Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Wandsworth

(Encyclopedia)Wandsworth, inner borough (1991 pop. 237,500) of Greater London, SE London, on the Thames River. An area along the Thames is industrialized, with gasworks, breweries, and candle and paint manufacture....

Black, Timuel Dixon, Jr.

(Encyclopedia) Black, Timuel Dixon, Jr., 1918-2021, American social activist and community organizer, b. Birmingham, Al., Roosevelt Univ. (B.A., 1952), Univ. of ...

Robert II, duke of Normandy

(Encyclopedia)Robert II (Robert Curthose), c.1054–1134, duke of Normandy (1087–1106); eldest son of King William I of England. Aided by King Philip I of France, he rebelled (1077) against his father. Father and...

Murano

(Encyclopedia)Murano mo͞oräˈnō [key], suburb of Venice, NE Italy, on five small islands in the Lagoon of Venice. From the late 13th cent. it was the center of the Venetian glass industry, which reached a peak i...

London, city, Canada

(Encyclopedia)London, city (1991 pop. 303,165), SE Ont., Canada, on the Thames River. The site was chosen in 1792 by Gov. Simcoe to be the capital of Upper Canada, but York was made capital instead. London was sett...

Niagara Falls, waterfall, United States and Canada

(Encyclopedia)Niagara Falls, in the Niagara River, W N.Y. and S Ont., Canada; one of the most famous spectacles in North America. The falls are on the international line between the cities of Niagara Falls, N.Y., a...

poet laureate

(Encyclopedia)poet laureate lôˈrēĭt [key], title conferred in Britain by the monarch on a poet whose duty it is to write commemorative odes and verse. It is an outgrowth of the medieval English custom of having...

Fort Pierce

(Encyclopedia)Fort Pierce, city (2020 pop. 47,297), seat of St. Lucie co., SE Fla., on Indian River (a lagoon; part of the Intracoastal Waterway); settled in the 1860...

Jebba

(Encyclopedia)Jebba jĕbˈä [key], town, W Nigeria, the head of navigation on the Niger River. It is a port as well as a rail and road center. Paper is manufactured in the city. Jebba was conquered by the British ...

Smeaton, John

(Encyclopedia)Smeaton, John smēˈtən [key], 1724–92, English civil engineer. He became an instrument maker, improved navigation instruments, and carried out many experiments on mechanical apparatus. Between 175...