United States History Questions and Answers
1. What was the main cause of the exposed land bridge connecting Eurasia to North America?
Answer : Much of the water in the oceans congealed into vast glacial packs.
2. Which theory best describes the spread of maize as a staple crop through the Native American populations?
Answer : Maize was first developed in the region that is now Mexico and spread through the Americas in a slow and uneven process.
3. With few exceptions, Native American groups of North America would be most accurately described as
Answer : lacking dense population concentrations or highly developed social life in the modern sense
4. The Native American Mississippian Valley culture differed from other Native American groups in that it
Answer : illustrated a higher level of hierarchical political organization
5. Which tribe of Native Americans is not associated with the Iroquois League?
Answer : Powhatan
6. In agricultural terms, how did Native Americans diff er from their European counterparts?
Answer : Europeans achieved greater technologies to alter the landscape in a more aggressive manner.
7. Why is L’Anse aux Meadows significant within North American history?
Answer : It marks the first example of pre-Columbian European contact with Native Americans.
8. Which of the following statements best describes the view of Native Americans in North America concerning property?
Answer : The right of an individual to use the land was temporary.
9. In what way did pre-Columbian Mesoamerican and Central American civilizations most greatly contrast with European societies?
Answer : Unlike European societies, the pre-Columbian societies in these regions lacked large draft animals to aid in transportation or agriculture.
10. In Native North American culture along the Eastern Seaboard, the Three Sisters would most accurately refer to
Answer : The sustainable agricultural technique of growing maize, beans, and squash
11. The large cliff dwelling structures of the North American Southwest are associated with which one of the following tribes?
Answer : Anasazi
12. The Native American clan in North America was primarily based on
Answer : a kinship network
13. The early American Indian civilizations of Mexico and Peru were based on which agricultural product?
Answer : Maize
14. Which tribe is most associated with the American Southwest?
Answer : Navajo
15. Why did the European Crusades directly lead to the Age of Exploration?
Answer : Returning crusaders brought exotic spices, perfumes, and fabrics, creating a new European demand for these commodities.
16. Wampum is mostly associated with the
Answer : Eastern Woodland tribes
17. The end of the feudal systems that defined the European Middle Ages was primarily caused by
Answer : The emergence of trade and a middle class of merchants
18. The 1215 signing of the Magna Carta directly affected the future American government by
Answer : Guaranteeing basic liberties to all citizens regardless of social class
19. The Columbian Exchange would best be described as
Answer : The exchange of biological, ecological, and other commodities brought to Europe and the Americas
20. The Spanish colonial system of forcing Native Americans to work for individual Spaniards in the Americas was known as
Answer : Encomienda
21. The Spanish conqueror most associated with the destruction of the Incan Empire was
Answer : Francisco Pizarro
22 . In 1494, Pope Alexander’s Treaty of Tordesillas established the line of demarcation granting
Answer : All of the land west of the meridian not already claimed by Christian nations to the Spanish
23. Which explorer is credited with being the first to reach the Pacific Ocean in the Americas?
Answer : Vasco Nuñez de Balboa
24. Which of the following explorers claimed Louisiana Territory for France?
Answer : Sieur Robert Cavelier de La Salle
25. In what way did early Spanish colonization diff er from that of the early French eff orts during the 1600s?
Answer : Unlike the Spanish, the French based much of their colonial economy on the fur trade.
26. The system of trails that linked the Spanish settlements in and along the Pacific coast of what is today Mexico and the United States was called
Answer : El Camino Real
27. The primary function of the Spanish pueblo during Spanish colonial control of Mexico was to
Answer : serve as mainly outposts for traders
28. What role did the Catholic Church play in Spain’s rule of its colonial possessions in North America?
Answer : The Spanish monarchy ordered priests to convert the indigenous population to Catholicism.
29. Which of the following statements best describes the reason the Dutch settlers in North America practiced religious tolerance?
Answer : Religious tolerance was a method to entice more settlers to their North American colonies.
30. Which explorer’s expedition is most associated with first circumnavigating the globe?
Answer : Ferdinand Magellan
31. Which of the following actions best illustrates the policy of salutary neglect?
Answer : Lack of enforcement of the Navigation Acts prior to 1763
32. Which of the following actions does not illustrate the strategy employed by Lord William Pitt during the French and Indian War (1756–1763)?
Answer : Taking over the French forts located along both sides of the Mississippi River
33. Which of the following was not a provision of the Coercive Acts?
Answer : The creation of colonial-controlled legislatures
34. The main purpose of the Albany Congress of 1754 was to
Answer : Draw up a treaty with the Native Americans
35. Non-importation is best illustrated by
Answer : American colonists refusing to purchase goods from Britain after the Stamp Act
36. Which of the following was not an intention of the Proclamation of 1763?
Answer : Enforcing the authority of the Church of England within the colonies
37. Which of the following British laws illustrates an attempt to keep the colonists from purchasing goods from other colonial powers?
Answer : The Sugar Act
38. The main purpose of the —– was to create a united treaty with the Iroquois and serve for the common defense against the French.
Answer : Albany Congress
39. Which of the following powers was vested within the Articles of Confederation?
Answer : The power to declare war
40. What was the 18th-century principle of virtual representation?
Answer : The British government represents all citizens regardless of their actual representation in Parliament.
41. The purpose of the Declaratory Act was to
Answer : state that the British government had the authority to create laws without colonial representation
42. Which of the following actions was a result of the Boston Tea Party?
Answer : Britain opened negotiations with Boston concerning taxation.
43. The death of Crispus Attucks is associated with which of the following events?
Answer : The Boston Massacre
44. Which of the following colonists defended the British soldiers involved in the Boston Massacre?
Answer : John Adams
45. The main purpose of the Olive Branch Petition was to
Answer : Reconcile Britain and the colonies after the Boston Massacre
46. The reason British troops were ordered to Concord in 1775 was to
Answer : Capture a store of militia weapons
47. Writs of assistance refer to
Answer : General search warrants
48. The Third Amendment to the U.S. Constitution relates most directly to
Answer : The Quartering Act
49. Which was not an advantage of the British during the American Revolution?
Answer : They successfully utilized loyalist support.
50. Which of the following battles did not include the presence of George Washington?
Answer : Saratoga
51. Which of the following advantages did the colonists have during the American Revolution?
Answer : More accurate rifles
52. Which of the following statements best describes the role African-Americans played in the American Revolution?
Answer : The British army adopted a policy of enlisting runaway slaves and offered emancipation to gain support.
53. After 1778, the British military adopted a strategy of
Answer : Capturing key southern ports with the aid of loyalist militias, and then advancing northward
54. General Charles Cornwallis was forced to surrender at Yorktown mainly because
Answer : The French navy won control of the Chesapeake Bay
55. Which of the following groups would most likely support the Articles of Confederation?
Answer : Those who held strong anti-monarchical views
56. What movement most directly influenced the writing of the Declaration of Independence?
Answer : The Enlightenment
57. Which of the following issues was not addressed in the Declaration of Independence?
Answer : The principle that all men deserve access to equal wealth
58. Which of the following battles was a decisive win for the Americans?
Answer : Trenton
59. The role of General Friedrich Von Steuben during the American Revolution would be best described as
Answer : Training the Continental army at Valley Forge
60. Which Revolutionary War battle is considered the turning point in favor of the American colonists?
Answer : Saratoga
61. Molly Pitcher is most associated with which American Revolutionary battle?
Answer : Monmouth
62. Which of the following terms was not part of the 1783 Treaty of Paris?
Answer : The importation of slaves was banned.
63. Which of the following events serves as an example of a citizen revolt following the American Revolution before the signing of the Constitution?
Answer : Shays’ Rebellion
64. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 was responsible for
Answer : Establishing the procedure for creating new states
65. Which power was not vested within the Articles of Confederation?
Answer : Regulating trade
66. Which statement is the most accurate concerning the North American colonies?
Answer : Most of the colonies started as proprietary but became royal colonies by the mid-18th century.
67. The Middle Passage refers to which of the following?
Answer : The passage of African people across the Atlantic to the Americas
68. Which of the following statements does not describe slavery in the North American colonies?
Answer : Strict slave laws prevented slave revolts through the 1700s.
69. The land explored by Sir Walter Raleigh was named Virginia in honor of
Answer : Queen Elizabeth
70. The purpose of the headright system was to
Answer : Encourage increased migration to the Virginia Colony
71. Which of the following is true concerning the First Great Awakening?
Answer : The First Great Awakening created a greater appreciation for the emotional experiences of faith.
72. Which of the following changes was a direct result of Bacon’s Rebellion?
Answer : Southern labor moved away from indentured servants and began to rely more on African slaves.
73. John Rolfe’s main contribution to the Jamestown settlement was
Answer : introducing tobacco as the colony’s first staple crop
74. “When London Merchants Urge Repeal” (January 17, 1766) referred to “this Trade, consisting of British Manufactures exported, and of the Import of raw Materials from America, many of them used in our Manufactures, and all of them tending to lessen our Dependence on neighboring States,” what economic system was specifically being described?
Answer : Mercantilism
75. In what way did the Jamestown Colony and the Massachusetts Bay Colony diff er greatly?
Answer : Massachusetts Bay did not suffer from the same hardships as Jamestown during its first years.
76. Which of the following individuals was not involved in the religious revivals in the colonies?
Answer : John Peter Zenger
77. All of the following innovations and discoveries are associated with Benjamin Franklin except
Answer : The principle of conservation of charge
78. Which of the following statements is not true about the colony of Pennsylvania?
Answer : It allowed Catholics and Jews to vote and hold public office.
79. Which of the following terms best describes colonies such as Pennsylvania and Maryland that were granted to a group by the English monarchy and given the right of self-government?
Answer : Proprietary colonies
80. Which North American colony was intended to serve as a penal colony for debtors?
Answer : Georgia
81. Which of the following statements was not true of education in the New England colonies prior to the American Revolution?
Answer : New England schools served as an early example of a true secular education.
82. American colonists began to use African slaves primarily because
Answer : The Native Americans were decimated by European disease, while the Africans developed immunity
83. What is the African diaspora?
Answer : The dispersal of Africans throughout the Americas under the system of slavery
84. What was the major reason for Catholics migrating to the Americas from England during the 1600s?
Answer : English Catholics wanted to escape the persecution they faced under Anglican rule.
85. The Puritans of New England felt the freedom to practice religion should be extended to
Answer : Only Puritans
86. John Winthrop referred to Massachusetts Colony as “a city on the hill” because
Answer : The colony was to serve as an example of Christian virtue and charity
87. Which of the following statements best describes women in colonial New England?
Answer : They could own property and form contracts if they were widowed.
88. What was the major purpose of the Toleration Act of 1649?
Answer : It protected Catholic rights in Maryland from the influx of Protestant colonists.
89. Which of the following is the most accurate statement about the southern colonies during the late 17th century?
Answer : Tobacco, rice, and indigo served as the major staple crops.
90. Which of the following statements best describes Roger Williams’s view of “liberty of conscience”?
Answer : Religious freedom requires a separation of church and state.
91. Which of the following statements best describes the ideas that caused the division between Anne Hutchinson and the Puritan church?
Answer : Hutchinson openly promoted the idea of an individual personal relationship with God without the guidance of church leaders.
92. The primary staple crops produced in the middle colonies included which of the following?
Answer : Wheat, oats, and barley
93. The majority of colonists who migrated to Maryland and Virginia during the 17th century would be best described as
Answer : Indentured servants
94. What advantage of colonies in the South was not shared by New England farmers?
Answer : Unlike the south, New England colonial charters did not allow for high-volume agriculture.
95. Bacon’s Rebellion is most associated with which early colony?
Answer : Virginia
96. In colonial Virginia, the Piedmont referred to
Answer : Foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in western Virginia
97. Which of the following statements was not true of the Tidewater in colonial Virginia?
Answer : Many poorer farmers and former indentured servants were forced to locate in the Tidewater.
98. Which of the following statements is not true of the House of Burgesses in colonial Virginia?
Answer : Only landowning males could vote for representatives.
99. King Philip’s War could be best described as
Answer : A conflict between Native Americans and New England settlers
100. Which early colonial trial is most associated with the First Amendment’s idea of freedom of the press?
Answer : The trial of John Peter Zenger
| Read More Topics |
| Canada trivia questions and answers |
| Australian trivia questions and answers |
| Trivia questions and answers |
