Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Ewell, Benjamin Stoddert yo͞oˈəl [key], 1810–94, American educator, b. Georgetown, D.C., grad. West Point, 1832; brother of Gen. R. S. Ewell. He taught mathematics at West Point, Hampden-Sidney C...

(Encyclopedia) Peninsular campaign, in the American Civil War, the unsuccessful Union attempt (Apr.–July, 1862) to capture Richmond, Va., by way of the peninsula between the York and James rivers. Late in May...

(Encyclopedia) Declaration of Independence, full and formal declaration adopted July 4, 1776, by representatives of the Thirteen Colonies in North America announcing the separation of those colonies from Great Brita...

(Encyclopedia) Early, Jubal Anderson, 1816–94, Confederate general, b. Franklin co., Va., grad. West Point, 1837. After fighting against the Seminole in Florida he resigned from the army (1838), studied law, and p...

(Encyclopedia) Shawn, Ted (Edwin Myers Shawn), 1891–1972, American modern dancer and choreographer, b. Kansas City, Mo. Introduced to dance as physical therapy, he taught ballroom dancing, then married (1914) the ...

(Encyclopedia) Shelby, Carroll Hall, 1923–2012, automobile racer and designer, b. Leesburg, Tex. After serving as a flight instructor in World War II, he began (1952) a career as a race-car driver. He was Sports I...

(Encyclopedia) Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, summer dance concert series held annually near Lee, Mass., in the Berkshires. The site, originally an 18th-century farm, was purchased by the American modern dancer Ted ...

(Encyclopedia) Keokuk, city (1990 pop. 12,451), seat of Lee co., extreme SE Iowa, on the Mississippi River at the foot of the Des Moines River rapids and in a farm area; inc. 1847. Its industries focus on food proce...

(Encyclopedia) Richardson, Robert Coleman, 1937–2013, American physicist, b. Washington, D.C. Ph.D. Duke Univ., 1966. Richardson was a professor at Cornell from 1968 until his death; he was the university's first ...

(Encyclopedia) Tarleton, Sir Banastre băˈnəstər tärlˈtən [key], 1754–1833, British army officer in the American Revolution. He arrived (1775) in America with General Cornwallis and was a member of the patro...