Potomac
Potomac names 5 different subjects across the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf. Each is set out below. 1 of them is described by more than one encyclopedia.
Potomac an important river of the Chesapeake region
Described by 2 of the 6 encyclopedias.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
an important river of the Chesapeake region. It forms the boundary between Maryland and the Virginias. The total length is about 400 miles. The chief branches are the Shenandoah from the south and the Monocacy from the north. The upper course of the river is much interrupted by rapids. At Harper's Ferry it has cut one of those famous passages known as a water gap. Between Harper's Ferry and the city of Washington there are numerous rapids and falls. The Great Fall, a cataract about thirty-five feet high, is situated a dozen miles or so above Washington. The river is navigable for sea-going vessels as far as Washington. It was at one time a river of commercial importance; the early settlers of Virginia and Maryland packed their tobacco in hogsheads, rolled them down woodland roads to the Potomac or its branches, and shipped them to England. The upper valley was one of the earliest thoroughfares to the interior. The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal was built along its banks. The river is rich in historical associations. Its broad expanse was the delight of George Washington. See Mount Vernon ; Arlington; Washington , etc.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a river of the United States, formed by two branches which rise in the Allegheny Mountains in West Virginia, and unite 15 miles S. E. of Cumberland, Md., from which point the river flows in a generally S. E. course holding the same relation to electricity 400 miles, and falls into Chesapeake Bay, after forming an estuary nearly 100 miles long, and from 2½ to 7 miles wide. The largest ships can ascend to Washington. A few miles above Washington the river forms a cataract 35 feet high; and between there and Westport it falls more than 1,000 feet. The scenery in this portion of its course is wild and beautiful, especially where it breaks through the Blue Ridge at Harper's Ferry. Its principal affluents are the Shenandoah, Cacapon, and Monocacy. The Potomac forms the greater part of the boundary between Virginia and Maryland.
Potomac SOCIETY OF THE 1 ARMY OF THE
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
SOCIETY OF THE 1 ARMY OF THE, a military organization founded in New York, July 5, 1869, and has held annual reunions since that date. All officers and soldiers who served in the Army of the Potomac and in the 10th and 18th Army Corps, Army of the James, are eligible to membership. The officers are a president, one vice-president from each army corps, and from the general staff; a treasurer, recording secretary, and corresponding secretary. POTOSÍ, a city and capital of a department of same name; pop. abt. 30,000 (dept. 45,031 sq. m.; pop. abt. 550,000); one of the most famous mining towns of Bolivia. It is built on the side of the Cerro de Potosí (15,381 feet), at an elevation of 13,000 feet above the sea, and is thus one of the loftiest inhabited places on the globe. The public buildings include a handsome cathedral and a mint. The streets are steep and narrow, and there are no wagons or carriages, but only llamas and mules. The climate is very trying; all the four seasons may be experienced in one day, but usually it is bitterly cold, owing to the elevation. England and French manufactures are imported; and, as the country in the vicinity produces little or nothing, all supplies have to be brought from a distance. The industry of the place is limited to silver mining. The National Bank of Bolivia is situated here.
Potomac SOCIETY OF by Gen
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
SOCIETY OF by Gen. George B. McClellan in 1861, and served under him in the Peninsular campaign and later in that of Antietam. General Burnside took command in 1862, and General Hooker in 1863. General Meade was in command when the victory at Gettysburg was won, in July, 1863, and continued in charge during General Grant's operations in 1864-1865.
Potomac ARMY OF THE, a division of the United States army during the Civil War
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
ARMY OF THE, a division of the United States army during the Civil War, which operated in the E. section of the country. It was organized
Potomac ARMY OF lateral
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
ARMY OF lateral, or nearly terminal; achenes, many, minute, on a small, dry receptacle. Chiefly from the N. temperate and Arctic zones. Known species, 120.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Aiton's 1910 note that the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal was built along the banks is now history rather than transport: the canal carried its last cargo after the flood of 1924 and since 1971 has been the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park, a 184-mile towpath for walkers and cyclists. The Great Fall of about thirty-five feet that both accounts describe is likewise now parkland on both shores, and the tidal river below Washington, which Collier's called wild and beautiful upstream, became so foul by the 1960s that a president called it a national disgrace; it has recovered substantially since the Clean Water Act of 1972, though nutrient runoff from farms remains a problem. Ocean-going commerce to Washington, which both entries stress, has effectively ended, and the boundary question the entries treat as settled returned to court, the Supreme Court ruling in 2003 that Virginia could draw water and build intakes past the Maryland shoreline. The Society of the Army of the Potomac, holding annual reunions when Collier's wrote in 1921, died out with the last Union veterans.
Written for this edition, 2026.