R.J. Mitchell discovered IC 1559 = Big. 245 = J. 3-819 on 18 Sep 1857 using LdR's 72" and described NGC 169 as "S; d. neb; the n one is E, sp/nf; bM." IC 1559 is the fainter southern component. It was confirmed a month later on 22 Oct 1857 and reobserved by Lawrence Parsons in 1866. Mitchell assumed his observation of a double nebula referred to NGC 160, though, with the second object catalogued later as GC 80. But comparing the description to the field, it's clear that Mitchell was referring to NGC 169 and its close companion to the south.

Herman Schultz observed the field on 5 Sep 1867 (9.6" refractor) and also suspected NGC 169 to be double ("is probably S globular, and seems sometimes to be divided into two separate objects."). In the 1880 publication Dreyer notes that Mitchell mistook his object for h32 = NGC 160, but the "double nebula" should apply to h82 = NGC 169.

Because of all the confusion Dreyer dropped GC 80 from the GC Supplement and added GC 5107 [= NGC 162] to a faint star east-northeast of NGC 160 that Schultz and Lawrence Parsons noted as nebulous. As a result IC 1559 did not receive a NGC number despite being observed twice by Mitchell, later by Lawrence Parsons and even suspected by Schultz. It was discovered again independently by Bigourdan on 7 Oct 1885 and by Javelle on 20 Nov 1897 and included in the IC as 1559. Dreyer credited "LdR", along with Bigourdan and Javelle, with the discovery.

300/350mm - 13.1" (10/20/84): appears as a "faint star" possibly nebulous at the south edge of NGC 169, forming a close contact system (Arp 282).

600/800mm - 24" (9/30/16): at 200x; fairly faint, small, slightly elongated, ~15"x12", faint stellar nucleus. Forms the southern component of a disrupted, contact pair (Arp 282) with NGC 169 [21" between centers]. Located 3.8' SW of distracting mag 6.2 HD 3411! NGC 160 lies 11' WSW.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb