Quiz on Kate Shelley and the Train Crash

What is the best description of the weather in Moingona, Iowa, during the days leading up to the train crash that occurred there in July of 1881?

• The temperature was extremely hot, which baked the ground dry.

• There was very heavy rain, which caused Honey Creek to rise and flood.

• It was unusually cold, which caused many of the farmers' crops to die.

• It was pleasant and mild, which was uncommon for the middle of summer.

Tags

CCSS.RI.5.1

CCSS.RI.5.2

Why did the Number 11 train crash near Kate Shelley's farmhouse?

• It collided with a midnight express train that was traveling along the same tracks in the opposite direction.

• A tree had fallen across the tracks near Honey Creek, which caused the train to derail into a field.

• It was traveling too fast on tracks that were slick from the continuous rainfall.

• The storm and the raging waters caused the Honey Creek trestle bridge to collapse.

Why did Kate Shelley leave the two crew members of the Number 11 train who were clinging to branches in Honey Creek that night?

• She realized that the midnight express, carrying about 200 people, would soon travel down the same tracks.

• She did not see the men who survived the crash because it was late at night and very dark.

• She was afraid that if she tried to help them herself, she might also be pulled into Honey Creek.

• She could not swim, so she knew that there was no way for her to help them herself.

Why was Kate Shelley's journey to the Moingona railroad station particularly dangerous that stormy night?

• The station was more than ten miles away and Kate had severe asthma, which made it hard for her to breathe.

• She had to crawl across the Des Moines River bridge on her hands and knees to get there.

• The storm had made the road to the station wet and muddy and very difficult to walk or run on.

• A bolt of lightning struck a tree, which nearly fell on Kate as she neared the station.

Tags

CCSS.RI.5.3

CCSS.W.5.2B

CCSS.W.5.9A

How did those who worked for the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad honor Kate Shelley in their own special way?

• They stopped the train in front of her house whenever she wanted to ride.

• They nicknamed her the 'Iowa heroine.'

• They awarded her a gold medal.

• They erected a statue of her in front of the Moingona railroad station.