When people think of physics, their most common image is of Einstein or of a particle accelerator or other laboratory site. Although much of physics fits comfortably within the dichotomy of theory versus laboratory, a lot of physics occurs in other settings. This talk focusses on the history of geophysics and space physics, areas in which much of the important research of the 19th and 20th centuries was pursued either in observatories or in the field. Whether it is the history of geomagnetism or of seismology, of atmospheric properties or magnetic storms, the stories of these researches must include field work and observatory measurement, in addition to laboratory testing, and theory and modelling. The talk will conclude with an overview of the work of the Center for History of Physics at the American Institute of Physics and with a view towards the future needs of the history of physics.