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Slave, Free and the Economics of Slavery

Total questions: 18

Worksheet time: 9mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Which is true of free African Americans living in both the North and the South?

a)

They faced discrimination and racism.

b)

They lived side by side with white Americans.

c)

They had the same rights as everyone else.

d)

They preferred living only with African Americans.

2.

What was the legal status of slaves in the United States?

a)

citizen

b)

property

c)

dependents

d)

immigrants

3.

What was an effect of segregation policies in the North?

a)

People shared their culture with others.

b)

People were separated by race in public places.

c)

People were forced to live with different races.

d)

People were not allowed to practice their religion.

4.

Why did Southerners who did not own slaves support slavery?

a)

They feared the power of the slaveholders.

b)

They believed they would be able to own slaves someday.

c)

They knew that the Southern economy depended on slave labor.

d)

They understood that the Constitution did not ban slavery in the South.

5.

How did the cotton gin affect slaves?

a)

It made their lives easier.

b)

It increased the demand for slaves.

c)

It decreased the need for slave labor.

d)

It was the first step toward abolishing slavery.

6.

By 1850, the great majority of African Americans in the United States

a)

lived in cities.

b)

had some legal rights.

c)

lived in slavery.

d)

lived in the North.

7.

How were the lives of enslaved African Americans similar to the lives of free African Americans?

a)

hey both had some rights under the law.

b)

They both experienced racism and discrimination.

c)

They both owed wages to their owners.

d)

hey both were regarded as property under the law.

8.

Which of the following is an example of discrimination against African Americans?

a)

African Americans could only work for wealthy planters.

b)

African Americans could travel freely around the country.

c)

African Americans were not allowed to live in the North.

d)

African Americans were denied the right to vote.

9.

What is segregation?

a)

separating free African Americans from enslaved African Americans

b)

social separation of groups of people, especially by race

c)

ssigning tasks to certain groups of enslaved African Americans

d)

instruction on how to escape from a state with slavery to a free state

10.

How did the cotton gin affect the economy of the South?

a)

Its failure led Southerners to plant wheat.

b)

It decreased the production of cotton.

c)

It decreased the demand for the labor of enslaved people.

d)

It increased the profitability of cotton.

11.

As property, slaves had ____ of the rights guaranteed by the Constitution that free people took for granted.

a)

none

b)

some

c)

all

12.

Whether they were hired out, or sent to work in factories, mills, or workshops, the wages slaves earned belonged to their ______.

a)

families

b)

owners

c)

selves

13.

About half of all free African Americans lived in the _____.

a)

South

b)

North

c)

West

14.

In the South free blacks were allowed to own guns, travel freely between towns or states, and to work at all jobs.

a)

True

b)

False

15.

In many northern states, African Americans were denied the right to vote and had trouble finding good jobs.

a)

True

b)

False

16.

Who is known for becoming the first bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church?

a)

Frederick Douglass

b)

Richard Allen

c)

Harriet Powers

d)

W. E. B. Du Bois

17.

The National Council of Colored People was formed to

a)

protest the treatment of African Americans.

b)

teach free African Americans to grow cotton.

c)

encourage southern states to preserve slavery.

d)

support the use of the cotton gin in the South.

18.

Slavery also helped northern industries thrive since _________ depended on raw materials produced in the South.

a)

factories

b)

plantations

c)

farms

d)

cities