Andrew Cooper
Jan 29, 2022    Waikoloa, HI (map)
20cm f/6 Newtonian, Cave Astrola @ 76x
Seeing: 6 Transparency: 7 Moon: 0%

A clump of brighter stars in a rich galactic starfield, 5' diameter, rich, resolved, not very distinct from the starfield, four 10th to 11th magnitude stars define the core of the cluster on a northwestern to southestern trend

Andrew Cooper
Jan 4, 2015    Waikoloa, HI (map)
28cm f/10 SCT, NexStar 11" Gypsy @ 233x
Seeing: 6 Transparency: 6 Moon: 0%

An odd grouping of stars in thick galactic starfield, a dozen of more stars in a 10' area, coarse, resolved, one can appreciate why it was catalogued but needs confirmation as a cluster and not a chance asterism (Archinal and WEBDA do list NGC1778 as a cluster)

Captain William Henry Smyth
Apr 1, 1832    No. 6 The Crescent, Bedford, England (map)
150mm f/17.6 refractor by Tully 1827

A loose cluster, on the lower garment of Auriga; where a line from Betelgeuze passed over the stars ζ and β Tauri, the tips of the Bull's horns, hits it at 10° beyond. A 7, topaz; B 8, amethyst. This object is a bright though freely spread band of stars, from 8th to 13th magnitudes, having four brighter ones in a curve, of which the leader is double; and there are three other pairs. It was registered by ♅. in January, 1787, and is No. 344 of his son's Catalogue of 1830. Just to the north of the parallel, it is followed by the beautiful double star Σ. 644, which, from its aspect, being more likely to prove an optical object than the rest, was carefully measured, as above. The determinations of other astrometers are:

    Σ.  Pos. 219°12'  Dist. 1".61  Ep. 1828.60
    H.       224°19'        l".99      1830.05
   [WDS      221°           1".60      2019   ]

― A Cycle of Celestial Objects Vol II, The Bedford Catalogue, William Henry Smyth, 1844

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