Columbus, the capital of the state of Ohio, on the Scioto River, 116 miles NE. of Cincinnati and 138 SSW. of Cleveland. In a central square of 10 acres stands the state capitol, a fine stone structure 304 feet long by 184 wide. Other edifices are the city-hall, with a public library; a court-house erected at a cost of $400,000; U. S. government and Board of Trade buildings; a large state penitentiary; a hospital for the insane, erected at a cost of $1,520,980; and institutions for the blind, the deaf and dumb, etc. Here also are the Ohio State University and the Capital University (Lutheran). Fourteen lines of railway radiate in all directions, which, added to the natural advantage of proximity to the great coal and iron fields of the state, tend to a rapid development of the manufacturing industries. Columbus was founded in 1812. Pop. (1870) 31,274; (1880) 51,647; (1890) 88,150 ; (1900) 125,560.

Columbus is also the name of some twenty other places in the United States, the most important being: (1) Capital of Muscogee county, Georgia, on the Chattahoochee River, 100 miles SSW. of Atlanta. It has a large trade in cotton, and extensive manufactures of cotton, woollen, and iron goods. Pop. (1880) 10,123; (1900) 17,614. - (2) Capital of Bartholomew county, Tndiana, 41 miles S. by E. of Indianapolis. Pop. 8739. - (3) Capital of Lowndes county, Mississippi, on the Tombigbee River, 150 miles NE. of Jackson. Pop. 6599. - (4) Capital of Colorado county, Texas, on the Colorado River, 95 miles SSE. of Austin by rail. Pop. 2500.