Encyclopedia Americana

the long version

The Encyclopedia Americana is intended to serve as a general reference resource for schools, colleges, and public libraries. In an era of increasingly specialized reference works, and of even more highly specialized journals and academic publications, it is occasionally forgotten that often the best introduction to a subject is the well-conceived, well-written overview provided by the general encyclopedia. The tens of thousands of articles in the Americana serve as a bridge between the worlds of the specialist and the general reader. - Preface.