(Born: London, England, 10 September 1775; Died: Oxford, England, 17 September 1851) English physician & chemist.

Kidd received his M.D. degree from Oxford in 1801. In 1803, he was made professor of chemistry at Oxford, where the duties required that he also present lectures in mineralogy and geology. Kidd was the first to distill naphthalene from coal tar in 1819.

Biographical references: Allibone, Dictionary of English Literature, 1859-71. • Annual Register. • BBA: I 645, 136-142; II 1594, 197. • Boase, Modern English Biography, 1892-1921. • DNB. • DSB: 7, 365-6 [by J.M. Edmonds]. • Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th edition. • NDB. • Poggendorff: 1, col. 1253. • Sarjeant, Geologists, 1980: 2, 1444. • Watt, Bibliotheca Britannica, 1824. • WBI. • World Who's Who in Science: 930.

Outlines of Mineralogy, 1809

1. English, 1809.
Outlines | Of | Mineralogy. | [ornate rule] | By J. Kidd, M.D. | Professor Of Chemistry In The University | Of Oxford. | [ornate rule] | Vol. I. [-II.] | [double rule] | Oxford: | Printed by N. Bliss, | For J. Parker, and R. Bliss; | Longman, Hurst, Rees & Orme, and Messrs. Rivingtons, | London. | [short rule] | 1809.

2 vols. bound in one. [Vol 1] 4°: π⁴ b⁴ c^{2 2}b^{4 2}c⁴ d-f⁴ B-Z⁴ 2A-2K⁴; 158l.; [i]-xvii, [3], [i]-xxxix, [1] blank, [1]-255, [1] p.; [Vol 2] 4°: π⁴ B-Z⁴ 2A-2F⁴ 2G² A^{4 2}B-²G⁴; 146l.; [i]-viii, [1]-227, [1] blank, [1]-39, [1] blank, [13], [1] blank, [1] errata, [1] blank p. Page size: 210 x 124 mm.

Contents: [Vol 1] [i-ii], Title page, verso blank.; [iii]-iv, Dedication to the Dean of Westminster, signed J. Kidd, 16 January 1809.; [v]-ix, "Preface."; [x], "Authors | Referred To In The Following Volumes."; [xi]-xvii, "Contents of the First Volume."; [1 pg], Blank.; [1 pg], "Introduction."; [1 pg], Blank.; [i]-xxxix, Text of introduction.; [1 pg], Blank.; [1]-255, Text treating the Earthy minerals-at the bottom of page 255, "Printed by Nathaniel Bliss."

[Vol 2] [i-ii], Title page, verso blank.; [iii]-viii, "Contents of the Second Volume."; [1]-26, Text concerning Saline minerals.; 27-68, Text about the Inflammable minerals.; 69-227, Text describing the Metallic Substances.; [1 pg], Blank.; [1]-39, "Appendix. | Earthy Substances. | Rocks."; [1 pg], Blank.; [13 pgs], "Index."; [1 pg], Blank.; [1 pg], Errata.; [1 pg], Blank.

Very scarce. Probably written as a companion textbook to the mineralogical lectures delivered by the author at Oxford, Outlines of Mineralogy is a derivative work that reflects the state of mineralogy during the first decade of the nineteenth century. It is principally based upon the earlier mineralogical writings of Richard Kirwan and René Just Haüy. For example, the system of classification that divides the mineral species has been lifted from Kirwan and uses the divisions of Earthy, Saline, Inflammable and Metallic Substances. An appendix handles rocks and other aggregates. The crystallographical information scattered through out is derived from Haüy.

Bibliographical references: BMC: 2, 977. • NUC: 295, 348-9 [NK 0127232]. • Partington, History of Chemistry, 1961-70: 4, 76. • Porter, Making of Geology, 1980: 144, 183, 234 & 210. • The Quarterly Review: 2 (1809), no. 3, 61-74. • Smith, Early Mineralogy in Great Britain, 1978: 59. • Woodward, History of Geology, 1911: 45 & 66.

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