author

Rev. James Wood

1820–1901

A Scottish minister and editor, he is best remembered for shaping reference books that brought history, literature, and general knowledge within easy reach of everyday readers. His best-known work is the widely circulated Nuttall Encyclopaedia, a compact guide that stayed in print long after his lifetime.

1 Audiobook

Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources

Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources

by Rev. James Wood

About the author

Ordained as a minister in the Free Church of Scotland, he also built a substantial career in publishing and popular reference writing. James Wood worked as an editor, translator, and compiler, helping turn complex subjects into practical books for general readers.

He is most closely associated with The Nuttall Encyclopaedia, a concise one-volume work of biography, history, geography, and literature that became one of his most enduring contributions. His career reflects a 19th-century tradition in which clergy often moved comfortably between religious life, education, and publishing.

Born in 1820 and dying in 1901, he left behind a body of work aimed less at specialists than at curious readers who wanted reliable information in an accessible form. That mix of scholarship and readability is the reason his name still appears on classic reference titles today.