Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Russell, Lillian, 1861–1922, American singer and actress, b. Clinton, Iowa. Her original name was Helen Louise Leonard. She first appeared in light opera in 1879. In the early 1880s her introduction...

(Encyclopedia) Plattsburgh, city (1990 pop. 21,255), seat of Clinton co., NE N.Y., on Lake Champlain; settled 1767, inc. 1902. It is a trade and distribution point, with plants making transportation equipment, paper...

(Encyclopedia) Ford, William Clay, Jr.: see Bill Ford under Ford, Henry. ...

(Encyclopedia) Tilden, William Tatem, 2d (Bill Tilden), 1893–1953, American tennis player, b. Philadelphia. He developed into a brilliant, versatile tennis player, and from 1913 he won several doubles titles in th...

(Encyclopedia) Brannan, Charles Franklin, 1903–92, U.S. government official, b. Denver, LL.B. Univ. of Denver, 1929. He became a specialist in agriculture and mining law. In the Dept. of Agriculture after 1935, Br...

(Encyclopedia) Bear Mountain, peak, 1,284 ft (391 m) high, SE N.Y., overlooking the Hudson River. The Bear Mt. section of the Palisades Interstate Park (see under Palisades), with facilities for both summer and wint...

(Encyclopedia) Gephardt, Dick (Richard Andrew Gephardt) gĕpˈhärt [key], 1941–, U.S. congressman (1977–2005), b. St. Louis. A lawyer, he was first elected to the House of Representatives as a Democrat from Mis...

(Encyclopedia) ivory-billed woodpecker, common name for the largest of the North American woodpeckers, Campephilus principalis. Once plentiful in Southern hardwood forests, it was believed to be extinct or nearing e...

(Encyclopedia) Schröder, Gerhard shröˈdər [key], 1944–, chancellor of Germany (1998–2005), b. Mosenburg, Germany. A telegenic lawyer and Social Democrat, he entered politics as a Marxist student in the 1960...

(Encyclopedia) Kansas-Nebraska Act, bill that became law on May 30, 1854, by which the U.S. Congress established the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. By 1854 the organization of the vast Platte and Kansas river c...