DeLisle Stewart discovered IC 1611 = DS 132 = D 26?, along with IC 1612, from a plate taken on 27 Nov 1900 at Harvard's Arequipa Station. James Dunlop probably discovered the pair of clusters on 2 Sep 1826 and described "a small double nebula; the following is very faint." His position is just 5' S of the clusters. John Herschel never verified Dunlop's D 26 and Stewart is credited with the discovery in the IC.

600/800mm - 30" (11/5/10 - Coonabarabran, 264x): IC 1611, IC 1612 and Kron 22 are a trio of clusters just 10' SE of NGC 346, the best emission nebula in the SMC and the general field is striking (Hodge Association 44). IC 1611 is fairly bright, irregular shape, elongated SW to NE, ~1 diameter. A couple of very faint stars were resolved at the edges, though this object appears to be primarily an emission nebula (DEM S 106). A mag 12.5 star lies 1' NNE (blue supergiant RMC 16) and a mag 13 star is 1' ENE. IC 1612 lies 2.4' SSE and Kron 22 4' SE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb