(Encyclopedia) Wilkes, John, 1727–97, English politician and journalist. He studied at the Univ. of Leiden, returned to England in 1746, and purchased (1757) a seat in Parliament. Backed by Earl…
(Encyclopedia) Wilson, John, pseud. Christopher North, 1785–1854, Scottish author. Among the first contributors to Blackwood's Magazine, he joined the staff in 1817 and quickly became one of its…
(Encyclopedia) Wise, John, 1652–1725, American clergyman, exponent of the democratic principles of modern Congregationalism, b. Roxbury, Mass., grad. Harvard, 1673. He was pastor at Ipswich, Mass.,…
(Encyclopedia) Wanamaker, JohnWanamaker, Johnwŏnˈəmāˌkər [key], 1838–1922, American merchant, b. Philadelphia. He went into the men's clothing business in Philadelphia with Nathan Brown, his brother-…
(Encyclopedia) Warren, John, 1753–1815, American surgeon, b. Roxbury, Mass.; grad. Harvard, 1771; brother of Joseph Warren. A leading surgeon of his time in New England, he served in the Revolution…
(Encyclopedia) Wayne, John, 1907–79, American movie actor, b. Winterset, Iowa, as Marion Michael Morrison. An enduringly popular movie star from his debut in 1930, Wayne combined the toughness…
(Encyclopedia) Beresford, JohnBeresford, Johnbĕrˈĭzfərd, –ĭs– [key], 1738–1805, Anglo-Irish Protestant politician. He entered the Irish Parliament in 1760, became a privy councillor (1768), a…
(Encyclopedia) Witherspoon, John, 1723–94, Scottish-American Presbyterian clergyman, political leader in the American Revolution, and signer of the Declaration of Independence, b. Haddingtonshire (…
