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Sampson, William Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Sampson, William Thomas, 1840–1902, American naval officer, b. Palmyra, N.Y. After serving with Union naval forces in the Civil War, he saw varied naval service and was (1886–90) superintendent of...

Blair Atholl

(Encyclopedia)Blair Atholl ăthˈəl [key], parish, Perth and Kinross, central Scotland, at the confluence of the Garry and the Tilt rivers. Blair Castle, begun c.1269, is the seat of the duke of Atholl and his Ath...

Saint Andrews, University of

(Encyclopedia)Saint Andrews, University of, at St. Andrews, Scotland; founded 1410. It is the oldest university in Scotland. It has faculties of arts, science, and divinity. St. Salvator's College was founded in 14...

Darién Scheme

(Encyclopedia)Darién Scheme, Scottish project to establish a colony on the Isthmus of Panama (Darién). In 1695, the Scottish Parliament passed an act that chartered a company for trading with Africa and the Indie...

Carstares, William

(Encyclopedia)Carstares or Carstairs, William, 1649–1715, Scottish statesman and Presbyterian divine. While studying theology at Utrecht, he became a friend of William of Orange (later William III of England). He...

Kirkintilloch

(Encyclopedia)Kirkintilloch kûrkĭntĭlˈŏkh [key], town (1991 pop. 33,024), East Dunbartonshire, W Scotland, on the Forth and Clyde Canal. An engineering center, the town has factories that produce mining machin...

Grampians, the

(Encyclopedia)Grampians, the, or Grampian Mountains, highest mountain system of Great Britain, extending northeast to southwest along the southern fringe of the Highlands, central Scotland. Ben Nevis (4,411 ft/1,34...

Caledonian Canal

(Encyclopedia)Caledonian Canal, waterway, c.60 mi (100 km) long, cutting across Highland, N Scotland, from Moray Firth to Loch Linnhe by way of the Great Glen. It was built in two phases (1803–22 and 1843–47; o...

Wishart, George

(Encyclopedia)Wishart, George wĭshˈərt [key], 1513?–1546, Scottish religious reformer, Protestant martyr. He was master of a grammar school in Montrose. In 1538 he fled Scotland to escape charges of heresy; he...