Deck 8: New Beginnings: the 1780s

Question 1

The Quaker naturalist __________ drafted a pioneering nature book about his travels throughout the Southeast.

A) Charles Willson Peale
B) Thomas Jefferson
C) William Bartram
D) Jedidiah Morse

Answer 1

William Bartram

Question 2

In 1783, many American soldiers were unhappy that __________.

A) they had not received long-overdue pay
B) Congress intended to extend their tours of duty by three years
C) Congress refused to give them promised land grants
D) they were not seen as heroes by the American people

Answer 2

they had not received long-overdue pay

Question 3

How did Robert Morris and his associates respond to the discontent among the soldiers at Newburgh?

A) They openly championed their cause.
B) They quietly encouraged their dissent.
C) They called for the soldiers to be tried for treason.
D) They encouraged them to be patient.

Answer 3

They quietly encouraged their dissent.

Question 4

In contrast to their British counterparts, American political leaders sought to __________.

A) emphasize the superiority of their culture
B) resist efforts to change place names
C) reinforce long-held traditions
D) popularize Christopher Columbus

Question 5

With which of the following was the Newburgh conspiracy linked?

A) a proposed tax on imported goods
B) control of the Mississippi River
C) Shays's Rebellion
D) Dragging Canoe's uprising

Question 6

__________Yazoo claim stretched west from the Chattahoochee River to the Mississippi River.

A) Georgia's
B) Virginia's
C) Alabama's
D) South Carolina's

Question 7

Hector St. John de Crevecoeur believed the flourishing of free people in America was directly linked to what?

A) a temperate climate and fertile land
B) a way of life that nurtured community growth
C) a unique belief in individual liberty
D) a federal system of government

Question 8

How did Washington respond to the threat of a military takeover of the American government?

A) He remained neutral and let his officers deal with Congress.
B) He used his personal leverage to force Congress to pay off his officers.
C) He persuaded his officers to work with Congress and secured a reasonable settlement.
D) He had General Gates arrested for treason.

Question 9

Who produced An American Dictionary of the English Language?

A) Thomas Jefferson
B) Philip Freneau
C) James Madison
D) Noah Webster

Question 10

In the 1780s, Georgia, unlike many other states, had not __________.

A) established a state legislature
B) ratified the federal constitution
C) ratified a state constitution
D) relinquished its western lands to the Confederation

Question 11

Of all the new American place names, those honoring __________ became the most popular.

A) early colonists
B) figures from Roman history
C) Greek gods
D) individual war heroes

Question 12

The Connecticut Wits were known for their __________.

A) nationalistic poetry
B) novels and short stories
C) satires of daily life
D) critiques of American politics

Question 13

Native American Southerners found themselves caught between the competing claims of __________.

A) Spain and the United States
B) Spain and France
C) Britain and the United States
D) France and Britain

Question 14

Who was Cincinnatus?

A) a Turkish sultan
B) an Egyptian slave
C) a Roman general
D) a Greek philosopher

Question 15

Noah Webster worked to make the American language __________.

A) conform to standard British English
B) more independent and accessible
C) more sophisticated and precise
D) the universal language of business

Question 16

In 1763, the Spanish acquired Louisiana from __________.

A) Britain
B) France
C) Portugal
D) the Dutch

Question 17

American officers encamped at __________ hinted at a military takeover if their demands were not met.

A) Fishkill
B) Valley Forge
C) Yorktown
D) Newburgh

Question 18

In the immediate aftermath of the Revolutionary War, Spain claimed __________.

A) much of Canada
B) Georgia and parts of South Carolina
C) ownership of the Great Lakes
D) control of navigation rights on the Mississippi River

Question 19

In 1785, John Jay and __________ helped form the Society for the Promotion of the Manumission of Slaves.

A) Thomas Jefferson
B) Alexander Hamilton
C) James Madison
D) George Washington

Question 20

The Cumberland Gap was the gateway to the __________.

A) Great Plains
B) Great Lakes region
C) lower Mississippi River Valley
D) Old Northwest

Question 21

Which of the following sparked Shays' Rebellion?

A) Indian attacks
B) legal reforms
C) a new tax
D) a military draft

Question 22

What was the stated purpose of the Annapolis Convention?

A) to discuss Chesapeake trade
B) to discuss state boundary disputes
C) to discuss a new federal constitution
D) to discuss territorial organization in the Old Northwest

Question 23

What approach to the growth of white settlement was favored by Dragging Canoe?

A) violent resistance
B) compromise and diplomacy
C) assimilation and acceptance
D) westward migration

Question 24

In the years following the Revolutionary War, most Americans wanted their states to __________.

A) redeem paper securities with hard money
B) issue new paper money
C) clamp down on debtors
D) reduce the money supply

Question 25

The Northwest Ordinance __________.

A) reserved land for Indian tribes
B) accelerated the spread of slavery north of the Ohio River
C) divided the Northwest Territory into ten future states
D) benefited eastern land speculators

Question 26

The end of the Revolutionary War brought _________.

A) financial and commercial stability
B) general prosperity
C) a boom in international commerce
D) widespread economic depression

Question 27

What important accomplishment was achieved by the Columbia?

A) It crossed the Pacific Ocean in eight days.
B) It was the first American ship to circumnavigate the globe.
C) It located the famed Northwest Passage.
D) It defeated a British man-of-war in battle.

Question 28

Which of the following best characterizes Alexander Hamilton's position at the Constitutional Convention?

A) radically democratic
B) middle of the road
C) moderately democratic
D) extremely conservative

Question 29

Under Jefferson's original plan for western land distribution, __________.

A) as many as fourteen new states were envisioned
B) the western lands would become colonies of the thirteen states
C) industry and manufacturing would be encouraged in the West
D) Indian rights would always take precedence

Question 30

The Land Ordinance of 1785 laid out a plan for __________.

A) blocking Spanish expansion in North America
B) distributing land to veterans
C) establishing Congressional districts
D) the organization of the United States' western territory

Question 31

Which of the following benefited most from the Northwest Ordinance?

A) Native Americans
B) eastern land speculators
C) small farmers
D) sailors and shipwrights

Question 32

Robert Morris helped pioneer American trade with __________.

A) the Ottoman Empire
B) China
C) Brazil
D) India

Question 33

Captain Robert Gray took an important first step toward establishing American claims to __________.

A) Hawaii
B) the Pacific Northwest
C) Cuba
D) California

Question 34

The mountain state of Franklin was __________.

A) founded by some of North Carolina's western landholders
B) intended as a refuge for runaway slaves
C) populated by discontented farmers
D) formed by Spanish and French adventurers

Question 35

At the Constitutional Convention, __________ took the lead in arguing for the separation of powers.

A) George Washington
B) John Adams
C) Patrick Henry
D) Samuel Adams

Question 36

Why did the British government restrict trade with America and the British West Indies?

A) to nurture British trade and punish New England shippers
B) to aid its French and Spanish allies
C) to build an isolationist stance
D) as a warning to potential revolutionaries in India

Question 37

The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 __________.

A) prohibited slavery north of the Ohio River
B) granted immediate statehood to four territories
C) was radically democratic
D) distributed land to poor Americans

Question 38

The 1786 election in __________ focused on the issue of paper money.

A) Rhode Island
B) Massachusetts
C) New Hampshire
D) Connecticut

Question 39

Local battles over debt, currency, and credit issues hit which area the hardest?

A) the backcountry
B) the Northeast
C) port cities such as Charleston and Philadelphia
D) South Carolina and Georgia

Question 40

Which of the following was true of the delegates to the Constitutional Convention?

A) More than half were lawyers.
B) Few delegates had ever met before.
C) They represented a cross-section of American society.
D) They all agreed that the current government was insufficiently democratic.

Question 41

Supporters of ratification of the Constitution were called __________.

A) Republicans
B) Federalists
C) Democrats
D) Anti-Federalists

Question 42

George Mason suggested the inclusion of __________ in the Constitution.

A) a third legislative body
B) provisions for a standing army
C) a provision outlawing slavery
D) a bill of rights

Question 43

Explain the source of the territorial dispute between Spain and the United States in the years after the Revolutionary War.

Question 44

The Virginia Plan called for a __________.

A) bicameral legislature with representation based on population in both legislative bodies
B) unicameral legislature with representation based on population
C) bicameral legislature with representation divided between population and equality of the states
D) unicameral legislature with states represented equally

Question 45

The strongest advocacy for ratification came from __________ and James Madison.

A) Alexander Hamilton
B) George Washington
C) Patrick Henry
D) George Mason

Question 46

How did James Madison select the amendments that would become the Bill of Rights?

Question 47

James Madison argued that minority opinions would fare best in which of the following?

A) a monarchy
B) a large nation
C) a small republic
D) a mighty empire

Question 48

In determining voting eligibility, convention delegates rejected direct election of __________.

A) the president
B) members of the House of Representatives
C) state legislatures
D) local mayors

Question 49

What was the Newburgh conspiracy and why is it important?

Question 50

Federalists predominated in __________.

A) coastal commercial centers
B) the backcountry
C) the Lower South
D) small towns and rural areas

Question 51

How did the delegates to the Constitutional Convention deal with the issue of slavery?

Question 52

Under the Constitution, if no candidate wins a majority in the electoral college, __________ determines the president.

A) the House of Representatives
B) the Senate
C) the Supreme Court
D) a popular vote

Question 53

The Bill of Rights reflected lessons learned during __________.

A) the Glorious Revolution
B) past conflicts between Parliament and the colonies
C) the English Civil War
D) Shays' Rebellion

Question 54

Describe the key aspects of the postwar economic crisis.