Lewis Swift discovered IC 301 = Sw. VIII-23, along with IC 300, on 15 Sep 1888 and recorded "eF; pS; R; f of 2 [with IC 300]." His position is just 1.2' WNW of UGC 2606 and there are no other nearby galaxies, so the identification is secure.

600/800mm - 24" (2/8/18): at 375x; fairly faint, fairly small, round, 30" diameter, contains a small brighter core and very small nucleus. A mag 14.7 star is on the NW end. Located 1.2° NW of NGC 1275 in AGC 426.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb