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DEPARTMENT (Fr. departement, from dep...

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Originally appearing in Volume V08, Page 56 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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DEPARTMENT (Fr. departement, from departir, to See also:separate into parts) , a See also:division. The word is used of the branches of the See also:administration in a See also:state or See also:municipality; in See also:Great See also:Britain it is applied to the subordinate divisions only of the great offices and boards of state, such as the See also:bankruptcy department of the See also:Board of See also:Trade, but in the See also:United States these subordinate divisions are known as " bureaus," while " department " is used of the eight See also:chief branches of the executive. A particular use of the word is that for a territorial division of See also:France, corresponding loosely to an See also:English See also:county. Previous to the See also:French Revolution, the See also:local unit in France was the See also:province, but this division was too closely See also:bound up with the administrative mismanagement of the old regime. Accordingly, at the See also:suggestion of See also:Mirabeau, France was redivided on entirely new lines, the See also:thirty-four provinces being broken up into eighty-three departments (see FRENCH REVOLUTION). The See also:idea was to render them as nearly as possible equal to a certain See also:average of See also:size and See also:population, though this was not always adhered to. They derived their names principally from See also:rivers, mountains or other prominent See also:geographical features. Under See also:Napoleon the number was increased to one See also:hundred and thirty, but in 1815 it was reduced to eighty-six. In 186o three new departments were created out of the newly annexed territory of See also:Savoy and See also:Nice. In 1871 three departments (Bas-Rhin, Haut-Rhin and Moselle) were lost after the See also:German See also:war. Of the remains of the Haut-Rhin was formed the territory of See also:Belfort, and the fragments of the Moselle were incorporated in the department of Meurthe, which was renamed Meurthe-et-Moselle, making the number at See also:present eighty-seven. For a See also:complete See also:list of the departments see FRANCE.

Each department is presided over by an officer called a See also:

prefect, appointed by the See also:government, and assisted by a prefectorial See also:council (conseil de prefecture). The departments are subdivided into arrondissements, each in See also:charge of a sub-prefect. Arrondissements are again subdivided into cantons, and these into communes, somewhat See also:equivalent to the English See also:parish (see FRANCE: Local Government). DE PERE, a See also:city of See also:Brown county, See also:Wisconsin, U.S.A., on both sides of the See also:Fox See also:river, 6 m. above its mouth, and 109 M. N. of See also:Milwaukee. Pop. (1890) 3625; (1900) 4038, of whom 1025 were See also:foreign-See also:born; (1905, state See also:census) 4523. It is served by the See also:Chicago & See also:North-Western and Chicago, Milwaukee & St See also:Paul See also:railways, by interurban electric lines and by See also:lake and river steamboat lines, it being the See also:head of lake See also:navigation on the Fox river. Two See also:bridges here span the Fox, which is from a m. to 2 m. in width. It is a See also:shipping and See also:transfer point and has See also:paper See also:mills, See also:machine shops, See also:flour mills, See also:sash, See also:door and See also:blind factories, a See also:launch and See also:pleasure-See also:boat factory, and See also:knitting See also:works, See also:cheese factories and dairies, See also:brick yards and See also:grain See also:elevators. There is an excellent See also:water-See also:power. De Pere is the seat of St Norbert's See also:college (See also:Roman See also:Catholic, 1902) and has a public library.

North of the city is located the state reformatory. On the coming of the first See also:

European, See also:Jean Nicolet, who visited the See also:place in 1634–1635i De Pere was the site of a polyglot See also:Indian See also:settlement of several thousand attracted by the fishing at the first rapids of the Fox river. Here in 167o See also:Father See also:Claude Allouez established the See also:mission of St See also:Francis See also:Xavier, the second in what is now Wisconsin, From the name Rapides See also:des Peres, which the French applied to the place, was derived the name De Pere. Here See also:Nicolas See also:Perrot, the first French commandant in the North-See also:West, established his headquarters, and Father Jacques See also:Marquette wrote the See also:journal of his See also:journey to the See also:Mississippi. A few See also:miles See also:south of the city lived for many years Eleazer See also:Williams (c. 1787–1857), the alleged " lost dauphin" See also:Louis XVII. of France and an authority on See also:Indians, especially See also:Iroquois. De Pere was incorporated as a See also:village in 1857, and was chartered as a city in 1883.

End of Article: DEPARTMENT (Fr. departement, from departir, to separate into parts)

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