1.
Who was known as the "Father of the Constitution?"
Correct Answer
C. James Madison
Explanation
The convention began in May, but James Madison got there in February to start preparing.
2.
Which colony had the most signers of the Declaration of Independence?
Correct Answer
C. Pennsylvania
Explanation
Pennsylvania had nine signers: George Clymer, Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, James Smith, George Taylor, Benjamin Franklin, John Morton, George Ross (of Lancaster) and James Wilson.
3.
What is John Witherspoon's claim to fame?
Correct Answer
A. He was the only signer of the Declaration of Independence to be an active minister
Explanation
Witherspoon was a Presbyterian minister. He also was the only college president (of Princeton, then the College of New Jersey) to sign.
4.
What did Ben Franklin do when he was a young man to save money so he could buy more books?
Correct Answer
B. Became a vegetarian
Explanation
Meat was expensive.
5.
What made the deaths of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams so interesting?
Correct Answer
A. They both died on July 4, 1826 - 50 years to the day after the Declaration of Indepence was ratified.
Explanation
On July 4, 1826, at the age of 90, Adams lay on his deathbed. His last words were, "Thomas Jefferson still survives." He was mistaken: Jefferson had died five hours earlier at Monticello at the age of 82.
6.
Who was the youngest signer of the Declaration of Independence?
Correct Answer
A. Edward Rutledge
Explanation
Rutledge was only 26.
7.
And who was the oldest?
Correct Answer
C. Ben Franklin
Explanation
Franklin was 70.
8.
Of all the founders who became president, which one did not go to college?
Correct Answer
B. George Washington
Explanation
Washington's formal education ended when he was 11, after his father died.
9.
As independence was being debated, who said we "will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice, or representation?"
Correct Answer
A. Abigail Adams
Explanation
Abigail Adams is famous for advising her husband to "remember the ladies" as he helped form the United States government. It would take another 145 years for women to get the right to vote.
10.
What was Roger Sherman's claim to fame?
Correct Answer
B. He was the only person to sign the Continental Association, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution
Explanation
Sherman's other claim to fame was helping shape the Great Compromise, which gave all the states two senators and representation by population in the House of Representatives.
11.
Who was the primary writer of the Declaration of Independence?
Correct Answer
A. Thomas Jefferson
Explanation
Jefferson was said to be upset when his words were edited and tweaked.
12.
What founder was not present to debate, vote on or sign the Declaration of Independence?
Correct Answer
C. George Washington
Explanation
Washington was busy fighting the Revolutionary War.
13.
Which founder was among America's richest men in 1776?
Correct Answer
B. John Hancock
Explanation
Hancock was the son of a poor minister, but inherited a fortune from his uncle, a shipper and merchant.
14.
What was Charles Carroll's claim to fame?
Correct Answer
A. He was the only Roman Catholic to sign the Declaration.
Explanation
Carroll was from Maryland, which had a large Catholic population. He also was the last surviving signer, dying in 1832 at age 95.
15.
Philadelphia's population in 1790 was 28,000. How many Philadelphians came to Ben Franklin's funeral that year?
Correct Answer
B. 20,000
Explanation
He was a popular guy in the City of Brotherly Love. In his biography of Franklin, Carl Van Doren wrote, "No other town burying its great man, ever buried more of itself than Philadelphia with Franklin."
16.
What woman stayed with her husband during winter encampments during the Revolutionary War?
Correct Answer
C. Martha Washington
Explanation
Her husband, George, felt her presence at the encampments, including Valley Forge, was important for morale.
17.
What kept Thomas Jefferson away from the Constitutional Convention?
Correct Answer
B. He was in France
Explanation
Jefferson served as minister to France from 1785 to 1789.
18.
What founder was shot in a duel by the vice president?
Correct Answer
B. Alexander Hamilton
Explanation
The duel between Hamilton and Vice President Aaron Burr took place July 11, 1804, in Weehawken, New Jersey. Hamilton died the next day.
19.
Washington Irving described this founder as "a withered little applejohn."
Correct Answer
A. James Madison
Explanation
Irving called Madison's wife, Dolley, a "fine, portly, buxom dame."
20.
Who presided over the Constitutional Convention?
Correct Answer
A. George Washington
Explanation
The vote was unanimous.
21.
Which founder's books are the basis of the Library of Congress?
Correct Answer
B. Thomas Jefferson
Explanation
Jefferson sold his 6,487 volumes for $23,950 in 1815 to pay off some of his many debts. About two thirds of the books would be lost to fire in 1851.
22.
What was Caesar Rodney's claim to fame?
Correct Answer
A. Suffering from cancer, Rodney rode 70 miles from Delaware to Philadelphia to break a deadlock in the voting for independence on July 2.
Explanation
The state quarter for Delaware shows Rodney riding on his horse.