Complex sentence: Construction of the Observatory began in 1895 and the 40-inch saw first light in May of 1897, the Observatory's first Director was George Ellery Hale who went on to establish Mount Wilson Observatory in Southern California.
Split into simpler sentences: Construction of the Observatory began in 1895 and the 40-inch saw first light in May 1897. The Observatory's first Director was George Ellery Hale, who went on to establish Mount Wilson Observatory in Southern California.