Gordon S. Wood, a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian known for his expertise on the American Revolution, died June 7 at the age of 92.
He is being remembered as one of the greatest historians to chronicle the nation’s founding.
“A preeminent scholar of American history, Gordon Wood helped countless readers understand the events and forces that led to the birth of the United States with depth, nuance and clarity,” said Christina Paxson, president of Brown University, where Wood worked as a professor nearly 40 years.
“He was an inspiring teacher, a generous mentor and a deeply treasured member of the Brown University community for decades. We mourn the loss of a towering historian whose insights will inform both academic scholarship and public understanding for generations to come,” Paxson said.
Wood is author of 10 books, including “The Radicalism of the American Revolution,” awarded the Pulitzer Prize for history in 1993, Brown’s website noted, adding his first book, “The Creation of the American Republic, 1776-1787,” won the prestigious Bancroft Prize in 1970.
“We are devastated by the sudden loss of Gordon Wood. Known to many as one of the foremost scholars on the American Revolution, Gordon was also a teacher of generations of students and other historians who, like him, help us better understand who we are as a country and a people,” wrote filmmaker Ken Burns, who featured Wood in his PBS documentary “The American Revolution.”
AEI President Robert Doar noted “Dr. Wood was our nation’s greatest historian of the American Revolution, and his work fundamentally reshaped Americans’ relationship with our founding.”
The National Endowment for the Humanities put out a statement noting that in 2011, Wood was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Obama “for scholarship that provides insight into the founding of the nation and the drafting of the U.S. Constitution.”
“Gordon Wood was a paramount scholar and educator, deeply invested in documenting the motives, influences, and legacy of America’s founders,” said NEH Acting Chairman William English. “As we celebrate America’s 250th anniversary this year, we owe much of our understanding of the nation’s origins and the ideals that underpinned them to Wood’s prolific writing and research.”
