US/VA HISTORY SOL REVIEW

Where was the first permanent English colony in the New World? a) Plymouth b) Georgia c) Jamestown d) Roanoke Island

Who invented the cotton gin? a) Eli Whitney b) Abraham Lincoln c) Frederick Doulgass d) Jefferson Davis

Who was the first president of the United States? a) Thomas Jefferson b) George Washington c) John Adams d) Alexander Hamilton

The turning point of the Civil War was the battle of… a) Antietam b) Vicksburg c) Gettysburg d) Fredericksburg

The English were defeated in the Revolutionary War at... a) Yorktown b) Saratoga c) Concord d) Lexington

Who invented the light bulb? a) Robert Fulton b) Thomas Edison c) Alexander G. Bell d) George Washington Carver

What did the case Marbury vs. Madison add to the justice system? a) higher taxes b) appeals courts c) judicial review d) elastic clause

Which president made the Louisiana Purchase? a) James Madison b) James Monroe c) John Quincy Adams d) Thomas Jefferson

Who was the Confederate general that surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant? a) Stonewall Jackson b) Edward Longstreet c) Robert E. Lee d) Jefferson Davis

In what year was the Declaration of Independence signed? a) 1812 b) 1776 c) 1789 c) 1861

The fifteenth and sixteenth century Spanish conquistadors were interested in the New World primarily because... a) they were looking for new farm land b) they were seeking gold and other wealth c) they wanted to spread the Protestant faith d) they wanted to settle a large number of emigrants

The New England and the Middle colonies built their economies around... a) commerce b) ship building c) lumbering d) fishing

The Proclamation of a) was warmly received by American land speculators b) removed the Spanish and Indian menace from the colonial frontier c) declared war on Chief Pontiac and his warriors d) prohibited colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains

A main cause of conflict between European settlers and American Indians concerned... a) ownership and use of land b) allocation of natural resources c) the nature of their belief system d) the cultural rules of men and women

Which one of the following Revolutionary War battles occurred before the Declaration of Independence? a) Trenton b) Saratoga c) Lexington d) Valley Forge

Following the American Revolution, most Americans wanted the power of the government to be held by... a) state governments b) continental congress c) George Washington d) the courts

The Articles of Confederation left Congress unable to... a) organize the western territories b) make treaties c) apportion state representation equally d) levy and collect taxes

Washington’s Farewell Address in a) proposed a two-term limitation of the presidency b) endorsed the appearance of two contenting political parties in America c) warned against the dangers of permanent foreign alliances d) dared Britain to attack the United States

All of the following factors kept pioneers from settling the land west of the Mississippi river before 1850, except... a) there were no transcontinental railroads b) the Rocky Mountains c) the poor soil on the Great Plains d) there was a lack of water along the route

Which state’s becoming a slave state was balanced by admitting Maine as a free state? a) California b) Missouri c) Texas d) Nebraska

The most alarming aspect of the compromise of 1850 to northerners was the decision concerning... a) slavery in the District of Columbia b) slavery in the New Mexico and Utah territories c) the new Fugitive Slave Law d) settlement of the Texas-New Mexico boundary dispute

During the Civil War, the North had advantages over the South in all of the following categories, except... a) miles of railroad b) military leadership c) industrial output d) military-age population

A result of the Emancipation Proclamation was that... a) the border states seceded b) France gave military support to the South c) Great Britain did not give support to the South d) slavery ended in all of the states still in the Union

The government ended the Pullman Strike by using what technique to end strikes for the first time... a) strike breakers b) the U.S. military c) a court injunction d) an act of Congress

The Open Door Policy was important to the United States because it... a) allowed for U.S. military bases in china b) encouraged Chinese laborers to come to the United States c) increased Chinese investments in the United States d) allowed the United States to expand its trade with China

Henry Ford was the first factory owner to use what method? a) giving labor specialized tasks to perform b) producing standard interchangeable parts for a product c) bringing work to stationary laborers via assembly lines d) paying workers according to what they produced

The Senate rejected the Treaty of Versailles because of Wilson’s refusal to compromise on... a) The League of Nations b) the secret treaties clause c) war reparations d) self-determination

Faced with the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and the Great Depression, President Hoover... a) gave special government aid to farmers b) moved slowly because he thought the depression was temporary c) paid the veterans’ bonus d) committed the government to setting up bread lines and soup kitchens

The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 gave the federal government a means of better regulating... a) trade unions activities b) tariff rates c) monopolistic practices by businesses d) the nation’s money supply

One of the effects of the New Deal was... a) the national debt declined b) the federal government’s bureaucracy shrunk c) agencies like the TVA, Social Security, and the FDIC are still around today g) unemployment went up and stayed up

What was the purpose of the Works Progress Administration (WPA)... a) to provide handouts to the unemployed b) to provide electricity to rural America c) to provide employment on useful projects d) to regulate labor relations

The Great Depression ended with the start of... a) the reconversion slumps b) the Korean War c) World War II d) recessions

The Cold War began because the United States and the Soviet Union fundamentally disagreed about postwar arrangements in... a) Asia b) Europe c) Japan d) The Middle East

Which of the following was the first application of the United States policy of containment? a) the U.S. entering the war in Vietnam b) the U.S. helping the western powers removed the Berlin Wall c) the U.S. becoming involved in humanitarian efforts after the Chernobyl accident d) the U.S. entering the Korean War

What event in the 1950’s made Americans feel threatened by Soviet technical superiority? a) landing a man on the moon b) the launching of Sputnik c) the placement of nuclear missiles in Cuba d) Soviet development of a space station

In Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954), the Supreme Court stated that... a) the states, not the federal government, must deal with civil rights cases b) under “separate but equal,” black schools must truly by equal in facilities and staffing to white schools c) the recitation of prayers in public schools was unconstitutional d) racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional

What is the main criticism of affirmative action in recent years? a) the program has been extremely costly to the federal government b) hiring quotas for minorities may have denied opportunities to other qualified persons c) very few minorities have been hired d) most state governments have been unwilling to enforce the program

U.S. foreign policy decisions in the Middle East have been guided by all of they following except… a) the Marshall Plan b) the Doctrine of Containment c) U.S. support for Israel d) our need for oil

In the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, the Supreme Court based its decision on... a) a women’s right to privacy b) the legal definition of life in the Constitution c) affirmative action d) the first amendment to the Constitution

Illegally reapportioning seats in Congress or the state legislatures to reduce the influence of minority voters is called... a) Red Lining b) a Writ of Assistance c) Gerrymandering d) the one man, one vote concept

The earliest settlers in Massachusetts came for... a) religious purity b) advanced farming methods c) a location to raise sheep d) profitable trade

People who came to the American colonies and agreed to work for a period of time in exchange for passage were called... a) indentured servants b) slaves c) apprentices d) prisoners

What was the name of the first elected assembly in the New World? a) the House of Commons b) Parliament c) Congress d) the House of Burgesses

What plant provided the Virginia settlers with a cash crop that promised long-term economic success for the colony? a) cotton b) tobacco c) wheat d) rice

Which part of the Colombian Exchange had the most devastating impact upon the American Indian populations? a) Catholicism b) horses c) diseases d) weapons

Why did the Virginia Company of London found Jamestown? a) as an economic venture b) as a safe haven for Catholics c) as a way to establish new religions in North America d) as the first permanent French settlement in North America

What geographical feature enabled the earliest colonists to settle further inland along the Atlantic Coastal Plain? a) mountains b) foothills c) rivers d) oceans

Which colonial religious group demonstrated religious tolerance? a) Puritans b) Pilgrims c) Church of England d) Quakers

Which of the following groups would most likely have favored the philosophies of John Locke, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, and Patrick Henry? a) Loyalists b) Patriots c) Tories d) Neutrals

“We hold these truths to be self evident,.., that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” This quote reveals that Thomas Jefferson was influenced by... a) Thomas Paine’s desire to reconcile with Great Britain b) Thomas Paine’s theory of social contract c) Patrick Henry’s “Give me Liberty…” speech d) John Locke’s theory of natural rights

Which of the following reasons best describes Parliament’s purpose for levying taxes on the colonists during the 1760’s and 1770’s? a) to punish the rebellious colonies in New England b) to secure revenue for the Anglican Church c) to pay a portion of costs attributed to the French and Indian War d) to restrict trade between the French and the colonies

During the American Revolution, the United States received military aid from... a) Canada b) Germany c) England d) France

Which great American negotiated a treaty of alliance with France during the Revolutionary War? a) Samuel Adams b) Benjamin Franklin c) George Washington d) Charles Cornwallis

In creating the government under the Articles of Confederation, American political leaders feared... a) over protection of the rights of citizens b) a powerful central government like England’s c) a government that could tax d) the power of the citizens

The “Father of the Constitution” is considered to be... a) John Locke b) John Adams c) James Madison d) George Washington

What agreement was reached in the Three-Fifths Compromise during the Constitutional Convention of 1787? a) slaves would count as 3/5 of a person for taxation and representation b) legislative branch could override an executive veto c) the new constitution would go into effect when ratified by 3/5 of the states d) 3/5 of the senators had to pass a bill before it would become law

Why did the Anti-Federalists oppose the Constitution of the United States? a) the central government would be too weak b) it would give the states too much power c) it lacked a Bill of Rights to protect individual freedoms d) the executive branch would be too weak

The practice of using public offices to benefit members of the winning party is the... a) Monroe Doctrine b) American System c) Spoils System d) Trail of Tears

High tariffs, which made the price of imported manufactured goods more expensive, were hated by the... a) East b) North c) South d) West

The power granted to the President to prevent passage of legislation is the... a) impeachment b) judicial review c) veto d) pardon

Which one of the following was an abolitionists and an escaped slave? a) Harriet Beecher Stowe b) Frederick Douglass c) William Lloyd Garrison d) Susan B. Anthony

Which of the following occurred immediately after Lincoln’s election in 1860? a) publication of the Emancipation Proclamation b) the Battle of First Manassas c) several southern states seceded d) the firing on Ft. Sumter

The 14th amendment guarantees citizenship rights including the right to... a) religious freedom b) bear arms c) due process d) vote for all males

Why did laissez-faire capitalism promote American industrialization? a) workers were guaranteed job security by the government b) workers were largely free of pressure to join larger unions c) industries were largely free of government regulation d) industrialists were guaranteed monopolies by the government

What did ‘Jim Crow’ laws do? a) forced separation of the races in public places b) made lynching illegal c) overturned Plessy v. Ferguson d) led to the equal rights amendment

Who were muckrakers? a) members of labor unions b) factory owners who improved their factories c) politicians who opposed progressive reforms d) journalists who exposed the abuses of the factories and government corruption

One factor pushing the United States toward war in 1917 was... a) British use of unrestricted submarine warfare b) American ties to Russia c) German used of unrestricted submarine warfare d) American desire for overseas possessions

A major reason for the stock market crash of 1929 was.. a) over-speculation on stocks using borrowed money b) low stock prices c) high farm prices d) large scale government corruption

The first atomic bombs were dropped by the United States on the Japanese cities of... a) Tokyo and Hiroshima b) Tokyo and Yokohama c) Hiroshima and Nagasaki d) Kyoto and Sapporo

Which of the following events symbolized the end of the Cold War? a) Cuban Missile Crisis b) US withdrawal from Vietnam c) the fall of the Berlin Wall d) the Camp David Accords