Eli Todd (July 22, 1769 - November 17, 1833) was an American physician. His efforts in the medical field of mental care and smallpox treatment contributed to the establishment of high standards for the rest of the newly formed nation. His interest in psychology began when his sister Eunice committed suicide, because of the issue of depression. He thought he had cured her, multiple times, but she still had episodes, and when she had to attend to a large farm in empty Vermont alone, she was pushed over the edge. This began his theory that mental retardation (insanity at the time) was a disease and had a cause and possibly a cure. At the time, treatment of the mentally ill was typically inhumane. People deemed mad to be locked away and forgotten about.The Connecticut Retreat for the Insane was opened to admissions in 1824 and Todd was its first director. It cost $3.00 a week for a state resident and $4.00 a week for an out of state resident. He died in 1833 at the age of 64.