Harlow Shapley
Mrs. Carrie Regina Beinecke and her son, William Sperry Beinecke, made a $150,000 donation to what was then the Union County Junior College. The donation was used to build Sperry Observatory, which was dedicated on May 21, 1967 in honor of William Miller Sperry, Mrs. Beinecke's father. Harvard astronomer Harlow Shapley was the keynote speaker at the 1967 dedication.