Deck 5: Westward Expansion

Question 1

The Township survey system set up by the Northwest Ordinance of 1785 established

A) a 50 square-mile township based on colonial New York.
B) an 84 square-mile township base on colonial Virginia.
C) a 36 square-mile township based on colonial Vermont.
D) an 18 square-mile township based on colonial Rhode Island.

Answer 1

a 36 square-mile township based on colonial Vermont.

Question 2

The Constitution helped establish a secure and well-defined system of property rights and rights of persons because it did which of the following?

A) It established that people could be deprived of property without due process of law.
B) It loosely defined which contracts would be enforced.
C) It permitted bankruptcy without just cause and required government stamp of approval.
D) It let market forces, not government, set prices on the sale of land among private citizens.

Answer 2

It let market forces, not government, set prices on the sale of land among private citizens.

Question 3

The American Revolution and Constitution represented the transition to "modern liberalism," or

A) a strong emphasis on the role of government in providing for the welfare of the people and the regulation of business activities.
B) an emphasis on free enterprise and competitive individualism and a limited role for government.
C) an emphasis on public virtue and commitment to the welfare of the community or nation as a whole, and a de-emphasis on self-interest and profit-seeking behavior.
D) an emphasis on laissez-faire and the absence of government laws.

Answer 3

an emphasis on free enterprise and competitive individualism and a limited role for government.

Question 4

Which of the following groups was Jefferson most trying to help in setting up the Land Ordinances?

A) His friends, the land speculators
B) The urban proletariat
C) The small farmers
D) Fellow slave owners

Question 5

The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union (1781)adequately addressed the free-rider problems by setting up a tax system that required all states to share the costs of providing national defense,protecting private property rights,regulating commerce with other countries and across states and upholding a system of laws.

Question 6

The American Revolution resulted in

A) a loss of British military assistance, governmental expertise, judicial assistance and public funding for wars.
B) greatly expanded rights for wage workers and indentured servants.
C) significant change with respect to market behaviors, ownership of property and individual freedom.
D) a dramatic change in laws and the ownership of property.

Question 7

Charles Beard (1935)argued that the economic self-interest of businessmen,merchants,manufacturers,bankers and investors led them to convene at the Constitutional Convention ?in the late 1770s.They believed that creating a new,or at least modified,system of laws would ?help them advance the projects in which they were interested at minimal cost.

Question 8

The sale of western lands failed in its purpose because of corruption.

Question 9

The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union (1781)failed because they made governmental controls too restrictive and federal taxes too high.

Question 10

The object of the Northwest Ordinances of 1785 and 1787 was to preserve the public domain from private exploitation.

Question 11

Thomas Jefferson supported the Land Ordinances of 1785 and 1787.

Question 12

Federal land policy of the United States was much less generous toward squatters than some of the colonial government's land policies before Independence.

Question 13

Land sale booms were caused by large waves of immigration.

Question 14

Fifty-five delegates from seven states convened at the first Constitutional Convention (1787)to determine whether the central government of the new,independent country should modify its ?rules and regulations to permit more or less state sovereignty.

Question 15

The sale of western land after 1790 was steady and strong.

Question 16

The disposal and settlement of the public lands,according to Hughes and Cain (2011),

A) went pretty much, in practice, as Jefferson had envisioned.
B) had both intended and unintended consequences.
C) occurred in an orderly and efficient manner for the most part.
D) was adequately funded and well-organized in execution.

Question 17

The U.S.Constitution established the orderly sale of the western lands.

Question 18

Thomas Jefferson strongly influenced the passing of the Land Ordinances of 1785 and 1787.A close study of those ordinances suggests that Jefferson believed in the importance of securing the private rights of individuals to buy,sell and derive income from their land.

Question 19

Provision was made for squatters' rights in the 1785 Northwest Ordinance.

Question 20

People have incentive to efficiently and effectively use land in the public domain or held by?a communal group.

Question 21

Under the U.S.Constitution,individual states

A) have no power.
B) control laws regulating state businesses.
C) benefit from the ability to borrow from other countries to finance taxes due to the central government.
D) regulate trade with foreign countries conducted in and by the state.

Question 22

What was the official policy of the British colonies toward the practice of "squatting," or freely settling and cultivating the land?

A) Squatting was encouraged as a way to promote settlement of the land.
B) Colonial officials discouraged squatting because the indigenous populations legally owned land.
C) There was no policy toward the practice of "squatting"; it was left to the individual settlers.
D) The official policy opposed squatting because it did not involve a formal transfer of ownership.

Question 23

Many of the Founding Fathers considered the emancipation of slaves to be

A) a necessary evil in overcoming the British during the war.
B) less important than the issues of whether blacks should be prevented from coming to the United States and whether freed slaves should be deported.
C) paramount in establishing the new nation on a solid ideological foundation.
D) a states' rights issue.

Question 24

The Federal Constitution,like the laws under English rule,permitted the U.S. government to

A) impose taxes to pay for government services and national defense.
B) regulate commerce with other countries.
C) create money and regulate its value.
D) do all of the above.

Question 25

Western expansion contributed to U.S. growth and development of the economy by

A) privately mobilizing idle natural resources and land.
B) placing land in the hands of the public, with no private rights.
C) having government officials set land prices.
D) all of the above.

Question 26

The Land Ordinances of 1785 and 1787 established property rights in land that provided for all of the following except

A) Perpetual ownership, if desired
B) Direct inheritance
C) Complete freedom to sell as desired
D) Required inheritance through the principle of primogeniture

Question 27

According to historian Charles Beard's analysis and interpretation,the Constitution was

A) divinely inspired.
B) strongly favored by the vast majority of the colonists.
C) influenced by the economic self-interest of the delegates to the Constitutional Convention.
D) of little importance to future economic growth.

Question 28

Before 1815,Hughes and Cain (2011)claim,westward movement was blocked by

A) disputed claims to western lands.
B) lack of government land sale surveys and offices.
C) hostile Indian tribes.
D) all of the above.

Question 29

The Land Ordinances of 1785 and 1787 accomplished which of the following?

A) Established the foundation for future American capitalism by permitting land to pass into private hands
B) Allowed the practice of primogeniture or inheritance by the oldest son
C) Permitted land to be treated primarily as a "collective good"
D) Provided for a lateral expansion of American socialism

Question 30

The Constitution contains a provision that states that no laws shall be passed "impairing the obligation of contracts." This provision

A) meant that the English common law was legislated for the new republic.
B) was an innovation by the authors of the Constitution and not found in British law.
C) was only a minor aspect of developing the new idea of government by law and not by men.
D) was a controversial provision and opposed by many delegates.

Question 31

Western expansion put whites on a collision course with the indigenous people of North America.The major policy of the U.S.government was to

A) basically ignore them as a separate group and allow them to be naturally assimilated into American life over time.
B) confine them to reservations where they could practice their tribal customs, they could be completely separate from white society with no interference in their affairs, and they could continue to develop and grow their customs and norms based on traditional ways.
C) enslave them as a source of labor for the plantation system.
D) "civilize" them by replacing tribal social structures and values with those more appropriate to white society, such as individual ownership of property, competitive striving for material gain, farming activities for Native American men and housekeeping for Native American women and the replacement of native languages with English among children.

Question 32

Regarding the issue of slavery,the Constitution

A) denounced it as being inconsistent with the rights of man and called for its eventual elimination, though it did not specify clearly how or when this was to be done.
B) gave slavery legitimacy and support.
C) made no mention of slavery, with the hope, apparently, that the individual states would deal with it if they saw it as a problem.
D) required that the slave trade be immediately banned with all slavery to be abandoned in twenty years.

Question 33

After the American Revolution,the public domain expanded and the amount of community property held by the federal government grew considerably.If it had stayed community property,there would have been problems,according to Hughes and Cain (2011).These problems include which of the following?

A) Individuals using it would not have incentive to conserve it or use it wisely.
B) The problem of "free riders" would have been troublesome and resulted in a "free-for-all," which could have ended in violence.
C) Each person faced incentive to overuse the communal rights of others.
D) All of the above.

Question 34

The Founding Fathers (or Founders)of the United States were

A) pragmatic reformers, eager to assault slavery whenever political realities permitted.
B) skittish abolitionists, cautiously promoting antislavery under particular circumstances.
C) anti-abolitionists, permitting slaves to be freed only when they would reap a great advantage from emancipation.
D) not concerned with slavery, because for centuries humankind failed to recognize it as a problem.

Question 35

From an economics standpoint,the Articles of Confederation did not provide for

A) levying taxes to support a central government.
B) regulating interstate commerce.
C) enforcing laws, because no federal judiciary was authorized.
D) any of the provisions mentioned above.

Question 36

The Constitution created an environment conducive to economic growth and development because the federal government could constitutionally do all of the following except

A) Levy uniform taxes
B) Coin money and regulate its value
C) Regulate commerce, thus prohibiting states from erecting barriers to the interstate movement of goods
D) Set "fair" prices on the private sale of goods in the marketplace

Question 37

Compare and contrast the Articles of Confederation and the U.S.Constitution.Identify what they have in common and how they differ politically and economically.How did the Articles of Confederation hinder economic growth and development in the states? How did the Constitution correct the economic and political problems created by the Articles of Confederation? How did the Constitution establish a legal and economic environment within which a strong national economy could develop?

Question 38

With regard to the Constitution and its interpretation,

A) the powers reserved for the states included the police powers-local rules, laws and ordinances, including licensing, inspection and the regulation of local business activities.
B) the "common law of England" was in effect, claimed as the right of all Americans and still enforced by England.
C) England was consulted in cases of ambiguity over interpretation of the common law policy.
D) none of the above are true.

Question 39

Speculation in the sale of public lands

A) did not occur.
B) placed land in the hands of capitalists at a price that was not competitive.
C) proved to be a necessary evil in transferring land from public to private ownership.
D) was caused by squatters.

Question 40

What does an empirical analysis of the key votes at the Constitutional Convention suggest?

A) Merchants, manufacturers, capitalists, creditors, and public and private security holders supported a national system of government.
B) Delegates from larger and coastal states, as well as bankers and other private debt holders, were most likely to support the new Constitution.
C) Slaveholders were likely to stand in opposition to the Constitution, while farmers and debtors were either opposed or indifferent.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 41

Compare Hughes' view of the causes of land sales booms with that of Douglass North's.

Question 42

Discuss the relationship between land sales and improved transportation.

Question 43

Describe the Land Ordinances of 1785 and 1787 and the Homestead Act of 1862.How did each encourage productive behaviors among landowners? How did each support economic growth and development?

Question 44

Using the Historical Statistics displayed in Table 5.1,discuss whether there is evidence to support ?the hypothesis that regional population trends were constant and stable between 1790 and 1860.

Question 45

"With respect to everything other than the terms of sale,the effects of the Land Ordinance of 1785 were permanent and helped to shape the United States as we know it today." Discuss.

Question 46

"It was one of the paradoxes of U.S.economic development that the very expansion of the frontier and the occupation of new land was perhaps a retarding factor in economic growth during the early period.Capital and labor were drawn off to regions not easily accessible and were not immediately translated into increased output and productivity." Reconcile this apparent paradox.

Question 47

Hughes and Cain (2011)suggest that once we understand what was unleashed in 1763,it is clear ?that British policy was doomed and that,for economic reasons,the American Revolution was inevitable.Discuss this contention,including a discussion of British land policy,trade policy,?money policy,tax policy and other policies that may have helped make revolution inevitable.

Question 48

Explain the upswings in land sales in 1818,1836,1854-1855.

Question 49

What is a business cycle? Explain the forces behind the cyclical pattern of land sales during westward expansion in the U.S.Explain how U.S.land tenure made land a productive commodity capable of contributing to economic growth.

Question 50

One of the most important factors in U.S.economic development was the orderly and secured acquisition and private ownership of land.Describe how land was acquired and secured during ?the period of westward expansion in U.S.history.

Question 51

Hughes and Cain (2011)state that the Land Ordinances of 1785 and 1787 were an achievement probably as great as the Constitution itself.Explain why.Was the disposal of the public lands an efficient and just process? Discuss.

Question 52

List the colonists' complaints,economic and political,against British governmental rule prior ?to the American Revolution.Explain why the drafters of the U.S.Constitution created a new ?U.S.government that allowed the central government to rule and regulate in fashions strongly opposed during the American Revolution.Explain the change in views.