Deck 14: The Gathering Storm, 1848-1860

Question 1

John C. Calhoun believed that the Wilmot Proviso:

A) would help keep the Union together
B) protected the interests of slaveholders
C) violated property rights
D) blamed the South for the Mexican-American War
E) would never pass Congress

Answer 1

violated property rights

Question 2

During his senatorial run against Douglas, Lincoln stated his belief in racial equality.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

In the mining frontier of the Far West, women often enjoyed greater opportunities than back east.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The Wilmot Proviso:

A) would prohibit slavery in any lands acquired from Mexico
B) passed both houses of Congress
C) was opposed in Congress by Abraham Lincoln
D) would extend the Missouri Compromise line to the Pacific
E) was clearly unconstitutional

Question 5

James Buchanan's great experience in public service helped him become one of the most successful presidents.

Question 6

The Republican platform in 1860 promised to end slavery in the southern states.

Question 7

In 1857, the majority of the population in Kansas was anti-slavery.

Question 8

Through his execution, John Brown became a martyr for the anti-slavery cause.

Question 9

Stephen Douglas was one of the most extreme pro-slavery and states' rights advocates in the Democratic party.

Question 10

The Republican party was created in 1854 by the merger of several anti-slavery groups.

Question 11

By 1850, more than 90 percent of California's population was male.

Question 12

The proposed Lecompton Constitution would make Kansas a free state.

Question 13

The idea of popular sovereignty:

A) solved the controversy over slavery's extension
B) would allow people in the territories to decide whether or not to permit slavery
C) guaranteed slavery would spread westward
D) allowed Oregon to enter the Union as a slave state
E) was adopted by the Whigs in the 1848 election

Question 14

All of the following might have joined the Free-Soil party EXCEPT:

A) supporters of the Wilmot Proviso
B) admirers of Martin Van Buren
C) "cotton Whigs"
D) Liberty party members
E) "conscience Whigs"

Question 15

The Free-Soil party opposed the ideas of the Wilmot Proviso.

Question 16

The Pottawatomie Massacre was part of the conflict between pro-slavery and anti-slavery forces
in Kansas.

Question 17

The states of the Deep South did not secede from the Union until Lincoln took office.

Question 18

The author of Uncle Tom's Cabin was Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Question 19

Congress never passed the Wilmot Proviso.

Question 20

As a result of the Compromise of 1850, California entered the Union as a free state.

Question 21

President Zachary Taylor wanted to admit California as a state immediately because he:

A) was anti-slavery and California had voted on a free-state constitution
B) was pro-slavery and California had voted on a slave-state constitution
C) wished to bypass the divisive issue of slavery in the territories
D) was afraid Mexico would make new claims on the area since gold had been discovered there
E) was persuaded to do so by his overwhelmingly northern cabinet

Question 22

The Free-Soil party stance on slavery:

A) was endorsed by John C. Calhoun
B) attracted Abraham Lincoln into their ranks
C) led to the political downfall of Henry Clay
D) infuriated John C. Calhoun
E) opposed the Wilmot Proviso

Question 23

What was the impact of President Taylor's death?

A) It strengthened the chance for compromise over slavery in 1850.
B) It put pro-slavery Franklin Pierce in the White House.
C) It put anti-slavery William H. Seward in the White House.
D) It prevented California from gaining admission into the Union.
E) It brought great relief to the nation, because he had started the current sectional crisis.

Question 24

Why did the Whig party collapse?

A) It no longer had sufficient numbers of people voting for it.
B) It opposed slavery.
C) The strain of the Kansas-Nebraska Act pushed northern and southern members toward joining different parties.
D) The Republican party defeated the major Whig candidates in the 1852 election.
E) Its economic policies were perceived as too socialist.

Question 25

The 1848 presidential election:

A) was won by Zachary Taylor
B) was won by Lewis Cass
C) was won by Van Buren
D) was decided in the House of Representatives
E) broke up the Whig party

Question 26

Why did Uncle Tom's Cabin outrage slave owners?

A) It was authored by Harriet Tubman.
B) It showed how the brutal realities of slavery harmed everyone associated with it.
C) It convinced many poor southern whites to oppose slavery.
D) It started the Civil War.
E) It was an objective description of life under slavery.

Question 27

Passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act was a victory for:

A) abolitionists
B) immigrant groups in America
C) the concept of popular sovereignty
D) southerners who wanted a transcontinental railroad to run west from New Orleans
E) the preservation of the Union

Question 28

Stephen Douglas's proposed Kansas-Nebraska Act:

A) might allow slavery in Kansas and Nebraska
B) strengthened the Missouri Compromise
C) showed his enthusiastic support of slavery
D) strengthened his presidential prospects
E) would promote construction of a transcontinental rail line along a southern route

Question 29

Why did the new Fugitive Slave Act outrage abolitionists?

A) It offered a strong temptation to kidnap free blacks in northern free states.
B) It required the licensing of slave catchers.
C) It guaranteed fugitive slaves a jury trial.
D) It allowed northern states to become slave states.
E) It reintroduced the legal international slave trade.

Question 30

What position did both the Democrats and Whigs support in the 1852 presidential election?

A) a ban on the expansion of slavery into the territories
B) support of the Compromise of 1850
C) women's suffrage
D) repeal of the Fugitive Slave Act
E) use of the popular vote rather than Electoral College to determine the election's winner

Question 31

Why did so many northerners, including the so-called Independent Democrats, oppose the Kansas-Nebraska Act?

A) They opposed the admission of both territories as states.
B) The act repealed the fugitive slave law.
C) The act would bring about immediate abolition.
D) The act repealed the Missouri Compromise.
E) They opposed the law because it did not embrace "popular sovereignty."

Question 32

The discovery of gold in California did all of the following EXCEPT:

A) spur a massive migration of gold seekers
B) hasten the demise of the Indians
C) encourage American dreams of a Pacific empire
D) result in an infusion of gold into the U.S. economy that led to a prolonged period of national prosperity
E) create a population with an equal balance of men and women

Question 33

Author Harriet Beecher Stowe's background was indicative of the abolitionist movement's:

A) weak moral compass
B) symbolic support of the Fugitive Slave Act
C) powerful religious underpinnings
D) willingness to accept slavery in some modified form
E) gradually weakening strength

Question 34

The Compromise of 1850:

A) gave Texas more territory
B) admitted Utah as a slave state
C) postponed California statehood
D) ended slavery in Washington, D.C.
E) strengthened the fugitive slave law

Question 35

During the great congressional debate over the Compromise of 1850:

A) John Calhoun endorsed all of Henry Clay's proposals
B) President Taylor died
C) Henry Clay pushed for the compromise and national harmony
D) Jefferson Davis emerged as a voice of moderation
E) Daniel Webster made an impassioned argument for secession

Question 36

The election of 1852:

A) saw both major parties denounce the Compromise of 1850
B) resulted in a second term for Millard Fillmore
C) saw the disappearance of the Free-Soil party
D) was dominated by the current economic depression
E) was won by Franklin Pierce

Question 37

In late 1849, Zachary Taylor proposed:

A) California's immediate entry as a free state
B) war against the Mormons in Utah
C) extension of slavery to the Pacific
D) abolition of slavery in Washington, D.C.
E) giving Texas back to Mexico

Question 38

The Republican party reflected a combination of all of the following groups EXCEPT:

A) northern Whigs
B) anti-slavery Democrats
C) Free-Soilers
D) cotton Whigs
E) abolitionists

Question 39

Given the bitterness of the congressional debate, why was Stephen Douglas successful in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed?

A) He dropped the question of the slave trade in the District of Columbia.
B) He could depend on a sympathy vote from supporters of deceased President Taylor.
C) His support for popular sovereignty allowed many abolitionist senators to vote with him.
D) He split the issues into separate bills.
E) He was in better health and was more charismatic than Clay.

Question 40

Which of the following is NOT true of Zachary Taylor?

A) He owned more than one hundred slaves.
B) He was a Mexican War hero.
C) He opposed the extension of slavery into the new western territories.
D) The "conscience Whigs" were his strongest supporters.
E) He opposed the idea of secession.

Question 41

In 1856, the Republicans :

A) declared their opposition to slavery
B) nominated William Seward for president
C) stood for states' rights
D) strongly condemned the nativist platform of the American party
E) campaigned vigorously all over the country

Question 42

All of the following were presidential nominees in 1860 EXCEPT:

A) William Seward
B) John Bell
C) Abraham Lincoln
D) John Breckinridge
E) Stephen Douglas

Question 43

The Supreme Court's Dred Scott decision:

A) gave Dred Scott his freedom
B) was applauded by the Republicans
C) implied that the Missouri Compromise had been unconstitutional
D) guaranteed the future admission of slave states
E) recognized that free blacks were U.S. citizens

Question 44

Why did Kansas's Lecompton Constitution become so controversial?

A) It banned slavery even though an overwhelming majority of residents supported it.
B) It banned slavery but provided an exception to existing resident slave owners.
C) It allowed slavery even though a majority of residents opposed it.
D) It allowed each county in Kansas to vote on the legality of slavery.
E) It advocated for Kansas independence rather than statehood.

Question 45

The Panic of 1857:

A) was the worst depression in American history
B) ended sectional bickering
C) started the Civil War
D) was triggered by the violence in Kansas
E) strengthened southern confidence in its cotton economy

Question 46

A major reason the Democrat James Buchanan won the 1856 election was that:

A) the Republicans were mired in political scandal
B) the Democrats were the only remaining national party
C) the northern Whigs threw their support to the Democrats
D) slavery and sectional divisions were not an issue in the election
E) the Republicans did not have a candidate to run against him

Question 47

Abraham Lincoln:

A) opposed the further spread of slavery
B) supported black equality
C) would abolish slavery wherever it existed
D) was a military hero
E) was born in 1810

Question 48

What did the Supreme Court rule in Dred Scott v. Sandford?

A) Slaves who were taken to free states would be considered free.
B) Slaves who were taken to free territories would be considered free.
C) The Missouri Compromise was still legally binding.
D) Blacks did not have citizenship and therefore lacked legal standing.
E) State bans on slavery did not violate the property rights of masters.

Question 49

Preston Brooks's caning of Charles Sumner:

A) took place in Kansas
B) ended Brooks's career in Congress
C) showed that both North and South rejected political extremists
D) was totally without motive or provocation
E) made Brooks a hero in much of the South

Question 50

As the election of 1860 approached, the Democratic party:

A) renominated Buchanan
B) was silent on the issue of slavery
C) condemned the Kansas-Nebraska Act
D) was dominated by southern extremists
E) broke up into northern and southern wings

Question 51

John Brown targeted Harpers Ferry, Virginia, because:

A) it had a large slave population
B) it was the site of a federal arsenal
C) it was an important railroad center
D) many abolitionists lived in the area
E) it had banks with large deposits

Question 52

John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry was intended to:

A) start a civil war
B) unify the Republican party
C) provoke slave insurrections
D) prove John Brown was God's agent
E) provoke a fight with the U.S. Army

Question 53

John Brown's raid:

A) ended bloodlessly
B) succeeded
C) was of minor importance
D) set off a panic throughout the slaveholding South
E) was condemned by abolitionists

Question 54

The Lincoln-Douglas debates:

A) saw Douglas abandon popular sovereignty
B) bolstered Lincoln's presidential prospects in 1860
C) clinched Lincoln's election to the U.S. Senate
D) saw Lincoln state his belief in racial equality
E) saw Lincoln endorse the Dred Scott ruling

Question 55

Why did President Buchanan support the Lecompton Constitution?

A) He opposed the spread of slavery, and the constitution banned it from Kansas.
B) He was born in Lecompton and always supported his hometown.
C) He was politically dependent on northern congressmen, who also supported the constitution.
D) He was dependent on southern congressmen, who also supported the constitution.
E) He had no strong position, but his advisers insisted he support it.

Question 56

In the 1856 election, the Democrats supported all of the following EXCEPT:

A) the Kansas-Nebraska Act
B) vigorous enforcement of the fugitive slave law
C) religious liberty
D) the reinstitution of the Missouri Compromise
E) no congressional interference with slavery in the states or territories

Question 57

All of the following statements about John Brown are true EXCEPT:

A) He was the father of 20 children.
B) He and his followers were responsible for the Pottawatomie Massacre.
C) He believed blacks deserved both liberty and full social equality.
D) He led an unsuccessful raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry.
E) He was fanatically committed to fight to protect the institution of slavery.

Question 58

On what legal basis did Dred Scott sue for his freedom?

A) He had married a free woman.
B) The physical abuse he suffered was illegal.
C) He argued that slavery was unconstitutional.
D) He claimed that living for extended periods in areas where slavery was forbidden made him free.
E) His father was a free man.

Question 59

The Republican party platform supported all of the following in 1860 EXCEPT:

A) a transcontinental railroad
B) a higher protective tariff
C) no further extension of slavery
D) John Brown's raid
E) free farms on federal lands out west

Question 60

How did passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act impact the settlement of Kansas?

A) The vagaries left about the status of slavery discouraged settlement.
B) Popular sovereignty encouraged violence-prone supporters and opponents of slavery to flood Kansas.
C) It ensured that Kansas would be admitted into the Union as a free state with a population deeply committed to abolition.
D) It made Kansas a slave state with a majority population of slaveholders.
E) This is a trick question. The act had no impact on settlement of Kansas.

Question 61

Lincoln won the election of 1860 by:

A) appealing to fear
B) sweeping the free states
C) carrying the biggest states in both North and South
D) massive voter fraud
E) changing his position on slavery

Question 62

Explain how the Mexican-American War opened wounds between the North and the South as it spurred controversy over slavery in the acquired territories. Could the war be blamed for causing the Civil War?

Question 63

Explain the issues that led to the Compromise of 1850 and show how the Compromise was fashioned and passed.

Question 64

Discuss the California gold rush and the mining frontier. How did these pioneers treat Mexicans and Indians as they settled in the West?

Question 65

The Crittenden Compromise proposed to:

A) outlaw slavery in the United States after 1865
B) guarantee continuance of slavery in the states where it then existed
C) guarantee that all new territories would be open to slavery
D) give slaves full representation rather than allow them to count for only three fifths of
A person
E) provide a federal slave code for the western territories

Question 66

MATCHING
Match each description with the item below.
Stephen A. Douglas

A)was a candidate for the presidency in the 1860 election
B)led Pottawatomie Massacre
C)elected president of the Confederate States of America
D)died in July 1850
E)caned Charles Sumner
F)the "Little Giant" who succeeded in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed by breaking it into separate proposals
G)argued that Congress needed to protect the right of slave owners to take their property into the territories
H)was the chief justice for Dred Scott case
I)was the 1848 Free-Soil presidential candidate
J)was the president who supported the Compromise of 1850

Question 67

Discuss the election of 1852. Which were the major political parties, what were the central issues of the campaign, and what was the outcome?

Question 68

MATCHING
Match each description with the item below.
John C. Calhoun

A)was a candidate for the presidency in the 1860 election
B)led Pottawatomie Massacre
C)elected president of the Confederate States of America
D)died in July 1850
E)caned Charles Sumner
F)the "Little Giant" who succeeded in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed by breaking it into separate proposals
G)argued that Congress needed to protect the right of slave owners to take their property into the territories
H)was the chief justice for Dred Scott case
I)was the 1848 Free-Soil presidential candidate
J)was the president who supported the Compromise of 1850

Question 69

In response to secession, President Buchanan:

A) said he supported it
B) declared martial law
C) abandoned Fort Sumter
D) did practically nothing
E) let Lincoln take office ahead of schedule

Question 70

Detail the Wilmot Proviso. What impact did it have on the debate over slavery?

Question 71

What caused the Civil War? (Your answer should not be simply a detailed chronology of events.)

Question 72

What various solutions were proposed to deal with the problem of slavery in the territories?

Question 73

MATCHING
Match each description with the item below.
Jefferson Davis

A)was a candidate for the presidency in the 1860 election
B)led Pottawatomie Massacre
C)elected president of the Confederate States of America
D)died in July 1850
E)caned Charles Sumner
F)the "Little Giant" who succeeded in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed by breaking it into separate proposals
G)argued that Congress needed to protect the right of slave owners to take their property into the territories
H)was the chief justice for Dred Scott case
I)was the 1848 Free-Soil presidential candidate
J)was the president who supported the Compromise of 1850

Question 74

Discuss the Dred Scott case and how effective it was in settling the conflict over slavery.

Question 75

MATCHING
Match each description with the item below.
John Brown

A)was a candidate for the presidency in the 1860 election
B)led Pottawatomie Massacre
C)elected president of the Confederate States of America
D)died in July 1850
E)caned Charles Sumner
F)the "Little Giant" who succeeded in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed by breaking it into separate proposals
G)argued that Congress needed to protect the right of slave owners to take their property into the territories
H)was the chief justice for Dred Scott case
I)was the 1848 Free-Soil presidential candidate
J)was the president who supported the Compromise of 1850

Question 76

MATCHING
Match each description with the item below.
Millard Fillmore

A)was a candidate for the presidency in the 1860 election
B)led Pottawatomie Massacre
C)elected president of the Confederate States of America
D)died in July 1850
E)caned Charles Sumner
F)the "Little Giant" who succeeded in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed by breaking it into separate proposals
G)argued that Congress needed to protect the right of slave owners to take their property into the territories
H)was the chief justice for Dred Scott case
I)was the 1848 Free-Soil presidential candidate
J)was the president who supported the Compromise of 1850

Question 77

MATCHING
Match each description with the item below.
Preston Brooks

A)was a candidate for the presidency in the 1860 election
B)led Pottawatomie Massacre
C)elected president of the Confederate States of America
D)died in July 1850
E)caned Charles Sumner
F)the "Little Giant" who succeeded in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed by breaking it into separate proposals
G)argued that Congress needed to protect the right of slave owners to take their property into the territories
H)was the chief justice for Dred Scott case
I)was the 1848 Free-Soil presidential candidate
J)was the president who supported the Compromise of 1850

Question 78

The states of the Confederate States of America seceded after Lincoln's election because:

A) Lincoln promised to abolish slavery immediately after taking office
B) Lincoln was pushing for an invasion of the South
C) the southern secessionists were convinced that Lincoln would move against slavery despite his assurances otherwise
D) the southern secessionists planned to invade the North and impose slavery on the entire Union
E) the southern secessionists believed that Jefferson Davis had won the 1860 election but was denied the office through fraud

Question 79

Trace the Kansas-Nebraska crisis. What were the causes, issues, and results, and how did the country react to the crisis?

Question 80

At what point (if any) did the Civil War become inevitable? If you could change historical events, what would you do at that point to avoid war?