author
John Platts
1775–1837
An English Unitarian minister who turned his learning into ambitious reference books, he spent much of his life teaching, preaching, and compiling works for curious readers. His best-known writing ranges from wide-reaching biography to educational and general-interest reference books.
1 Audiobook
The Book of Curiosities
by John Platts
About the author
Born in Boston, Lincolnshire, in 1775, John Platts first worked as a Calvinist minister before becoming a Unitarian. He served as a Unitarian minister in Boston from 1805 to 1817, then moved to Doncaster.
Platts supplemented his modest ministerial income by teaching and by compiling educational and reference works. He is especially associated with large biographical compilations, including A Universal Biography and A New Universal Biography, which aimed to gather accounts of notable figures across history into accessible reference form.
Contemporary reference sources describe him as a liberal in politics and a humorous speaker. He died in Doncaster on June 19, 1837, after a long illness.