History Take Home Test

In part, President Lincoln refrained from taking action to emancipate slaves until the Civil War had been in progress for almost two years because a. he sought to retain the loyalty of the border states b. he feared a hostile reaction on the part of the British and French c. slavery still existed in most Northern states d. Congress had not granted him the authority

A. he sought to retain the loyalty of the border States

Based on his Senate debates with Abraham Lincoln, how did Stephen Douglas view slavery? a. He did not take a moral position on slavery and mainly considered its impact on his political prospects. b. He feared slavery would undermine the South's ability to industrialize and stay competitive with the North. c. He believed slavery was an affront to the Declaration of Independence and must be ended immediately. d. He favored creating a southern Confederacy based on slave labor even at the expense of national unity.

A. He did not take a moral position on slavery and mainly considered its impact on his political prospects.

Which of the following statements about the Dred Scott decision is correct? a. It stated that Black people were not citizens of the United States. b. It upheld the constitutionality of the Missouri Compromise. c. It recognized the power of Congress to prohibit slavery in the territories, but refused on technical grounds to free Scott. d. It upheld the principle of popular sovereignty.

A. It stated that Black people were not citizens of the United States.

Why did Congressional Reconstruction end in 1877? a. The Republican and Democratic parties effected a compromise agreement after the 1876 presidential election. b. The freed slaves had been successfully integrated into Southern society. c. The treaty ending the Civil War had set such a time limit. d. Most of the politically active Black people had left the South for Northern cities.

A. The Republican and Democratic parties effected a compromise agreement after the 1876 presidential election.

Most of the Irish immigrants who came to the United States following the potato famine of the 1840s settled in a. urban areas of the North b. Appalachia c. seacoast cities of the South d. rural sections of the Old Northwest

A. Urban areas of the North

During the Civil War, both the Union and Confederate governments experienced a. an expansion of the powers of the national government b. diminishing powers for the central government c. civil disobedience that shortened the war d. the creation of a national banking system to pay for the war

A. an expansion of the powers of the national gov

All of the following elements of the Radical Republican program were implemented during Reconstruction EXCEPT a. provision of 40 acres to each freedman b. enactment of the Fourteenth Amendment c. military occupation of the South d. restrictions on the power of the President

A. provision of 40 acres to each freedman

With the publication of Uncle Tom's Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe a. reached millions of people who had previously given little thought to slavery b. raised fears in the South that slave rebellions were imminent throughout the region c. used her personal experiences to show the suffering of slaves in the South d. condemned southern slaveholders for their brutal and unchristian behavior

A. reached millions of people who had previously given little thought to slavery

The Supreme Court's decision in the Dred Scott case in 1857 effectively repealed the a. Wilmot Proviso b. Missouri Compromise c. Fugitive Slave Act d. Ostend Manifesto

B. Missouri Compromise

Which of the following best summarizes the impact of Reconstruction on the South? a. Reconstruction strengthened the Republican Party in the South and ended Democratic dominance in the region. b. Reconstruction failed to make lasting changes in the political and social power structure in the South. c. Reconstruction left many problems unresolved, but it did promote racial understanding in the South. d. Reconstruction reformed public education in the South and made it equal to public education in the North.

B. Reconstruction failed to make lasting changes in the political and social power structure in the South

Which of the following best describes the position on slavery of most northerners during the sectional crises of the 1850s? a. They advocated complete social and political equality for all races in the United States. b. They were willing to accept slavery where it existed but opposed further expansion to the territories. c. They were active supporters of complete abolition. d. They favored continued importation of slaves from Africa.

B. They were willing to accept slavery where it existed but opposed further expansion to the territories

Which of the following would most likely have expressed opposition to the idea of Manifest Destiny? a. Supporters of the Ostend Manifesto b. Voters for James K. Polk in 1844 c. Supporters of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 d. Abolitionists

B. Voters for James K. Polk in 1844

During the Civil War, a Copperhead was someone who a. supported Lincoln's suppression of civil rights b. lived in the North, but supported the South's effort to establish an independent nation c. was a Democrat, yet voted for Abraham Lincoln in 1860 and 1864 d. favored ending slavery even if such action destroyed the Union

B. lived in the North, but supported the South's effort to establish an independent nation

The majority of White families in the antebellum South owned a. more than 100 slaves b. no slaves c. 50 to 100 slaves d. 10 to 50 slaves

B. no slaves

All of the following were true of the Emancipation Proclamation EXCEPT a. it had a very limited impact on the freeing of slaves in the United States b. the Border States opposed it as an attack on their slaveholding rights c. it transformed the focus and objective of the Civil War in the North d. the president used his military authority to issue the Proclamation

B. the Border States opposed it as an attack on their slaveholding rights

In his speeches during the 1850s, Abraham Lincoln took the position that slavery a. should co-exist with non-slave territories for years into the future b. threatened the political and economic rights of white settlers in the western territories. c. was not a moral issue but instead should be addressed in the political process d. violated the Declaration of Independence and must be ended immediately

B. threatened the political and economic rights of white settlers in the western territories

Which of the following was a consequence of the shift to sharecropping and the crop lien system in the late nineteenth-century South? a. A diversification of crops b. A major redistribution of land ownership c. A cycle of debt and depression for Southern tenant farmers d. A rise in cotton yields per acre from antebellum production levels

C. A cycle of debt and depression for Southern tenant farmers

The Republican Party of the 1850s took which of the following positions on slavery? a. The federal government should purchase slaves from their masters and relocate them to the west coast of Africa. b. Residents of territories could decide on the basis of popular sovereignty whether to have slavery. c. Slavery could remain where it existed but should not be extended into territories or new states. d. The federal government should abolish slavery.

C. Slavery could remain where it existed but should not be extended into territories or new states

In the last half of the nineteenth century, the New South advocates supported a. elimination of convict leasing b. limitation on West Indian migration to the United States c. expansion of southern industry d. creation of a southern literature critical of the Old South

C. expansion of southern industry

The Battle of Antietam, September 17, 1862, is considered pivotal to the outcome of the Civil War because it a. confirmed George McClellan's status as the leading Union general b. represented the Union's deepest thrust into southern territory c. forestalled the possibility of European intervention d. resulted in the border states joining the Confederacy

C. forestalled the possibility of European intervention

After the Civil War, women reformers and former abolitionists were divided over a. redemption of greenback dollars for gold currency b. creation of a sharecropping system in the South c. legislation that ensured the voting rights of African American males d. use of military forces to keep order in the South

C. legislation that ensured the voting rights of African American males

While different political groups came together to form the Republican Party in 1854, they were united by their a. opposition to Irish-Catholic immigrants' influence in society b. commitment to the immediate abolition of slavery in America c. opposition to the spread of slavery into the territories d. support for the Kansas-Nebraska Act

C. opposition to the spread of slavery into the territories

In adopting the Fourteenth Amendment, Congress was primarily concerned with a. establishing the Freedmen's Bureau b. protecting the powers of the southern state governments established under Andrew Johnson c. protecting legislation guaranteeing civil rights to former slaves d. ending slavery

C. protecting legislation guaranteeing civil rights to former slaves

During the Civil War era, the slave states of Maryland, Delaware, Kentucky, and Missouri all a. eventually joined the Confederacy b. participated in the Northern blockade of the South c. remained in the Union d. agreed to end slavery before the end of the war

C. remained in the Union

The primary objective of the founders of the Know-Nothing party was the a. abolition of slavery b. establishment of free public schools c. restriction of the rights of immigrants d. improvement of factory working conditions

C. restriction of the rights of immigrants

In 1861 the North went to war with the South primarily to a. forestall a Southern invasion of the North b. liberate the slaves c. prevent European powers from meddling in American affairs d. preserve the Union e. avenge political defeats and insults inflicted by the South

D. Preserve the Union

Which of the following states the principle of "popular sovereignty?" a. Individual citizens can decide for themselves whether or not to hold slaves. b. Congress has the right to decide where slavery shall and shall not exist. c. The settlers in a given territory have the sole right to decide whether or not slavery will be permitted there. d. The American people shall decide where slavery will exist through a national plebiscite.

C. The settlers in a given territory have the sole right to decide whether or not slavery will be permitted there.

Which of the following statements about African American soldiers during the Civil War is correct? a. They were barred from receiving awards for valor in combat. b. They were primarily engaged in military campaigns west of the Mississippi. c. They were limited to noncombat duty. d. For most of the war, they were paid less than White soldiers of equal rank. e. For most of the war, they were led by African American officers.

D. For most of the war, they were paid less than White soldiers of equal rank.

Which element of the Kansas-Nebraska Act caused the greatest controversy? a. Spending $10 million on railroad construction in Kansas b. Its de facto repeal of the Missouri Compromise c. Admitting Kansas to the Union as a slave state d. Splitting the territory into two areas

D. Splitting the territory in two areas

Which of the following resulted from the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848? a. Mexico paid $15 million to the United States for war reparations. b. The United States pledged to abolish slavery in the Mexican Cession. c. The two countries agreed to restore the prewar status quo. d. The United States achieved uncontested ownership of Texas.

D. The United States achieved uncontested ownership of Texas

In the antebellum period, free African Americans were a. protected from kidnapping under stringent provisions of the Fugitive Slave Act b. given the right of suffrage in most states c. able to settle in states in the Middle West without legal restriction d. able to accumulate some property in spite of discrimination

D. able to accumulate some property in spite of discrimination

African-American soldiers who served in the Union army during the Civil War were likely to a. serve as spies in the South because they knew the terrain so well b. experience acceptance and support from their fellow white soldiers c. serve in the front lines where they experienced mortality rates higher than white soldiers d. be assigned menial tasks doing physical labor behind the lines

D. be assigned menial tasks doing physical labor behind the lines

The North's advantages over the South at the outbreak of the Civil War included all of the following EXCEPT a. naval supremacy b. more substantial industrial resources c. a more extensive railroad network d. dominance in cotton trade

D. dominance in cotton trade

John Brown staged his raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859 because he believed a. his abolitionist backers wanted him to strike hard at slavery b. his speeches and books had failed to convince people that slavery was evil c. only armed blacks could end slavery in the South d. he was God's instrument to destroy slavery by whatever means necessary

D. he was God's instrument to destroy slavery by whatever means necessary

The most controversial and divisive component of the Compromise of 1850 was the a. admittance of Texas as a slave state b. measure's endorsement of popular sovereignty c. admittance of Missouri as a slave state and the establishment of the 36º30' line d. passage of a tougher national fugitive slave act

D. passage of a tougher national fugitive slave act

The Black Codes passed in a number of southern states after the Civil War were intended to a. further the integration of southern society b. close public schools to the children of former slaves c. promote the return of former slaves to Africa d. place limits on the socioeconomic opportunities open to Black people

D. place limits on the socioeconomic opportunities open to Black people

During Reconstruction, the main goal of the Ku Klux Klan was to a. work with former slaves and defend their new political rights b. rekindle a full-scale war against northern aggression c. cooperate with the new southern governments to end military occupation of the South d. prevent the changes in southern society envisioned by the Radical Republicans

D. prevent the changes in southern society envisioned by the Radical Republicans

The Wilmot Proviso specifically provided for a. the prohibition of slavery in Louisiana Purchase territory b. the primacy of federal law over state-legislated Black Codes c. the abolition of the international slave trade d. the prohibition of slavery in lands acquired from Mexico in the Mexican War

D. the prohibition of slavery in lands acquired from Mexico in the Mexican War

Thaddeus Stevens and other Radical Republicans believed a. the president and Congress should share power equally in directing the reconstruction of the South b. former slaves could be integrated into southern society without federal intervention c. the rebellious sates had suffered enough and compassion was the best policy d. the rebellious states should undergo widespread political and social changes

D. the rebellious states should undergo widespread political and social changes

When the Emancipation Proclamation was issued at the beginning of 1863, its immediate effect was to a. end the Civil War b. abolish slavery c. alienate Britain and France d. free slaves held in the border states e. strengthen the moral cause of the Union

E. strengthen the moral cause of the Union