Deck 14: The Territorial Expansion of the United States

Question 1

The population of Bent's Fort illustrates which broader pattern of American settlement into new areas?

A) frontier of inclusion
B) frontier of exclusion
C) conflict
D) assimilation

Answer 1

frontier of inclusion

Question 2

Prior to the 1830s, the dominant industry in the Oregon Territory was __________.

A) the fur trade
B) whaling
C) coal mining
D) farming

Answer 2

the fur trade

Question 3

A frontier of domination in Oregon was accomplished after __________.

A) settlers from the Midwest laid claims to lands disputed by the United States and Britain
B) the Convention of 1818 resulted in the joint occupation of the territory by the United States and Britain
C) a series of wars by white settlers defeated local Indians after the murders of missionaries Marcus and Narcissa Whitman
D) Hudson's Bay Company established Fort Vancouver as a fur trading post on the Columbia River

Answer 3

a series of wars by white settlers defeated local Indians after the murders of missionaries Marcus and Narcissa Whitman

Question 4

American fur traders joined in a yearly trade fair in the Rockies called the __________, characterized by the polyglot collection of many nationalities.

A) pathfinder
B) rendezvous
C) rancho
D) Overland Trails

Question 5

The Lewis and Clark expedition was financed by __________.

A) the federal government
B) the personal fortune of Thomas Jefferson
C) subscriptions from land speculators
D) fur traders

Question 6

Tribes in the southern part of the Indian Territory __________.

A) mainly came from the upper Midwest
B) created new communities in the West
C) engaged in constant war with the Army
D) returned east as soon as possible

Question 7

The Texas uprising against Mexico was characterized by __________.

A) alliance between Americans and Tejanos
B) alliance between Americans and Comanches
C) hostility between Irish and Spanish Catholics
D) alliance between Comanches and Tejanos

Question 8

The justification for removal of Indians to the West was __________.

A) that the Indians needed a space where they could live undisturbed by whites
B) to preserve the Indians' way of life
C) a belief the Indians could never be civilized
D) to give the Indians much-needed arable land

Question 9

The United States gained the Oregon Territory south of the 49th parallel by __________.

A) a treaty with Great Britain
B) defeating the British in a war
C) a treaty with Russia
D) defeating the Mexicans in a war

Question 10

Generally, pioneers traveling the Overland Trails in the 1840s and 1850s were __________.

A) constantly attacked by Indians
B) likely to experience very little dissension
C) parts of organized westward-moving communities
D) traveling alone for safety and speed

Question 11

Which phase was usually first in the pattern of American occupation of new lands?

A) frontier of accommodation
B) frontier of domination
C) armed conflict
D) assimilation

Question 12

The northern half of Indian Territory was abolished in 1854 and replaced with the __________.

A) Oklahoma and Utah Territories
B) New Mexico and California Territories
C) Oregon and Nebraska Territories
D) Kansas and Nebraska Territories

Question 13

The Overland Trails started at the __________.

A) Appalachian Mountains
B) Rocky Mountains
C) Mississippi River
D) Missouri River

Question 14

Spain's exclusionary policy toward Santa Fé changed when __________.

A) Mexico gained its independence from Spain
B) it became economically necessary for Spain to change its policy
C) the United States defeated Mexico in a war
D) the Comanches were finally defeated

Question 15

In the early nineteenth century, which Indian tribes dominated the southern high plains?

A) Cayuse and Sioux
B) Cherokees and Creeks
C) Cherokees and Apaches
D) Comanches and Apaches

Question 16

The Louisiana Territory was explored in 1806-1807 by __________.

A) Lieutenant Zebulon Pike
B) Jedediah Smith
C) Major Stephen Long
D) John C. Frémont

Question 17

One of the most important factors in the exploration of the West was __________.

A) the China trade
B) the cattle business
C) the fur trade
D) the search for gold

Question 18

John O'Sullivan __________.

A) was the first white to see the Grand Canyon
B) was Frémont's mapmaker
C) coined the term "manifest destiny"
D) opposed Jefferson's Indian removal policies

Question 19

Tejanos were __________.

A) Spanish-speaking residents of Texas
B) Christian Indians living in Texas
C) a multiracial amalgam of whites, blacks, and Indians
D) American foreigners residing in Texas

Question 20

The Native Americans who were the most dangerous and least assimilated on the Texas frontier were the __________.

A) Cherokee
B) Comancheros
C) Sioux
D) Comanches

Question 21

How did the images created by landscape artists such as Thomas Moran and Albert Bierstadt most directly impact westward expansion?

A) Americans developed feelings of deep hostility toward the American Indians living in the West.
B) Americans took a renewed interest in the Rocky Mountain fur trade.
C) Americans rushed to California in search of gold.
D) Americans developed great pride in western lands and desired to move there.

Question 22

After Mexico became independent from Spain, __________.

A) it adopted restrictive policies toward American settlers and traders
B) it relaxed exclusionary policies in Santa Fé and Texas that had been put in place by the Spanish government
C) war immediately broke out between Americans and Tejanos
D) new Mexican settlers flooded into Texas and California

Question 23

Which of these people would have been most likely to oppose the Mexican-American War?

A) a New England Whig
B) a southern Democrat
C) a western farmer
D) a Texas plantation owner

Question 24

The most accurate assessment of the policy of moving Indians to the west so that they would have time and space to adjust to civilized ways was that it __________.

A) was a great success
B) almost completely failed
C) only succeeded with a few tribes such as the Apache and Comanches
D) was more successful with northern than southern tribes who lived in Indian Territory

Question 25

Because the Oregon territory was so distant from the rest of the United States, settlers there __________.

A) only came in very small numbers
B) formed strong community ties
C) were careful to get land titles from the Indians
D) developed an "every man for himself" mentality

Question 26

In 1846, Congressman David Wilmot, a Pennsylvania Democrat, proposed that __________.

A) the United States incorporate all of Mexico into its borders
B) each territory acquired from Mexico make its own decisions about slavery
C) the United States acquire Cuba from Spain
D) slavery be banned in any territory acquired from Mexico

Question 27

The Mexican-American War was known as "Mr. Polk's War" because __________.

A) he personally led U.S. forces in battle
B) American strongly supported the war
C) the war was unpopular and politically divisive
D) Congress never approved a declaration of war

Question 28

Like other California immigrants, most of the Chinese __________.

A) quickly assimilated with other local cultures
B) brought wives and families with them
C) intended to return home as soon as they made money
D) came in very small numbers

Question 29

As commander in chief during the war, James K. Polk defined the role of president by __________.

A) leaving planning and strategy to the military
B) visiting battle sites to keep morale high
C) coordinating both civilian and military goals and needs
D) serving as a battlefield commander and exposing himself to fire

Question 30

In the election of 1848, __________.

A) both Cass and Taylor took deliberately vague positions on slavery in the territories
B) Cass strongly opposed the annexation of California
C) Taylor proposed the doctrine of "popular sovereignty"
D) the Free-Soil Party demanded the extension of slavery to all territories

Question 31

The best description of travel on the Overland Trails was that it was __________.

A) slow, dangerous, and exhausting
B) long but generally safe
C) successfully completed by only a handful
D) constantly disrupted by murderous Indian attacks

Question 32

Claiming the Rio Grande rather than the Nueces River as the boundary of Texas gave the United States a claim to __________.

A) New Mexico and parts of Colorado
B) Oregon and Washington
C) Kansas and Oklahoma
D) Nevada and Utah

Question 33

Americans in Texas __________.

A) mainly settled in enclaves with little contact with others
B) quickly intermarried with the Tejanos
C) settled in the northern and western high plains
D) found it difficult to farm profitably

Question 34

Even though many Northerners opposed slavery, why did they not support the Liberty Party and its antislavery platform during the 1844 presidential election?

A) They knew the Liberty Party was too unorganized to challenge the established Democratic and Whig parties.
B) They believed the Liberty Party's uncompromising views against slavery would force the South to leave the Union.
C) They opposed the Liberty Party's decision to give free blacks suffrage.
D) They believed that the issue of permitting slavery should be decided at the state or territorial levels through popular sovereignty.

Question 35

The multinational situation in California in 1848 is illustrated by the fact that gold was found by James Marshall, __________, working at a mill owned by Johann Sutter, __________.

A) an American; a Russian
B) an American; a Swiss
C) a Californio; an American
D) a Russian; a Californio

Question 36

The Mexican-American War began over __________.

A) a border dispute
B) a dispute over gold
C) American claims to California
D) an unprovoked Mexican attack on San Antonio

Question 37

In general, Free-soilers were __________.

A) antiblack
B) anti-expansionist
C) in favor of annexation of Texas
D) abolitionists

Question 38

During the Mexican-American War, northern Whigs began to characterize the war as __________.

A) an unwinnable conflict
B) a racist plot against a weaker nation
C) a southern conspiracy to expand slavery
D) a Mexican scheme to claim disputed gold fields on the Colorado

Question 39

Stephen F. Austin and his hand-picked fellow colonists in Texas agreed to Mexican terms that they __________.

A) sever all economic ties with the United States
B) bring no slaves into Mexican territory
C) become Mexican citizens and accept the Catholic faith
D) pledge loyalty to the Mexican government

Question 40

In 1844, the Liberty Party demonstrated that __________.

A) third parties may not win elections, but they can decide outcomes
B) Americans have no interest in third parties
C) most white Americans rejected the party's racism
D) parties that take decisive stands on the issues win elections

Question 41

Most American trappers, such as the British and French before them, __________.

A) wanted nothing to do with Indian peoples
B) sought accommodation and friendship with Indian peoples
C) were actively hostile toward Indian peoples
D) saw themselves as honorary Indians

Question 42

Which statement accurately describes the majority of the U.S. population in 1840?

A) The majority lived west of the original thirteen states.
B) The majority lived in cities.
C) The majority was foreign-born.
D) The majority lived in New England and New York.

Question 43

It seems clear that when President Polk sent troops to Texas in 1845, he __________.

A) hoped to provoke a war with Mexico
B) had no idea what was going to happen
C) believed that he was preventing a war with Mexico
D) thought it was an inconsequential decision

Question 44

Despite their many differences, why did Ralph Waldo Emerson and John C. Calhoun both oppose Polk's aggressive expansionism?

Question 45

What role did women play in the fur trade?

A) Indian women served as diplomatic liaisons between European and Indian worlds.
B) European women served as domestic assistants at the yearly rendezvous.
C) Both Indian and European women engaged in the trapping of beavers and otters.
D) Women played no significant role in the fur trade.

Question 46

Explain the ideology of "manifest destiny," the sentiments that supported it, and the reaction of politicians and the public to it.

Question 47

In June 1846, American settlers in California __________.

A) petitioned Britain to grant them citizenship
B) asked Mexico to grant them empresario status
C) petitioned the United States to become a state
D) declared their independence from Mexico

Question 48

To whom was John O'Sullivan referring when he spoke of bringing democracy to "backward peoples"?

A) Southerners and Westerners
B) Irish Catholics and African Americans
C) blacks and Chinese
D) Indians and Mexicans

Question 49

The tribes of the southern part of Indian Territory withstood outside pressures and remained self-governing until __________.

A) after the Civil War
B) the turn of the century
C) the Mexican-American War
D) the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act

Question 50

Democrats tended to see industrialization as __________.

A) a boon to the nation
B) a threat to the nation
C) a mixed blessing
D) the key to the expansion of democracy

Question 51

Popular sovereignty was based on the accepted constitutional principle that decisions about slavery should be made __________.

A) by the president
B) by the courts
C) at the state level
D) at the national level

Question 52

Under the terms of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the United States __________.

A) received land and Mexico got money
B) got everything President Polk wanted
C) received land and Mexico got nothing
D) got security and Mexico got commercial advantages

Question 53

What impact did westward expansion in the decades prior to the Civil War have on federal Indian policy?

Question 54

How does Bent's Fort illustrate the issues of a frontier of inclusion, while the American settlement of Texas was more typical of a frontier of exclusion?

Question 55

How did the allotments received by Indians living in the northern half of Indian Territory differ from reservations?

A) Allotments were sections of private land that could be sold by the owner.
B) Allotments were issued by territorial legislatures rather than by the federal government.
C) Allotments remained permanently in the possession of the Indian tribes that received them.
D) Allotments were tracts of land that had not yet been surveyed or shown on existing maps.

Question 56

What was life like in a California mining camp in the early 1850s? Who lived there? What happened to most of the independent miners who lived in mining camps?

Question 57

Most Chinese miners __________.

A) never intended to return to China
B) were men who came to California without their families
C) got very rich
D) wore western clothes and tried not to stand out

Question 58

Why was the American fur trade so short-lived?

A) over-hunting and trapping
B) competition from the British
C) attacks by Indians
D) dangers of travel in the Northwest

Question 59

What impact did Free-Soil candidate Martin Van Buren have on the election of 1848?

A) He cost Lewis Cass New York and Pennsylvania, and with these two states the election.
B) He forced Lewis Cass to take a much stronger stand on slavery than he wanted to.
C) He cost Zachary Taylor Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and with these two states the election.
D) He had no impact on the outcome of the election but had a profound effect on the public debate over slavery.

Question 60

Why were Indians in the southern part of the Indian Territory able to establish stronger communities than those in the northern part of the Territory?

A) They experienced less white intervention in their territories.
B) They were more used to farming than their northern counterparts.
C) They negotiated better deals with the U.S. government.
D) They had more extensive warrior traditions than their northern counterparts.

Question 61

What was President Polk's ulterior motive in declaring war on Mexico in 1846?

A) acquiring all the land between Texas and the Pacific Ocean
B) defending America's Texan border against Mexico
C) establishing American military dominance over Mexico
D) providing the United States with a buffer against the Comanche Indians

Question 62

Why did Southerners oppose the acquisition of all of Mexico?

A) They did not want to grant full American citizenship to nonwhites.
B) They feared the increase of sectional tensions.
C) They did not view southern Mexico as viable land for plantation agriculture.
D) They feared Mexicans and Northerners would build an antislavery alliance.

Question 63

Unlike travelers on the Oregon Trail, travelers on the Santa Fé Trail frequently had to contend with __________.

A) attacks from hostile Indians
B) bouts of cholera
C) dehydration
D) hypothermia

Question 64

Which of these was a lasting effect of the gold rush?

A) San Francisco became a major urban center.
B) Many "forty-niners" became wealthy.
C) The United States favored a quick annexation of California after the gold rush.
D) California became a site where Americans, Californios, and recent Chinese immigrants lived in harmony with each other.

Question 65

How did California's population after the gold rush compare to the population of other newly settled territories gained by the United States?

A) The population of California was larger and more affluent.
B) The population of California was poorer.
C) The population of California was more homogeneous.
D) The population of California was more rural.

Question 66

The Mexican-American War was the first war in which __________.

A) ordinary citizens had access to accounts of the war's daily events
B) American citizens showed very little interest, since it took place so far away from the most populated areas of the country
C) the public attitude was shaped exclusively by politicians and political parties
D) government hid most information about the war from American citizens

Question 67

Why was the Wilmot Proviso so divisive?

A) It prioritized sectional politics over party politics.
B) It extended the Mexican-American War.
C) It abolished slavery in states that already allowed it.
D) It strengthened the institution of slavery.

Question 68

Who were the Californios?

A) the small group of descendants of Spanish-Mexican pioneers who lived in California before the gold rush
B) the early American pioneers who lived in California before the gold rush
C) descendants of the early marriages between Spanish and American California families
D) the group of migrants first drawn to California by the gold rush

Question 69

Which of the following helps explain Southern Democrats' support for westward expansion?

A) Southern Democrats wanted to disperse the growing slave population before its numbers threatened white control of the South.
B) Southern Democrats wanted to stimulate the growth of industry and manufacturing.
C) Southern Democrats wanted to relocate poor, undesirable Irish immigrants who had come seeking work in Southern cities.
D) Southern Democrats wanted to resettle hostile southern Indian nations in lands gained from Mexico.

Question 70

Which of these was a consequence of the bitter fighting in Mexico?

A) the mistreatment of Mexican civilians by American troops
B) the collapse of Polk's political agenda
C) the collapse of the Mexican government's resolve
D) the end of opposition to the war in the United States

Question 71

Which statement best describes Tejano settlements in Texas before 1821?

A) Poor, isolated settlements were centered on the missions and the forts that protected them.
B) Wealthy, isolated cattle ranchers intermingled with Catholic missionaries.
C) A few middle-class commercial centers emerged along the trails between Mexico City and the United States.
D) Multiethnic communities of hunters and Indians survived primarily by trading buffalo pelts.

Question 72

Which phrase best describes the Free-Soil Party?

A) a practical party that viewed slavery as a political issue
B) an idealistic party that viewed slavery as morally wrong
C) a spiritually based party that saw slavery as a crime against God
D) an independent party that thought that all people were equal

Question 73

How did the concept of popular sovereignty address the approach to slavery in new states?

A) It left decisions about slavery up to the states.
B) It let Congress vote on slavery for each new state.
C) It let local communities determine the status of slavery in each county.
D) It let the nation vote on the issue for each state in a special election.

Question 74

How did the election of 1848 differ from previous presidential elections?

A) Candidates were forced to talk about slavery for the first time in decades.
B) Candidates had to avoid talking about slavery to gain wide support.
C) Election results split almost entirely along regional lines.
D) Neither the president nor the vice president elected was a slaveholder.

Question 75

Many Northerners opposed the Mexican-American War because they believed it __________.

A) primarily served the interests of slaveholders
B) would harm northern manufacturing
C) would cause a larger, global war
D) would cause European immigration to the United States to decline

Question 76

What was General Taylor's position on slavery in the territories during the 1848 election?

A) He avoided taking a position as much as possible.
B) He supported the Wilmot Proviso.
C) He opposed the Wilmot Proviso.
D) He supported popular sovereignty.

Question 77

Which statement best describes the doctrine of manifest destiny?

A) God expected white Americans to expand across the continent and spread democratic ideals.
B) By virtue of winning their independence from England, Americans had the right to populate the entire continent of North America.
C) American military forces were superior to those belonging to Britain and Mexico, so expansionists were unconcerned about going to war with either nation to obtain their territories.
D) God's hatred of Indian peoples was clear, and Americans were agents of God's wrath.

Question 78

In what way did California of the 1850s differ from the rest of the nation?

A) The population of California was more multicultural.
B) California had the largest urban population in the United States.
C) California was less affluent than other regions of the United States.
D) The free and enslaved African American population was larger than similar populations in other parts of the nation.

Question 79

Why did Americans in northern California settle close to Sutter's Mill before 1848?

A) They knew they were interloping on Mexican land.
B) They feared attacks from Indians.
C) The most fertile land was near Sutter's Mill.
D) They had discovered small deposits of gold near the mill.

Question 80

What made Oregon a "frontier of inclusion"?

A) White people and Native Americans intermingled and intermarried.
B) All races were welcome to start homesteads.
C) Christian missionaries welcomed all races to their churches.
D) The region was shared by French, Spanish, British, and American fur traders.