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Continental Divide

(Encyclopedia)Continental Divide, the “backbone” of a continent. In North America, from N Alaska to New Mexico, it moves along the crest of the Rocky Mts., which separates streams with outlets to the west of th...

Greely, Adolphus Washington

(Encyclopedia)Greely, Adolphus Washington, 1844–1935, American army officer and arctic explorer, b. Newburyport, Mass. Entering the Union army at 17, he emerged a brevet major of volunteers at the end of the Civi...

grizzly bear

(Encyclopedia)grizzly bear or grizzly, large, powerful North American brown bear, characterized by gray-streaked, or grizzled, fur. Grizzlies are 6 to 8 ft (180–250 cm) long, stand 31⁄2 to 4 ft (105–120 cm) a...

McPhee, John Angus

(Encyclopedia)McPhee, John Angus, 1931–, American journalist and nonfiction writer, b. Princeton, N.J., A.B. Princeton, 1953. He was an editor at Time magazine (1957–64) before becoming (1965) a staff writer at...

fur trade

(Encyclopedia)fur trade, in American history. Trade in animal skins and pelts had gone on since antiquity, but reached its height in the wilderness of North America from the 17th to the early 19th cent. The demand ...

Alabama, river, United States

(Encyclopedia)Alabama, river, 315 mi (507 km) long, formed in central Ala. by the confluence of the Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers N of Montgomery, Ala., and flowing SW to Mobile, Ala., where it joins the Tombigbee to...

Char, René

(Encyclopedia)Char, René rənāˈ chärˈ [key], 1907–88, French poet. His writing reflects both his Provençal origins and his years of active participation in the French resistance. At first attracted to surre...

Fairmont

(Encyclopedia)Fairmont, city (2020 pop. 18,302), seat of Marion co., N central W.Va., where the West Fork and Tygart rivers form the Monongahela; settled 1793 around ...

Ambridge

(Encyclopedia)Ambridge, industrial borough (2020 pop. 6,513), Beaver co., W Pa., on the Ohio River; inc. 1905. Founded by and named for the American Bridge Co. in 1901, it now manufactures plastics, pro...

Amesbury, city, United States

(Encyclopedia)Amesbury āmzˈbĕrˌē, –bərē [key], town (2020 pop. 17,366), Essex co., NE Mass., on the Merrimack River; inc. 1668. The town's economy relies on light manufacturing...