John Herschel discovered NGC 2188 = h3022 on 9 Jan 1836 and described as "pF, vmE, gvlbM, 2' long." His position is accurate.

300/350mm - 13.1" (2/23/85): faint, moderately large, edge-on streak 6:1 NNW-SSE. A mag 13.5 star is at the NNW end. Located 7.8' NE of mag 8.6 SAO 196541.

600/800mm - 24" (1/25/14): at 200x and 260x; fairly bright, large, very elongated 5:1 N-S, 4.0'x0.8', broad concentration with a large, slightly brighter elongated core. Mag 8.5 HD 42519 lies 8' SW. ESO 364-039 lies 16' NE and ESO 364-035/036, in the core of AGC 3391, are 28' N.

NGC 2188 is an edge-on Magellanic dwarf irregular with several giant HII regions on the south side and appears to be disrupted, although there are no nearby interacting companions.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb