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Bent, William

(Encyclopedia)Bent, William, 1809–69, American frontiersman, b. St. Louis. One of the younger brothers of Charles Bent, he was for many years the manager of Bent's Fort, while Charles Bent lived mainly in Taos. W...

Van Cortlandt, Jacobus

(Encyclopedia)Van Cortlandt, Jacobus jəkōˈbəs văn kôrtˈlənd [key], 1658–1739, colonial American merchant, b. New Amsterdam (later New York City); brother of Stephen Van Cortlandt. He served (1710 and 1719...

children's book illustration

(Encyclopedia)children's book illustration, any type of picture or decorative work produced for books specifically intended for a youthful audience. During the 1960s a number of seldom-used techniques were introd...

Commonwealth Fund

(Encyclopedia)Commonwealth Fund, foundation established (1918) by Anna M. Harkness, wife of Stephen V. Harkness, an early Standard Oil investor, “for the welfare of mankind.” Its headquarters are in New York Ci...

Foster, Abigail Kelley

(Encyclopedia)Foster, Abigail Kelley, 1810–87, American abolitionist and advocate of women's rights, b. near Amherst, Mass. Abby Kelley, as she was known to her contemporaries, began her crusade against slavery i...

Gombos, Julius

(Encyclopedia)Gombos, Julius gömˈbösh [key], Hung. Gömbös Gyula, 1886–1936, Hungarian premier and officer. He was minister of war under the premiership of Stephen Bethlen (1921–31) and of Julius Károlyi (...

Austin, Moses

(Encyclopedia)Austin, Moses, 1761–1821, American pioneer, b. Durham, Conn. After developing lead mines in SW Virginia, he went to inspect (1796–97) prospects in Missouri, then Spanish territory. In 1798 he foun...

Borough, William

(Encyclopedia)Borough, William, 1536–99, British naval officer. A younger brother of Stephen Borough, William accompanied him on early voyages and was himself a captain for the Muscovy Company. As a naval officer...

Say, Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Say, Thomas, 1787–1843, American naturalist, b. Philadelphia. He went on collecting expeditions to Georgia and Florida and, with Stephen H. Long, to the Rocky Mts. and up the Mississippi and Minneso...

gnat

(Encyclopedia)gnat, common name for any one of a number of small, fragile-looking two-winged flies of the suborder Nematocera, order Diptera, which includes the families Tipulidae (crane flies), Bibionidae (hairfli...