Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Ghent, Treaty of, 1814, agreement ending the War of 1812 between the United States and Great Britain. It was signed at Ghent, Belgium, on Dec. 24, 1814, and ratified by the U.S. Senate in Feb., 1815. ...

(Encyclopedia) Assir ăsˈĭr [key], in the Bible. 1 Son of Korah. 2 Ancestor of Samuel. 3 Son of Jeconiah the Captive. ...

(Encyclopedia) Jashar or Jasher, Book of both: jăshˈər [key], lost Hebrew work, apparently a collection of songs celebrating national events. Fragments appear in the books of Joshua and Second Samuel. ...

(Encyclopedia) McDuffie, George, 1790–1851, American politician, b. Columbia co., Ga. He was a member of the South Carolina legislature and served (1821–34) in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he quickly...

(Encyclopedia) Berkshire Hills bûrkˈshər, –shĭr [key], mountainous region of wooded hills with many small lakes and streams, W Mass. The Berkshires are a southern extension of the Green Mts., but the name is g...

(Encyclopedia) Neptune, in astronomy, 8th planet from the sun at a mean distance of about 2.8 billion mi (4.5 billion km) with an orbit lying between those of Uranus and the dwarf planet Pluto; its period of revolut...

(Encyclopedia) Hampton University, at Hampton, Va.; coeducational; founded 1868, chartered 1870 as a normal and agricultural school; known as Hampton Institute 1930–84. Founded by Samuel Chapman Armstrong, it was ...

(Encyclopedia) Durant, William James, 1885–1981, American historian and essayist, b. North Adams, Mass. He received his Ph.D. from Columbia in 1917 and published his doctoral dissertation, Philosophy and the Socia...

(Encyclopedia) Hastings. 1 City (2020 pop. 3,013), seat of Barry co., SW Mich; inc. 1865. The town is situated on the Thornapple River and was developed on land ...

(Encyclopedia) Stoddert, Benjamin, 1751–1813, U.S. government official, b. Charles County, Md. Joining the Continental Army as a captain at the beginning of the Revolutionary War, he attained the rank of major. A ...