Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

311 results found

Pater, Walter Horatio

(Encyclopedia)Pater, Walter Horatio pāˈtər [key], 1839–94, English essayist and critic. In 1864 he was elected a fellow of Brasenose College, Oxford, and he subsequently led an austere and uneventful life. An ...

Bel Geddes, Norman

(Encyclopedia)Bel Geddes, Norman gĕdˈēz [key], 1893–1958, American designer, b. Adrian, Mich. as Norman Melancton Geddes. He began his career in 1918 as a scene designer for the Metropolitan Opera. He became k...

North Kingstown

(Encyclopedia)North Kingstown kĭngˈstən, kĭngzˈtounˌ [key], town (1990 pop. 23,786), Washington co., S central R.I., on Narragansett Bay; inc. 1674 as Kings Towne, divided 1723 into North Kingstown and South ...

Bond, Julian

(Encyclopedia)Bond, Julian (Horace Julian Bond), 1940–2015, U.S. civil-rights leader, b. Nashville, Tenn. As a student at Morehouse College, he participated in sit-ins at segregated Atlanta restaurants. He was a ...

Burlingame, Anson

(Encyclopedia)Burlingame, Anson bûrˈlĭng-gām [key], 1820–70, American diplomat, b. New Berlin, N.Y. He became a lawyer in Boston and later (1855–61) a Congressman. Defeated for reelection, he was made (1861...

Burton, Richard

(Encyclopedia)Burton, Richard, 1925–84, British actor, b. Pontrhydfen, Wales; his original name was Richard Jenkins. A dark, introspective actor with a splendid speaking voice, Burton specialized in portraying co...

Vikings

(Encyclopedia)Vikings, Scandinavian warriors who raided the coasts of Europe and the British Isles from the 9th cent. to the 11th cent. In their language, the word “viking” originally meant a journey, as for tr...

ministry

(Encyclopedia)ministry, in religion, term used to designate the clergy of Protestant churches, particularly those who repudiate the claims of apostolic succession. The ceremony by which the candidate receives the o...

Governors Island

(Encyclopedia)Governors Island, 173 acres (70 hectares), in Upper New York Bay, S of Manhattan island, SE N.Y. Bought from the Native Americans by the Dutch in 1637, it was the site of an early New Netherlands sett...

Godwin, William

(Encyclopedia)Godwin, William, 1756–1836, English author and political philosopher. A minister in his youth, he was, however, plagued by religious doubts and gave up preaching in 1783 for a literary career. His E...