Lewis Swift discovered IC 1608 = Sw. XI-8 on 3 Oct 1897 and reported "pB; pS; R; 2 st nf and 2 np." His position is off by 2' (too far west). The identification is certain, though it's not clear what stars he was referring to.

600/800mm - 24" (10/6/18): at 260x; no worse than fairly faint and nearly moderately bright, elongated 3:2 or 5:3 N-S, ~50"x30", strong concentration with a brighter, round core. Located 18' N of mag 7.7 HD 5825.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb