Percival Lowell Milan Observatory. In 1894 Lowell chose Flagstaff, Arizona Territory, as the home of his new observatory. At an altitude of over , with few cloudy nights, and far from city lights, Flagstaff was an excellent site for astronomical observations. This marked the first time an observatory had been deliberately located in a remote, elevated place for optimal seeing. For the next fifteen years he studied Mars extensively, and made intricate drawings of the surface markings as he perceived them. Lowell published his views in three books: "Mars" (1895), "Mars and Its Canals" (1906), and "Mars As the Abode of Life"
William Lowell Putnam the Observatory staff. Putnam, however, had to make the final decision on the matter and he was the one to tell See that he had been dismissed. When Lowell returned to work in 1901, Putnam resumed his role as the financial and legal power behind the Observatory. He also continued his other business in Boston and New York City. When Lowell died in 1916, Putnam was placed in charge of investing Lowell's estate for the Observatory. Putnam died in June 1923, aged around 61, during Constance Lowell's attempt to contest Percival's will. Constance Lowell later asked William's son, Augustus, to