Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Cambridge, University of, at Cambridge, England, one of the oldest English-language universities in the world. Originating in the early 12th cent. (legend places its origin even earlier than that of t...

(Encyclopedia) prairies, generally level, originally grass-covered and treeless plains of North America, stretching from W Ohio through Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa to the Great Plains region. The prairie belt also e...

(Encyclopedia) Wright, Silas, 1795–1847, American political leader, b. Amherst, Mass. He was admitted (1819) to the bar and began practicing law at Canton, N.Y. Becoming involved in state politics, in the 1820s he...

(Encyclopedia) Mandan mănˈdăn, –dən [key], indigenous people of North America whose language belongs to the Siouan branch of the Hokan-Siouan linguistic stock (see Native American languages). The Mandan were a...

(Encyclopedia) nursery school, educational institution for children from two to four years of age. It is distinguishable from a day nursery in that it serves children of both working and nonworking parents, rarely r...

(Encyclopedia) Peace Corps, agency of the U.S. government, whose purpose is to assist underdeveloped countries in meeting their needs for trained manpower. The Peace Corps was established in 1961 by executive order ...

(Encyclopedia) Hartford. <1> City (2020 pop. 121,054), state capital, Hartford co., central Conn., on the west bank of the Connecticut River; settled as Newtown ...

(Encyclopedia) Wheaton, William Rufus, 1814–88, American baseball pioneer, b. New York City. He practiced law in New York during the 1830s and 40s, and was a founding member and vice president of the Knickerbocker...

(Encyclopedia) Ottawa. 1 City (1990 pop. 17,451), seat of La Salle co., N central Ill., at the confluence of the Fox and Illinois rivers, in a fertile farm area; inc. as a city 1853. The city has diversified agricul...

(Encyclopedia) Johnson, Richard Mentor, 1780–1850, Vice President of the United States (1837–41), b. Kentucky, on the site of present Louisville. Admitted (1802) to the bar, he became prominent in state politics...