Weather has shaped United States' culture, national character and folklore; at times it has changed the course of history. The seven accounts compiled in this publication highlight some of the nation's weather experiences from the hurricanes that threatened Christopher Columbus to the peculiar run of bad weather that has plagued American presidents on Inauguration Day. Also presented are meteorological phenomena encountered by people who documented weather and climate during the Revolutionary and Civil Wars and those who suffered through the "year without a summer," the Blizzard of '88, and the dustbowl drought of the 1930's. Numerous historical photographs illustrate the entries. (Author/WB)