materials during the previous decade. All but one of the men finished their mirī°FIRST CLASS The original group of telescope makers organized by Russell W. Porter (holding mirror left of center) gathered for a group photo in August 1920. Most of them continued on to formally establish the Springfield Telescope Makers in December 1923. sk yand tele scope .o r g * AUGUST 2023 61 ALL BLACK AND WHITE IMAGES: THE STELLAFANE ARCHIVE; ALL COLOR IMAGES: COURTESY OF THE AUTHOR; STARBURST: WHOLE HEARTED / SHUTTERSTOCK.COM; PICTURE FRAME: VECTORTATU / SHUTTERSTOCK.COMhttp://www.SHUTTERSTOCK.COM http://www.SHUTTERSTOCK.COM http://skyandtelescope.org