Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Scientology, Church of, philosophical religion founded by L(afayette) Ron(ald) Hubbard, 1911–86, b. Tilden, Nebr. Hubbard's book Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health (1950) first set forth...

(Encyclopedia) Farmer, James Leonard, Jr., 1920–99, African-American civil-rights leader who was one of the principal civil-rights figures of the 1950s and 60s, b. Marshall, Tex., grad. Wiley College (B.S. 1938), ...

(Encyclopedia) Pan-American games, amateur athletic competition among representatives of countries in the Western Hemisphere. The competition, held every four years, follows the organization and eligibility rules of...

(Encyclopedia) Inter-American Highway, c.3,400 mi (5,470 km) long, section of the Pan-American Highway system from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, to Panama City, Panama. Much of the highway prior to 1941 had been built by th...

(Encyclopedia) American Kennel Club (AKC), national organization in the United States devoted to the advancement and welfare of pure-bred dogs. It is comprised of approximately 500 autonomous clubs. A delegate repre...

(Encyclopedia) Pratt Institute, at Brooklyn, N.Y.; coeducational; chartered and opened 1887. Founded by Charles Pratt as a school for practical training, it now offers general and professional studies, including pro...

(Encyclopedia) Folger, Henry Clay fōlˈjər [key], 1857–1930, American industrialist and collector of Shakespeareana. His connection with Standard Oil companies, beginning in 1879, continued until his retirement ...

(Encyclopedia) Melchers, Gari gârˈē mĕlˈchərz [key], 1860–1932, American figure, genre, and portrait painter, b. Detroit, studied in Düsseldorf and Paris. In Holland he painted the canvases of Dutch peasant...

(Encyclopedia) Byles, Mather măᵺˈər bīlz [key], 1707–88, American clergyman and poet, b. Boston. Famous minister of the Hollis St. Congregational Church, Boston, from 1732, he was dismissed for his Tory symp...

(Encyclopedia) Georgetown University, in the Georgetown section of Washington, D.C.; Jesuit; coeducational; founded 1789 by John Carroll, chartered 1815, inc. 1844. Its law and medical schools are noteworthy, and it...