Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Mulholland, William

(Encyclopedia)Mulholland, William, 1855–1935, American engineer, b. Belfast, Ireland. He arrived in Los Angeles in 1877, becoming a laborer for the local water company. Despite his lack of formal training, he eve...

Harte, Bret

(Encyclopedia)Harte, Bret (Francis Brett Harte) härt [key], 1836–1902, American writer of short stories and humorous verse, b. Albany, N.Y. At 19 he went to California, where he tried his hand at teaching, clerk...

Gozzoli, Benozzo

(Encyclopedia)Gozzoli, Benozzo bānôtˈtsō gôtˈtsōlē [key], 1420–97, Florentine painter, whose real name was Benozzo di Lese. He was apprenticed to Fra Angelico, first in Florence and later in Rome. Becomin...

Fontainebleau

(Encyclopedia)Fontainebleau fôNtĕnblōˈ [key], town, Seine-et-Marne dept., N France, SE of Paris. It is a favorite ...

Garnier, Marie Joseph François

(Encyclopedia)Garnier, Marie Joseph François gärnyāˈ [key], 1839–73, French explorer and naval officer, usually known as Francis Garnier. He served (1860–62) against Annam and China, then in the administra...

Darwin, Erasmus

(Encyclopedia)Darwin, Erasmus, 1731–1802, English physician and poet. During most of his life he practiced medicine in Lichfield and cultivated a botanical garden. He was a prominent member of the Lichfield liter...

Davidson, George

(Encyclopedia)Davidson, George, 1825–1911, American geographer and astronomer, b. England. From 1845 to 1895 he was on the staff of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey. He charted (1850–60) the U.S. Pacific coas...

Charles VII, Holy Roman emperor

(Encyclopedia)Charles VII, 1697–1745, Holy Roman emperor (1742–45) and, as Charles Albert, elector of Bavaria (1726–45). Having married a daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Joseph I, he refused to recognize the p...

Alabama claims

(Encyclopedia)Alabama claims, claims made by the U.S. government against Great Britain for the damage inflicted on Northern merchant ships during the American Civil War by the Alabama and other Confederate cruisers...

Perrin, Jean Baptiste

(Encyclopedia)Perrin, Jean Baptiste zhäN bätēstˈ pĕrăNˈ [key], 1870–1942, French physicist. From 1910 to 1940 he was professor at the Univ. of Paris, and in 1941 he came to the United States. Perrin specia...