The observatory at St John's College, Cambridge, was planned and funded in 1765 by Richard Dunthorne, the butler and astronomical observer of Pembroke College, who also donated astronomical instruments.
Thomas Catton (1760-1838) attended St John's College (B.A., 1781; M.A., 1784; M.D., 1791), before becoming a fellow and tutor. He was given responsibility for the college observatory, where he observed eclipses, occultations and other astronomical phenomena between 1791 and 1832. His findings were printed in 1853. Catton died at St John's on 6 January 1838.
From the guide to the St John's College, Cambridge: Observatory Notes, 1823, (Cambridge University Library, Department of Manuscripts and University Archives)