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Charter Oak

(Encyclopedia)Charter Oak, white oak tree that until 1856 stood in Hartford, Conn., and was thought to be 1,000 years old. There is a tradition that when Sir Edmund Andros, as governor-general of New England, deman...

Francis, Sam

(Encyclopedia)Francis, Sam, 1923–94, American painter, b. San Mateo, Calif. Educated in medicine, Francis began painting while recovering from an injury received in World War II. His mural-sized paintings are sta...

Aversa

(Encyclopedia)Aversa ävĕrˈsä [key], city, Campania, S Italy. It is an agricultural and transportation center, noted for its sparkling white wine. It also produces shoes, mozzarella ...

whitewash

(Encyclopedia)whitewash, white fluid commonly used as an inexpensive, impermanent coating for walls, fences, stables, and other exterior structures. It varies in composition, being generally a mixture of lime (quic...

brier

(Encyclopedia)brier or briar, name sometimes given any thorny plant, more specifically the sweetbrier, and the greenbrier. French brier, or brierroot, is a name for the root of the European white heath so widely us...

stoat

(Encyclopedia)stoat stōt [key], European name for the short-tailed weasel, Mustela erminea, also called ermine when in its white winter phase. ...

sodium benzoate

(Encyclopedia)sodium benzoate or benzoate of soda, chemical compound, C6H5CO2Na, colorless or white crystalline, aromatic compound; the sodium salt of benzoic acid. It is soluble in water and is used as a preservat...

vermouth

(Encyclopedia)vermouth vərmo͞othˈ [key], blend of white wines fortified with additional alcohol and flavored with aromatic herbs, spices, and roots. It contains up to 19% alcohol. The sweeter, darker type of ver...

Manning, Henry Edward

(Encyclopedia)Manning, Henry Edward, 1808–92, English churchman, cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Ordained a Catholic priest, Manning became a celebrated confessor, an ardent advocate of prison reform, a...

Dare, Virginia

(Encyclopedia)Dare, Virginia, b. 1587, first white child of English parents to be born in America. She was the daughter of Ananias and Elenor Dare, members of Sir Walter Raleigh's ill-fated colony that settled Roan...