NEW
Font size
S
M
L
XL
WorksheetsFES: Westward Expansion
Total questions: 15
Worksheet time: 8mins
Name
Class
Date
1.
What were the Mississippi, the Columbia, the Colorado, and the Snake?
a)
major river systems of the west
b)
specific railroads running out west
c)
Reconstruction groups
d)
mountain ranges of the west
2.
What was the purpose of the steel plow
a)
to till the hard packed ground
b)
to bring scarce water to the surface
c)
to pick cotton grown in the west
d)
to increase the speed of the railroad
3.
Which is not a way Westward Expansion changed the land of the Great Plains in the late 1800s?
a)
irrigation systems
b)
built paved roads
c)
plowed the lane
d)
blasted through mountain sides
4.
What was not a reason that bison herds were killed by the thousands by riflemen hired by railroad owners?
a)
the buffalo trampled the railroad tracks
b)
the buffalo were in the way of progress
c)
they need the bison’s horns for tools
d)
sometimes it was just for sport or fun
5.
As people were heading West during the late 1800s, the most difficult area to cross was Area 3 on the map. Why was it so difficult to travel through Area 3?
a)
The area consisted of mountains and rugged
terrain.
b)
The area had not been explored by previous
travelers.
c)
The area was populated with too many Native
Americans.
d)
The area was the wider than other parts of
the country.
6.
What is not a reason to travel westward in the summer?
a)
swarms of insects
b)
heat
c)
drought
d)
all of the above
7.
Mining became a huge industry in the West during the late 19th century. Which of the following explains the major drawback to this occurrence?
a)
mining did not provide any jobs for local
residents
b)
mining proved to be unprofitable
c)
mining became useless as new technology
replaced natural resources
d)
mining was destructive to the natural
environment
8.
What major landform was the most difficult for settlers to cross on their way to California?
a)
the Great Plains
b)
The Rocky Mountains
c)
the Mississippi River
d)
the Appalachian Mountain
9.
What was a town called when it grew quickly because of the gold rush?
a)
ghost towms
b)
dead cities
c)
boomtowns
d)
abandoned villages
10.
Where did the government put Native Americans when they took their land?
a)
hotels
b)
the East Coast
c)
Mexico
d)
Reservations
11.
Which of the following ended the open ranges of the West?
a)
trains
b)
windmills
c)
barbed wire
d)
Homestead Act
12.
Immigrant labor helped build the transcontinental railroad. Most of these immigrants came from what country?
a)
England
b)
Germany
c)
China
d)
United States
13.
Why was timing important to settlers on the wagon trains?
a)
There was always a shortage of water in the
winter.
b)
The supply of gold in California was running
out quickly
c)
The snow in winter made travel extremely
difficult.
d)
The government only allowed travel during the
spring.
14.
Which of the following was a reason the transcontinental railroad needed to be built?
a)
to carry tons of gold to the cities
b)
to connect Canada and Mexico
c)
to make a faster route to the West
d)
to deliver Chinese immigrants to the East Coast
15.
Why was St. Louis, Missouri, considered an embarkation point during Westward Expansion?
a)
It
was the largest city in the United States in 1890.
b)
Many
people traveled there to study the many different types of barks on the
trees.
c)
It
became the “Gateway to the West” because it was the city from which many
travelers started their journey westward.
d)
It
was too hot to embark from Columbia, SC.
Reset
