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Davis, Benjamin Oliver, Jr.

(Encyclopedia)Davis, Benjamin Oliver, Jr., 1912–2002, American air force general, b. Washington, D.C.; son of Benjamin Oliver Davis. After studying at Western Reserve and Chicago universities, he attended West Po...

Vinson Massif

(Encyclopedia)Vinson Massif, peak, 16,860 ft (5,139 m) high, W Antarctica, in the Ellsworth Mts.; highest peak in Antarctica.

Hart, Oliver Simon D'Arcy

(Encyclopedia)Hart, Oliver Simon D'Arcy, 1948–, British-American economist, b. London, England, Ph.D. Princeton, 1974. He has been a professor at the London School of Economics (1981–85), the Massachusetts Inst...

Holmes, Oliver Wendell, American jurist

(Encyclopedia)Holmes, Oliver Wendell, 1841–1935, American jurist, associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1902–32), b. Boston; son of the writer Oliver Wendell Holmes. He served (1861–64) with distinctio...

Whitney, John Hay

(Encyclopedia)Whitney, John Hay, 1904–82, American public official and newspaper publisher, b. Ellsworth, Maine. After an active career in business and in various government posts, Whitney served (1957–61) as a...

XYZ Affair

(Encyclopedia)XYZ Affair, name usually given to an incident (1797–98) in Franco-American diplomatic relations. The United States had in 1778 entered into an alliance with France, but after the outbreak of the Fre...

Balchen, Bernt

(Encyclopedia)Balchen, Bernt bârnt bälˈkən [key], 1899–1973, Norwegian-American aviator. He headed one of the search expeditions for Amundsen and Ellsworth in 1925 and was a member of their 1926 expedition to...

Wolcott, Oliver, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury

(Encyclopedia)Wolcott, Oliver, 1760–1833, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury (1795–1800), b. Litchfield, Conn; son of Oliver Wolcott. Admitted to the bar in 1781, he served as Connecticut comptroller (1788–89), a...

Rapid City

(Encyclopedia)Rapid City, city (1990 pop. 54,523), seat of Pennington co., SW S.Dak., on Rapid Creek, in an irrigated farm region served by the Bureau of Reclamation's Rapid Valley project; founded 1876 after the d...

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