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Biography:
This site, Foogle Business, is mainly an Information site but it is also an interesting
information music data bank. The subject here, America, has been chosen not
only because of any political views but because the success with A Horse
With No Name. Their greatest hit, A Horse With No
Name, you can listen to
here. Also words and music.
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American Indians A diverse group of peoples of North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean Islands. In many respects they resemble the Mongoloid peoples of Asia. However, their physical differences from the Mongoloids suggest other origins. Their ancestors probably arrived in the Americas from Asia via Alaska between 10 000 and 20 000 years ago. They have coarse dark straight hair, yellowish-brown skins, and little body hair. They speak a variety of languages and culturally range from primitive hunters and gatherers to the creators of the *Aztec, *Maya, and *Inca civilizations.
American Revolution (or American War of Independence; 1775–83) The conflict in which the 13 colonies of North America gained independence from Britain. American resentment at Britain’s strict rule focused in the mid-18th century on taxation. Protests against the Stamp Act (1765) and Townshend Acts (1767) led to the *Boston Tea Party (1773), which caused Britain to impose the harsh Intolerable Acts (1774). The first Continental Congress met at Philadelphia and, after talks between both sides had failed, the first shots of the war were fired at Lexington and Concord (April, 1775). In the autumn the Americans invaded Canada, taking Montreal and besieging Quebec until forced to withdraw to Ticonderoga in Spring, 1776. On 4 July the second Continental Congress issued the *Declaration of Independence. Gen Howe landed on Long Island in August and defeated the newly appointed American commander in chief, Washington, near White Plains. At the beginning of January, 1777, however, Washington won a victory at Princeton before settling in winter quarters. Britain’s hopes for 1777 were based on a plan for Burgoyne to march S from Canada and join forces with Howe at the Hudson River. Burgoyne duly arrived at the Hudson (Aug) but Howe had left New York by sea, landed at Chesapeake Bay, and defeated Washington at the Brandywine, taking Philadelphia (Sept). Burgoyne, meanwhile, was forced to surrender his army at Saratoga, a defeat that proved a turning point by bringing France into the war on the American side. In 1778 the British attacked in the S. Howe’s successor, Clinton, took Charleston, South Carolina, and Cornwallis defeated Gates at Camden (1780). In early 1781 the British lost badly at Cowpens (17 Jan) but won, with heavy losses, the battle of Guilford Court House (15 March). Cornwallis now moved into Virginia, establishing a base at Yorktown. There besieged by a Franco-American force under the Comte de Rochambeau (1725–1807) and Washington, on 19 October Cornwallis surrendered. The British navy had been threatened throughout by American privateers and the activities of such commanders as John Paul Jones, but the main threat at sea came from America’s European allies—the French, Spanish (from 1779), and Dutch (from 1780), who gained control of the English Channel and threatened invasion. Rodney’s success (1782) in the West Indies was not sufficient to reverse the effect of Yorktown but enabled Britain to regain control of the Atlantic. In 1783 Britain agreed to American independence in the Treaty of Paris.
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New York
The chief manufacturing state in the USA. The presence of New York City also makes it the commercial, financial, and cultural centre of the nation. The most important agricultural activity is dairying. History: one of the 13 original colonies, it was first settled by the Dutch in the early 17th century. It became an English colony in 1664. Area: 128 402 sq km (49 576 sq mi). Population (1985 est): 17 783 000. Capital: Albany.
New York, New York, 40 45N 74 00W The largest city in the USA, situated in New York state at the mouth of the Hudson River. Divided into five boroughs—Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, and Richmond (on Staten Island), it is the nation’s leading seaport. As one of the world’s financial centres (see *Wall Street), it is the site of many large corporations and the New York and American Stock Exchanges. Its most notable features include Central Park, the fashionable shops of Fifth Avenue, the *Statue of Liberty, Times Square, *Greenwich Village, the Brooklyn Bridge (1883), Rockefeller Center, St Patrick’s Cathedral (1858–79), and a large number of skyscrapers, such as the Empire State Building (1931; 381 m) and the World Trade Center (1973; 412 m). As well as the famous Broadway theatre district, there are numerous museums, art galleries, and libraries. History: on 3 September, 1609, Henry Hudson sailed into New York Bay; its founding Dutch colonists arrived in 1620. In 1625 New Amsterdam, situated at the S tip of Manhattan, became the capital of the newly established colony of New Netherland and the following year the whole island of Manhattan was bought from the Indians for the equivalent of 24 dollars. In 1664 the city was captured by the English for the Duke of York and promptly renamed. From 1789 until 1790 it was the first capital of the USA. The Erie Canal was opened in 1825. Early in the 20th century the arrival of millions of European immigrants supplied New York with limitless cheap labour. Population (1986): 7 262 700.

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