John Herschel discovered NGC 7307 = h3947 on 4 Oct 1836 and recorded "F; pL; pmE; about pos of 75° with parallel; 2 1/2' long. His RA is 6 seconds too small, and the description is a perfect match.

400/500mm - 17.5" (8/26/00): very faint, moderately large, elongated 3:1 SSW-NNE, ~2.5'x0.8', broad concentration, fades at tips. A mag 13.5-14 star is close west of the SW tip. This galaxy was difficult to view due to its very low elevation. Located ~40' SW of a wide mag 6 pair (Sigma-1 and 2 Gruis).

Notes by Steve Gottlieb