Édouard Stephan discovered NGC 968 = St X-12 on 5 Dec 1879 with the 31" reflector at the Marseille Observatory and logged "pF, pS, R, incr to a bright core". Stephan's position matches UGC 2040 = PGC 9779.

400/500mm - 17.5" (11/27/92): fairly faint, fairly small, round, broad concentration, stellar nucleus. Located 10' NE of mag 7.6 SAO 55659 and 15' ESE of mag 5.8 SAO 55650.

Notes by Steve Gottlieb