Gerhard Lohse discovered NGC 2518, along with NGC 2519, in 1886 with the 15.5-inch Cook refractor at the private Wigglesworth Observatory in Scarborough, England. The approximate NGC position matches UGC 4221. This is one of only 3 galaxies discovered by Lohse, out of 16 new entries in the NGC.

400/500mm - 17.5" (1/19/91): fairly faint, small, slightly elongated, bright core, faint stellar nucleus.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb