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Kenton, Simon

(Encyclopedia) Kenton, Simon, 1755–1836, American frontiersman, b. probably Fauquier co., Va. In 1771, believing he had killed a man, he fled westward, assuming the name Simon Butler. He settled in…

Blount, William

(Encyclopedia) Blount, William, 1749–1800, American political leader, b. near Windsor, N.C. He served in the American Revolution and later became a legislator in North Carolina, a member of the…

Heckewelder, John Gottlieb Ernestus

(Encyclopedia) Heckewelder, John Gottlieb ErnestusHeckewelder, John Gottlieb Ernestushĕkˈəvĕldər [key], 1743–1823, Moravian missionary in the United States, b. Bedford, England. Settling (1754) in…

Rolfe, John

(Encyclopedia) Rolfe, JohnRolfe, Johnrŏlf [key], 1585–1622, English colonist in Virginia. He reached the colony in May, 1610, and introduced (1612) the regular cultivation of tobacco, which became…

Gros Ventre

(Encyclopedia) Gros VentreGros Ventregrō văNˈtrə [key] [Fr.,=big belly], name used by the French for two quite distinct Native North American groups. One was the Atsina, a detached band of the…

Zeisberger, David

(Encyclopedia) Zeisberger, DavidZeisberger, Davidzīsˈbərgər [key], 1721–1808, American Moravian missionary, b. Moravia. While a youth, he lived in Holland and later in London, where he met Graf von…

pipe smoking

(Encyclopedia) pipe smoking. The habit of smoking various substances probably arose independently in different parts of the world. Herodotus in the 5th cent. b.c. describes the Scythians as inhaling…

Roraima

(Encyclopedia) RoraimaRoraimar&oobreve;rīˈmə [key], state (1996 pop. 247,724), 88,843 sq mi (230,103 sq km), NW Brazil, on the border of Venezuela and Guyana. Boa Vista is the capital. Located…

Morton, Sarah Wentworth

(Encyclopedia) Morton, Sarah Wentworth, 1759–1846, American author, b. Boston. Under her pseudonym, Philenia, she wrote such works as Ouâbi: Or the Virtues of Nature (1790), a sentimental Native…

Iroquois Confederacy

(Encyclopedia) Iroquois Confederacy or Iroquois LeagueIroquois Confederacyĭrˈəkwoiˌ, –kwäˌ [key], North American confederation of indigenous peoples, initially comprising the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga…