John Herschel discovered NGC 5659 = h1831 on 22 May 1830 and noted "eF". His position is 2' north of UGC 9342, so the identification is fairly secure although the RA and NPD are marked as very uncertain. Instead of listing this number as a "Nova", Herschel equated h1831 withhis father's H. III-289, which refers to NGC 2983.

400/500mm - 17.5" (6/24/95): very faint, fairly small, very elongated 3:1 SW-NE. Only a broad weak concentration. A string of faint stars trail off the NE.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb