seventy-nine years of leasing office space from the Royal Astronomical Society, in Burlington House, Piccadilly, London the association moved out. History In October 1890, the BAA was formed to support amateur astronomers in the UK. In many ways it is a counterpart to the Royal Astronomical Society - which primarily supports professional observers - and the two organisations have long shared the same premises. The idea for this organisation was first publicly proposed by Irish astronomer William H. S. Monck in a letter published in The English Mechanic on July 12. Playing a significant role in the founding of the Association was English astronomer E. Walter Maunder, with the help of his brother Frid Maunder and William H. Maw. The first meeting of the Association was held on 1890 October 24, with 60 of the initial 283 members in attendance. Initially it was decided to run the association with a provisional 48-member Council that included four women: Margaret Huggins, Elizabeth Brown, Agnes Clerke and Agnes Giberne. The society formed several observing Sections for specialised topics in astronomy. Elizabeth Brown, possibly the only woman in England at the time to own her own observatory, became Director of the Solar Section. The Association was presented with or bequeathed various astronomical instruments, but lacked the funds to build their own observatory. A total of 477 instruments were acquired during the first 117 years since the Association was founded. Eclipse Expeditions In addition to members making independent arrangements there have been several more or less officially organised expeditions to observe several total solar eclipses in various parts of the World. These include:- 1896 to Vadsø, Norway for the eclipse of 9 August. 1898 to India for the eclipse of 22 January. 1900 to the United States, Portugal, Spain, Algeria and at sea (aboard the R.M.S. Austral) for the eclipse of 28 May. 1905 to Burgos (Spain), Labrador (Canada) and at sea (aboard the ss Arcadia) for the eclipse of 30 August. 1914 for eclipse of 21 August. 1922 to Stanthorpe (Queensland) by members of the New South Wales Branch for the eclipse of 21 September. 1936 to the Mediterranean for the eclipse of 19 June. 1973 aboard the cruise ship Monte Umbe 30 June. 1999 to Truro, Cornwall for the eclipse of 11 August. Branches The Association held monthly meetings in London, but also established branches to cater for members who could not attend