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Beiderbecke, Bix

(Encyclopedia)Beiderbecke, Bix (Leon Bismarck Beiderbecke) bīˈdərbĕk [key], 1903–31, American jazz cornetist, pianist, and composer, b. Davenport, Iowa. Mainly self-taught, he was influenced by recordings of ...

Baldwin, Simeon Eben

(Encyclopedia)Baldwin, Simeon Eben, 1840–1927, American jurist and politician, b. New Haven, Conn., grad. Yale, 1861. He taught at Yale from 1869 to 1919, serving as a professor of law after 1872. His teaching an...

Key, David McKendree

(Encyclopedia)Key, David McKendree, 1824–1900, American politician and jurist, b. Greene co., Tenn. He practiced law in Chattanooga, Tenn., from 1853 to 1870, except during the Civil War, when he was an officer i...

Roberts, Kenneth Lewis

(Encyclopedia)Roberts, Kenneth Lewis, 1885–1957, American author, b. Kennebunk, Maine, grad. Cornell, 1908. Well known as staff correspondent for the Saturday Evening Post and as an author of travel books, Robert...

Bingham, Hiram, 1789–1869, American Congregationalist missionary

(Encyclopedia)Bingham, Hiram, 1789–1869, American Congregationalist missionary, b. Bennington, Vt. In 1819 the American Board of Missions sent him, with others, to found the first Protestant mission in the Hawaii...

North American Free Trade Agreement

(Encyclopedia)North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), accord establishing a free-trade zone in North America; it was signed in 1992 by Canada, Mexico, and the United States and took effect on Jan. 1, 1994. NAF...

lyceum, 19th-century American educational association

(Encyclopedia)lyceum līsēˈəm, līˈ– [key], 19th-century American association for popular instruction of adults by lectures, concerts, and other methods. Lyceum groups were concerned with the dissemination of...

Astor, John Jacob, 1864–1912, American financier

(Encyclopedia)Astor, John Jacob, 1864–1912, American financier, b. Rhinebeck, N.Y.; son of William Backhouse Astor (1829–92). He served in the Spanish-American War. Drowned in the Titanic disaster, he left two ...

Copley, John Singleton, American portrait painter

(Encyclopedia)Copley, John Singleton kŏpˈlē [key], 1738–1815, American portrait painter, b. Boston. Copley is considered the greatest of the American old masters. He studied with his stepfather, Peter Pelham, ...

Davis, George Breckenridge

(Encyclopedia)Davis, George Breckenridge, 1847–1914, American army officer and jurist, b. Ware, Mass., grad. West Point, 1871. His early military service was divided between duty on the Western frontier and teach...