ALBANO (al-bä′nō), a town of Italy, 18 miles S. S. E. of Rome, on the declivity of the lava-walls which encompass Lake Albano, and opposite the site of Alba Longa. There are numerous remains of ancient buildings, including an aqueduct. A valuable wine is made here. Pop. about 10,000.
The Alban Lake, or Lago di Castello, is formed in the basin of an extinct volcano, and has a circumference of 6 miles, with a depth of 530 feet. Its surface is 961 feet above the sea-level. While the Romans were at war with Veii (390 B. C.), this lake rose to an extraordinary height in the heat of summer, and diviners declared that the conquest of Veii depended upon letting off the waters of the lake. Hereupon the Romans opened a tunnel through the lava-walls which still remains and still fulfills its ancient office, is a mile in length, with a height of 7 feet, and a width of 4 feet. On the eastern bank of the lake rises Monte Cavo, the ancient Mount Albanus, 3,000 feet high.
ALBAN'S, ST., a small and ancient borough of England, Hertfordshire, 20 miles N. N. W. of London, by the London and Northwestern railway. It is the ancient Roman Verulamium. The abbey church was built in 796, in honor of St. Alban, by the King Offa. Of this first abbey there remains but a gateway. The present abbey is an object worthy the attention of the antiquarian and the student of architecture. It is built in the form of a cross, running 547 feet from east to west, and having a breadth of 206 feet, at the intersection of the transept. Every style of architecture, from the time of the Romans to that of Henry VII., may be traced in it. Near the town of St. Alban's, two battles were fought between the houses of York and Lancaster. In the first, May 22, 1455, Richard, Duke of York, obtained a victory over Henry VI. In the second, Feb. 2, 1461, Margaret of Anjou defeated the army of the Yorkists, commanded by Warwick.
ALBANY, a city of Alabama, formerly known as New Decatur. It is about 80 miles N. of Birmingham. It is on the Tennessee river and on the Louisville and Nashville railroad. The town has grown rapidly in recent years and is now an important industrial center. There are extensive iron manufactures. It has also manufactories of cottonseed oil, lumber, railroad repair shops, and tanneries. Pop. (1910) 6,119; (1920) 7,652.
ALBANY, a city of Georgia, the county-seat of Dougherty co. It is on the Central of Georgia, the Atlantic Coast Line, the Seaboard Air Line, the Georgia Southwestern and Gulf, the Georgia Northern, and the Albany and Northern railroads. It is also on the Flint river, which is navigable at that point. It is both an agricultural and an industrial community. The chief interests are cotton, cottonseed oil, bricks fertilizers, and lumber. The city has an excellent street system and water supply furnished by artesian wells. There is a public library, Federal building, and a monument to Confederate soldiers. Pop. (1910) 8,190; (1920) 11,555.
ALBANY, the capital of the State of New York and the county-seat of Albany co. It is situated on the west bank of the Hudson river, about 145 miles N. of New York City. It is at the head of the navigation of the Hudson river and is the terminus of the Erie and Champlain barge canals. Six railroads radiate from it to every part of the country. It is the terminus of the Boston and Albany railroad and the division terminus of the main lines of the West Shore, the New York Central, and the Delaware and Hudson railroads. The city has direct steamboat communication by day and night lines with New York and Hudson river points, while the Erie and Champlain canals give water communication with the interior of the State and the west and north. The excellent shipping facilities of the city have made it an important commercial center. It is the second largest express and third largest mail transfer in the United States. Albany is a distributing point for the large oil companies, mail-order houses, machinery companies, and other corporations which do a national business.
Albany is an attractive city both in site and as a result of careful city planning, which, in recent years, has transformed certain portions. There is an extensive park system with parks conveniently located to meet the needs of the various sections of the city. Among these are Washington Park, 90 acres, and Lincoln Park, 78 acres. The city maintains free public baths and other recreational features. The water and sewer systems are of the latest approved design. There are excellent hospitals, including three large general hospitals, and a number of special hospitals.
Albany is well equipped with public school facilities. There were in 1920, 23 grammar school buildings and a high school building costing $1,000,000. There are housed in these buildings over 12,000 people. In addition to the public schools there are many well-equipped private and parochial schools. In the city are
