Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Alsop, Marin ôlˈsəp [key], 1956–, American conductor, b. New York City. The daughter of professional musicians, she began playing the piano at two and the violin at five. Alsop started conducting...

(Encyclopedia) Peabody, George pēˈbädē, –bədē [key], 1795–1869, American financier and philanthropist, b. South Danvers (now Peabody), Mass. At the age of 11 he was apprenticed to a grocer, and later (1814...

(Encyclopedia) McCulloch v. Maryland, case decided in 1819 by the U.S. Supreme Court, dealing specifically with the constitutionality of a Congress-chartered corporation, and more generally with the dispersion of po...

(Encyclopedia) Chesapeake Bay, inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, c.200 mi (320 km) long, from 3 to 30 mi (4.8–48 km) wide, and 3,237 sq mi (8,384 sq km), separating the Delmarva Peninsula from mainland Maryland. and Vi...

(Encyclopedia) Cumberland. 1 City (2020 pop. 19,076), seat of Allegany co., NW Md., on the North Branch of the Potomac; settled 1750, inc. 1815. It is an important ...

(Encyclopedia) Astor, John Jacob ăsˈtər [key], 1763–1848, American merchant, b. Walldorf, near Heidelberg, Germany. At the age of 16 he went to England, and five years later, in 1784, he arrived in Baltimore, p...

(Encyclopedia) Marshall, Thurgood, 1908–93, U.S. lawyer and associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1967–91), b. Baltimore. He received his law degree from Howard Univ. in 1933. In 1936 he joined the legal ...

(Encyclopedia) catechism kătˈəkĭzəm [key] [Gr.,=oral instruction], originally oral instruction in religion, later written instruction. Catechisms are usually written in the form of questions and answers. Almost...

(Encyclopedia) Anti-Masonic party, American political organization that rose after the disappearance in W New York state in 1826 of William Morgan. A former Mason, Morgan had written a book purporting to reveal Maso...

(Encyclopedia) Sosa, Sammy (Samuel Kevin Sosa Peralta) sämwĕlˈ sōˈsä pĕrälˈtä [key], 1968–, Dominican baseball player. An outfielder and designated hitter, he broke into the major leagues with the Texas ...