David P. (David Peck) Todd

David Peck Todd was born on March 19, 1855, in Lake Ridge, New York, and became one of the better-known American astronomers of his era. He studied first at Columbia, then at Amherst College, where he graduated in 1875 and later returned to teach. Archival records at Yale describe him as an astronomer and teacher at Amherst College from 1881 to 1917.

Todd is especially remembered for producing a complete set of photographs of the 1882 transit of Venus, a rare event that drew international attention. Sources from Yale and Amherst also credit him with organizing major observing expeditions; between 1882 and 1914, he conducted nine journeys to observe solar eclipses in different parts of the world. His work helped link traditional astronomy with the growing power of photography.

Beyond his observations, Todd was closely tied to the intellectual life of Amherst and to the wider public fascination with astronomy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He died on June 1, 1939. His surviving papers, including correspondence, notebooks, and expedition records, suggest a life shaped by travel, instruments, and the challenge of capturing rare moments in the sky.