Lesson 2- Motivations for Westward Expansion Quiz

What was the main purpose of the Homestead Act of 1862?

• To provide free education to settlers

• To offer 160 acres of free land to settlers who would farm and improve it

• To build railroads across the West

• To encourage mining in California

Which event attracted many settlers to the West in search of wealth during the mid-1800s?

• The Industrial Revolution

• The Gold Rush

• The Civil War

• The Boston Tea Party

What is the term for the belief that the United States was destined to expand across the continent?

• Industrialization

• Manifest Destiny

• Homesteading

• Reconstruction

​ (a)   and Ranchers moved ​ (b)   to escape crowded ​ (c)   cities and seek new opportunities in farming and ranching?

• Missionaries

• Railroad workers

• Gold miners

• Homesteaders
• West
• Eastern

Which of the following was a major economic opportunity that motivated settlers to move West?

• Access to European markets

• Farmland and mining opportunities

• Urban factory jobs

• Political office

How did the construction of the transcontinental railroad contribute to Westward Expansion?

• It made travel to the West slower and more dangerous

• It provided faster and easier transportation for people and goods

• It limited access to Western lands

• It discouraged settlement in the West

Explain how the Homestead Act encouraged people to settle in the West.

• By offering free land to those willing to farm and improve it

• By providing free gold to settlers

• By building schools in the West

• By banning railroads in the region

Why did some religious groups, such as the Mormons, move West during the period of Westward Expansion?

• To find better mining opportunities

• To escape religious persecution and establish their own communities

• To work on the railroads

• To become ranchers

After the Civil War, newly freed ​ (a)   could move out west and claim​ (b)   under the ​ (c)   and start a new life.

• African Americans
• Homestead Act
• land

How did the idea of Manifest Destiny justify the expansion of the United States across North America?

• It claimed that expansion was necessary for economic survival

• It promoted the belief that Americans were destined to spread democracy and civilization across the continent

• It argued that only the wealthy should move West

• It discouraged settlement beyond the Mississippi River