William cranch bond biography of william

American astronomer (1789–1859)

This article is about an American astronomer. For the U.S. Representative from Ohio, see William K.

Bond.

William Cranch Bond (September 9, 1789 – January 29, 1859) was an American astronomer, and the first director of Harvard College Observatory.

Upbringing

William Cranch Bond was born in Falmouth, Maine (near Portland) on September 9, 1789.

William cranch bond biography of william

When he was young, his father, William Bond, established himself as a clockmaker after a failed business venture; trained by his father and aided by his penchant for engineering, W. C. Bond built his first clock when he was fifteen years old.

He eventually took over his father’s business, becoming an expert clockmaker himself. The William Bond clock shop remained in existence at 9 Park Street in Boston until the 1970s.^{[citation needed]}.

Amateur astronomer

When he was seventeen years old, Bond saw the solar eclipse of June 16, 1806. Soon thereafter, he became an avi