The construction of the observatory is closely associated with the mathematician and astronomer Rudolf Wolf (1816-1893) who was appointed Professor of Astronomy at the newly founded Federal Polytechnic in Zurich in 1855 and with Gottfried Semper (1803-1879), Professor of Architecture and Director of the Building School at the Polytechnic in Zurich. On the initiative of Wolf the building of an observatory was planned simultaneously with the construction of the Polytechnic (1859-1864) according to the plans of Semper. The Federation bore the costs of the construction and the canton of Zurich provided the site in the Spitalreben of the Schmelzberg belonging to the community of Oberstrass. The cupola was built by the company Escher Wyss according to the ideas and specifications of Wolf and Franz Reuleaux (1829-1905), Professor of Machine Design. After a construction period of three years the observatory was inaugurated in 1864. Besides Astronomy the «meteorologische Zentralanstalt» entered (until 1881) and was located on the second floor of the building.
In the past approximately 140 year the real estate has experienced some far-reaching structural alterations. Between 1910 and 1911 the so called «Kleines Observatorium» was built on the side of the Beobachtungsstrasse. 1950/51 the «Sonnenbeobachtungsturm» followed and between 1989 and 1993 there was a redesign of the northern area between the observatory and the «Kantonsapotheke».
In the course of the planning of the «Kantonsspital» the «Unverbaubarkeitsservitut» of the canton of Zurich was removed in 1928. The new buildings of the hospital constructed over the years had a major impact on the possible uses of the astronomical instruments that were installed on the flat ground. In addition, serious disturbances were caused by the new district heating plant (1933), the extension of the Chemical Institute (1937) and the new «Kantonsspital» (from 1945). The further development of the area around the observatory (new construction of the «kantonale Frauenklinik», 1970-1979) and its respective emissions basically questioned the location of the observatory at the Schmelzbergstrasse and the cessation of work occurred in 1980. Thereafter, Microtechnological Wood Research was established interim in the real estate.
A resolution of the «Regierungsrat» in 1981 subordinated the fixtures to the preservation of monuments and historical buildings over the municipal authority of Zurich and the observatory was made an object of conservation with cantonal significance. After a complex restoration (1995-1997) the observatory has accommodated the Collegium Helveticum since 1997.