It was developed by and named for James Ross Todd (1869–1952), an influential Louisville banker, businessman, and Republican Party Official.
The ten-story structure was designed by the partnership of Charles Julian Clarke and Arthur Loomis, one of Louisville's prominent architectural firms at the beginning of the twentieth century.
For nearly three decades the Todd Building was one of Louisville's leading office addresses, housing many financial, insurance, real estate, legal, and railroad firms.
Occupancy declined during the Great Depression and World War II, when its major tenants were New Deal and defense agencies that required inexpensive office space.
In 1940, Todd gave the building to Children's hospital, which sold it to the Hoffman Realty Co. of Evansville, Indiana, in 1944.