American History Quiz

What area became known as the "Final Frontier" in the United States after the Civil War?

• The Eastern states

• The Great Plains

• Indian Territory

• The Pacific Northwest

What was the main reason the Plains Indians depended on the buffalo?

• For trade with settlers

• For their spiritual rituals

• For their survival

• For transportation

How did the expansion westward disrupt the Plains Indians way of life?

• It introduced new farming techniques

• It brought new diseases to the tribes

• It led to increased trade with Europeans

• It threatened their survival as more settlers expanded westward

Who constructed the first transcontinental railroad in 1869?

• European settlers

• Immigrant laborers

• American industrialists

• The U.S. government

What was the significance of the transcontinental railroads?

• They increased the cost of travel across the country

• They decreased the population movement to the West

• They provided the main stimulus for the settlement of the Great Plains and Far West

• They were primarily used for transporting gold and silver

What did the Homestead Act, passed during the Civil War, provide to settlers?

• 160 acres of land to any settler who could pay for it

• 160 acres of federal land at no cost to settlers who farmed it for five years

• 100 acres of land to settlers who built a house on it

• 200 acres of land to settlers who could defend it from others

Which of the following was NOT a solution that farmers used to combat the problems of the Great Plains?

• Building houses out of sod bricks and fences of barbed wire

• Digging wells to get groundwater and using windmills to pump the water to the surface

• Using steel plows to break up the tough sod and plant seeds

• Importing wood from the East to build traditional homes

What was the main reason the Plains Indians were forced to move from their lands?

• They voluntarily relocated to make room for settlers

• They were attracted to the lifestyle of the settlers

• They signed treaties that were later enforced by the federal government

• They were defeated in a large battle that resulted in the loss of their lands

What did the Plains Indians primarily depend on for their way of life?

• Farming and ranching like the settlers

• Trading with the settlers

• The buffalo

• Fishing in the Great Lakes

What event caused the Sioux warriors to go into despair and perform a "Ghost Dance"?

• The construction of the transcontinental railroad

• The sale of some of their reserved lands to settlers in 1890

• The signing of a treaty with the Sioux

• The Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876