1000 Things Worth Knowing: That All who Read May KnowThis handy book of useful information contains more than 1000 facts, many of which are not generally known to the average person; but all of them are of interest to humankind, and knowledge of many of them is essential.Fowler has used the simplest English, and has avoided, as far as possible, all technical terms. He has endeavored not to fall into the common error of making his explanations harder to understand than the subjects treated.In the space of a few hundred pages Fowler has presented the thousand or more things that are really worth knowing. He examines everything from April Fool's Day ("Its origin is unknown, but it is supposed to follow an ancient pageant custom of playing tricks on the first day of April"), to the Seven Wonders of the ancient and new worlds, to the derivation of the term "Yankee."The book is not a mere encyclopedia -- it is an education unto itself. |
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Page 19 - Freedom, which is 19 feet 6 inches high and weighs 14,985 pounds. It was modeled by Crawford. The height of the dome above the base line of the east front is 287 feet 5 inches.
Page 19 - The dome of the original central building was constructed of wood, covered with copper. This was replaced in 1856 by the present structure of cast iron. It was completed in 1865. The entire weight of iron used is 8,909,200 pounds. The dome is crowned by a bronze statue of Freedom, which is 19 feet 6 inches high and weighs 14,985 pounds.
Page 19 - DOME. The Dome of the original central building was constructed of wood, covered with copper. This was replaced in 1856 by the present structure of cast iron. It was completed in 1865.