Avalon
Avalon names 3 different subjects across the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf. Each is set out below.
Avalon av'a-lon, or Avilion
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
av'a-lon, or Avilion, a-vil'ion, in Celtic romance, an island in the western seas. It was regarded as an earthly paradise to which the souls of great heroes, like King Arthur, were borne at death. A castle built of loadstone stood on this Isle of Souls and was the abode of Oberon and Morgan le Fay. The word Avalon means literally "Place of Apples." The apple was the only important fruit known to the northern nations; hence the Welsh gave this name to their soul-kingdom, as indicative of a high degree of enjoyment. The Land of the Blessed and the Vale of Avalon were also terms applied to this mythical island. In the Idylls of the King Tennyson tells us that it had been prophesied that Arthur should never die, He passes to the Isle A vilion, He passes and is healed and cannot die. In the last Idyll, Arthur, wounded, says to Sir Bedivere: I am going a long way With these thou seest--if indeed I go-- For all my mind is clouded with a doubt-- To the island-valley of Avilion; Where falls not hail, or rain, or any snow, Nor ever wind blows loudly; but it lies Deep-meadow'd, happy, fair with orchard lawns And bowery hollows crown'd with summer sea, Where I will heal me of my grievous wound.
Avalon a borough of Pennsylvania in Allegheny co.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a borough of Pennsylvania in Allegheny co., about 6 miles W. of Pittsburgh. It is on the Ohio river, and the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago railroad. It is a suburb of Pittsburgh and is entirely residential . Pop. (1910) 4,317; (1920) 5,277.
Avalon a peninsula forming the E
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a peninsula forming the E. part of Newfoundland , in which St. John's, the capital, is situated.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Aiton's 1910 account of Avalon as an island in the western seas still describes the legend accurately, though modern historians treat the Glastonbury monks' discovery of Arthur's grave in 1191 as a pious fabrication, made soon after a fire destroyed the abbey and pilgrim money was badly needed. The two places Collier's listed in 1921 have gone different ways: Avalon borough near Pittsburgh peaked at over 6,000 residents in mid-century and has since slipped back to roughly its 1920s size, while the Avalon Peninsula of Newfoundland ceased to be part of a British dominion when Newfoundland joined Canada in 1949. St. John's is still the capital, and the peninsula's southern tip at Mistaken Point, with its Ediacaran fossils of the earliest complex life, became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2016.
Written for this edition, 2026.