(Encyclopedia) Erie Canal, artificial waterway, c.360 mi (580 km) long; connecting New York City with the Great Lakes via the Hudson River. Locks were built to overcome the 571-ft (174-m) difference…
Below is the composition of the 112th Congress' House of Representatives, following the 2010 midterm elections. In the following lists, the numeral indicates the congressional district represented…
music director, conductorBorn: 1959Birthplace: New York City Julliard-trained as a pianist, Litton considered performing only a fallback in case his first love, conducting, couldn't pay the bills.…
George W. Bush's secretary of Transportation Born: 11/12/1931Birthplace: San Jose, Calif. The lone Democrat appointed to Bush's cabinet, Mineta was offered the same job in the Clinton…
(Encyclopedia) Dole, Sanford Ballard, 1844–1926, Hawaiian statesman, b. Honolulu, of American missionary parents. After education in the United States he returned to Hawaii and became prominent in…
(Encyclopedia) cormorantcormorantkôrˈmərənt [key], common name for large aquatic birds, related to the gannet and the pelican, and found chiefly in temperate and tropical regions, usually on the sea…
(Encyclopedia) Albright, Madeleine, 1937–2022, American government official, b. Prague, Czechoslovakia, as Maria Jana Körbel. Her family immigrated to the United States in 1948, and she…
(Encyclopedia) independent counsel, in U.S. law, a judicially appointed investigator of charges of misdeeds by high government officials. Originally termed “special prosecutor,” the position was…
(Encyclopedia) Macon, NathanielMacon, Nathanielmāˈkən [key], 1758–1837, American political leader, b. near the present Warrenton, N.C. He served in the American Revolution and later became a…
(Encyclopedia) Wilberforce, William, 1759–1833, British politician and humanitarian. He was elected to Parliament in 1780 and during the campaign formed a lifelong friendship with William Pitt, whose…
