8th Grade Second Semester Exam Practice
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There is a lot of we can learn about the land by looking at its history. Over the history class, we got to understand much about the United States of America. With the second semester coming to a close, it is important that you get to revise all that we have learned. Take up the quiz below and see how good you will do.
- 1.Which court case denied slaves freedom when living on free soil?
- A.
Brown vs. Board of Ed.
- B.
Dred Scott vs. Sanford
- C.
Plessy vs. Ferguson
- 2.A democracy works best when informed citizens share their opinions, even if those opinions are not the same as the government in place.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 3.Which amendment was used to agrue for and against the Jim Crow laws during the Reconstruction era?
- A.
5th
- B.
10th
- C.
14th
- 4.Which was NOT a Supreme court case that strengthened the federal government under John Marshall? (1801-1835)
- A.
Dred Scott v. Sanford
- B.
Marbury v. Madison
- C.
McCulloch v. Maryland
- 5.What was the main focus of Plessy v. Ferguson?
- A.
Ending slavery
- B.
Segregating people
- C.
Voting
- 6.Which branch of government has the power to sign treaties with other nations?
- A.
Executive
- B.
Judicial
- C.
Legislative
- 7.Which branch of government has the power to approve signed treaties with other nations?
- A.
Executive
- B.
Judicial
- C.
Legislative
- 8.Who could declare a law or treaty to be unconstitutional?
- A.
Executive
- B.
Judicial
- C.
Legislative
- 9.Which of the following was a Congressional act to try to settle the slavery issue in the U.S? Check all that apply.
- A.
Compromise of 1850
- B.
Kansas-Nebraska Act
- C.
Missouri Compromise
- 10.Which was the earliest bill to pass into law? Check only one.
- A.
Compromise of 1850
- B.
Kansas-Nebraska Act
- C.
Missouri Compromise
- 11.The U.S. fought wars to acquire some of their western territory.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 12.The U.S. signed treaties to acquire some of their western territory.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 13.The U.S. purchased land to acquire some of their western territory.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 14.In the early 1800's, where did a lot of immigrants find employment?
- A.
Northern Factories
- B.
Southern Plantations
- C.
Public Schools in the West
- 15.What is the best bumper sticker that captures the essense of the concept of popular sovereignty?
- A.
If you can read this, you're too close
- B.
I heart my dictator
- C.
Voters rock!
- D.
I am the proud parent of an honor roll student from Upton Middle School
- 16.Which of the following included popular sovereignty? Check all that apply.
- A.
Compromise of 1850
- B.
Kansas-Nebraska Act
- C.
Missouri Compromise
- 17.From the question above, which issue led to the most heated debates?
- A.
Slavery
- B.
Native American rights
- C.
Rights for women
- 18.The Seneca Falls Convention was a meeting to help which group of Americans?
- A.
Alcoholics
- B.
Slaves
- C.
Women
- 19.Which of the following caused sectional conflict in the United States? Check all that apply.
- A.
The election of Lincoln, 1860
- B.
The Dred Scott Decision
- C.
The actions of John Brown
- D.
Uncle Tom's Cabin
- E.
Debates over states' rights
- 20.To Lincoln, what was THE singlemost important thing to protect?
- A.
Full equality for slaves
- B.
The states
- C.
The Union
- 21.The Women's suffrage movement was effective in the long run.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 22.The Abolitionist movement was effective in the long run.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 23.The Civil Rights movement (think Martin Luther King) was effective in the long run.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 24.What happened to the federal government as a result of the Civil War?
- A.
It was stronger
- B.
It took a backseat to states' rights
- C.
It was abolished
- 25.The economies and interests in the three main regions of the United States (North, South, and West) were virtually identical prior to the Civil War.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 26.Even the Supreme Court can make mistakes.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 27.There was farming in the North, so why weren't there any plantations (except perhaps in the border states)?
- 28.Based on Lincoln's "House Divided Speech", Lincoln felt as if slavery was dividing the United States into two groups: those who tolerated slavery and those worked for its removal.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 29.Based on Lincoln's "House Divided Speech", he would be best described as a strict abolitionist.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 30.In the election of 1860, the Democratic Party had two different candidates run for President.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 31.The Constitutional Union Party entered a presidential candidate in the Election of 1860.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 32.Because of the Civil War, the Northern economy
- A.
Grew
- B.
Shrunk
- C.
Switched to labor-intensive crops such as cotton
- 33.Check all that apply. Check off all of the reasons why off the field conditions killed more people in the Civil War than on the battle fields themselves.
- A.
Temperature and weather conditions
- B.
Disease and lack of sterilization of medical equipment
- C.
Unsafe food
- D.
The American Red Cross
- 34.Whose factories became much more active as a result of the Civil War?
- A.
North
- B.
South
- C.
West
- 35.What was the biggest set back to the period known as Reconstruction?
- A.
14th amendment
- B.
15th amendment
- C.
Jim Crow laws
- 36.Check off all that apply. Which of the following were ways that local and state governments tried to interfere with the 15th amendment?
- A.
Grandfather clause
- B.
Literacy test
- C.
Poll tax
- D.
Intimidation by the KKK
- 37.Jim Crow laws
- A.
Limit freedom
- B.
Promote freedom
- C.
Support the ideas of the Declaration of Independence
- 38.What term best describes the voting patterns in the South after 1877?
- A.
New South
- B.
Solid South
- C.
Scalawag Central
- 39.Which of the following is the hardest to pass, but also the hardest to remove?
- A.
A bill
- B.
A law
- C.
An amendment
- 40.Many places in the South had a hard time accepting the terms of the 14th amendment.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 41.Which branch of government did Andrew Johnson struggle with the most?
- A.
Executive
- B.
Legislative
- C.
Judicial
- 42.Considering the last question, what is the Core Democratic Value that says that power is shared between the three branches of the federal government?
- A.
Federalism
- B.
Rule of law
- C.
Separation of powers
- 43.Poll taxes and the grandfather clause were unfair and undemocratic.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 44.Which of the following plans would have made Southern reentry into the Union the hardest?
- A.
Lincoln's Ten % Plan
- B.
Johnson's Plan for Reconstruction
- C.
Wade-Davis Bill
- 45.Which group used terrorizing tactics to slow down the effects of civil rights laws passed during the Reconstruction era?
- A.
Carpet baggers
- B.
Ku Klux Klan
- C.
Scalawags
- 46.Which is the term for an official pardon, which Lincoln offered to former Confederates willing to rejoin the Union?
- A.
Amnesty
- B.
Habeas corpus
- C.
Parole
- 47.What was supported by the Plessy v. Ferguson decision?
- A.
Educational opportunites for former slaves
- B.
Job training for former slaves
- C.
Segregation
- 48.The 13th amendment protected the citizenship rights of the former slaves.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 49.What laws were passed during the Reconstruction era that were designed to limit the rights of former slaves?
- A.
Black codes
- B.
Morse code
- C.
Slave codes
- 50.What term best describes the changes in the Southern economy during Reconstruction?
- A.
New South
- B.
Solid South
- C.
Reconstructed South
- 51.Which job held by former slaves, was the most similar to their conditions as slaves?
- A.
U.S. Senator
- B.
Sharecroppers
- C.
U.S. Representatives
- 52.Which political party was active in helping African Americans make the transition to a slaveless society?
- A.
Democratic Party
- B.
Republican Party
- C.
Neither of these parties
- 53.Jim Crow laws legalized segregation.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 54.Since the start of this country, people continued to push westward in search of farmland they could call their own.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 55.Which word means to withdraw from the Union?
- A.
Secede
- B.
Succeed
- C.
Recede
- 56.Which of Lincoln's documents contains the phrase "of the people, by the people, and for the people shall not perish from this Earth."
- A.
First Inaugural Address
- B.
Gettysburg Address
- C.
Second Inaugural Address
- 57.How did Robert Fulton help the economy of the U.S?
- A.
Development of cotton gin
- B.
Development of railroads
- C.
Development of steamboats
- 58.Which regions experienced growth in railroad mileage after the Civil War
- A.
North
- B.
South
- C.
West
- 59.Young women took many of the new jobs created during the Industrial Revolution.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 60.Check all that apply. Which were characteristics that describe the South during the Civil War?
- A.
More railroads
- B.
Lack of industries
- C.
More shipyards
- 61.Who was a key organizer of the Seneca Falls Convention?
- A.
Frederick Douglass
- B.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
- C.
Clara Barton
- 62.Who wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin, a novel that showed the horrors of slavery?
- A.
Susan B. Anthony
- B.
Mary Boykin Chesnut
- C.
Harriet Beecher Stowe
- 63.The temperance movement wanted to slow the spread of slavery.
- A.
True
- B.
False
- 64.The ideal target for fugitive slaves following the North Star would be
- A.
Ohio
- B.
Michigan
- C.
Canada
- 65.Name a current U.S. state that was added thanks to the Mexican War
- A.
California
- B.
Nevada
- C.
Utah
- 66.Manifest Destiny was the idea Americans were the best candidates to control North America, from sea to shining sea.
- A.
True
- B.
False
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