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Worksheets

Civil War Causes

Total questions: 59

Worksheet time: 20mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Was the Underground Railroad actually underground?

a)

No, it was called "Underground" because it was secret.

b)

No, it ran above ground from South to North.

c)

Yes, the tracks ran underground from Virginia to New York.

d)

Yes, it was the longest underground railroad at the time.

2.

By the 1850's, why did many runaway slaves go to Canada?

a)

Canada was a center of manufacturing and there were many jobs.

b)

They feared being drafted into the Northern Army.

c)

Northern abolitionists refused to help fugitive slaves.

d)

The Fugitive Slave Act meant that they were at risk even in Free States.

3.

What was the result of the Dred Scott decision?

a)

New states would vote on whether to allow slavery or not.

b)

African Americans were not citizens of the United States and were, in fact, the property of their white owners.

c)

Slavery was banned in new states and territories.

d)

Slaves could sue their owners for freedom.

4.

Secede means to:

a)

rebel.

b)

declare war on.

c)

leave or withdraw.

d)

become part of.

5.

A Civil War means:

a)

A war between citizens of the same country.

b)

A war in which all soldiers are volunteers.

c)

A war that is fought mainly in cities.

d)

A war against a colonial power.

6.

Which part of the Compromise of 1850 is being addressed by the poster?

a)

States' Rights

b)

Popular Sovereignty

c)

The Fugitive Slave Act

d)

The Underground Railroad

7.

In the Compromise of 1850, which state entered the United States as a free state?

a)

Mississippi

b)

California

c)

Indiana

d)

Texas

8.

Which part of the Compromise of 1850 upset the North most?

a)

Ending the slave trade in Washington DC.

b)

Allowing California to enter the US as a free state.

c)

The stricter Fugitive Slave Act.

d)

Allowing the territories of Utah and New Mexico to vote on slavery.

9.

This said that all African Americans were NOT citizens.

a)

The Compromise of 1850.

b)

The Fugitive Slave Act.

c)

The Dred Scott Decision.

d)

The Missouri Compromise.

10.

According to this map, which states or territories were open to popular sovereignty?

a)

Oregon Territory

b)

Unorganized Territories

c)

Utah and New Mexico Territories

d)

Minnesota Territory

11.

Harriet Beecher Stowe, Frederick Doughlas, William Lloyd Garrison are examples of

a)

Supreme Court Justices

b)

abolitionists

c)

governors in slave states

d)

the other 3 presidential candidates in the election of 1860

12.

Who organized and led the raid at Harper's Ferry?

a)

Uncle Tom

b)

Jefferson Douglass

c)

John Brown

d)

Abraham Lincoln

13.

What was formed by the states which seceded from the Union?

a)

Confederacy

b)

Texas

c)

Conspiracy

d)

Unification

14.

Who wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin?

a)

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

b)

Harriet Beecher Stowe

c)

Uncle Tom

d)

Frederick Douglass

15.

What was a result of the Missouri Compromise?

a)

Slavery was not allowed north of the state of Missouri.

b)

Slavery was allowed north of the state of Missouri.

c)

Missouri would leave the union.

d)

The south half of Missouri would have slaves.

16.

What part of the Compromise of 1850 did slave owners like the best?

a)

Slave Codes

b)

Laws governing slaves

c)

Fugitive Slave Laws

d)

Plantation Codes

17.

Which 2 happened because of the raid on Harper's Ferry?

a)

Ammunition was only stored on Army bases.

b)

The North and South were divided further.

c)

It showed that people were willing to fight for the end of slavery.

d)

Many plantation owners freed their slaves.

18.
This law sparked three years of violence in the Midwest.
a)
Missouri Compromise
b)
Fugitive Slave Act
c)
Kansas Nebraska Act
d)
Dred Scott Case
19.
Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote a book to show the cruelties of slavery. What was it called?
a)
Uncle Bob's Stories
b)
Uncle Tom's Hotel
c)
Uncle Joe's Best Recipes
d)
Uncle Tom's Cabin
20.

Which of the following was not a part of the Compromise of 1850

a)

California admitted as free state

b)

New Mexico and Utah territories would vote on issues of slavery

c)

US agreed to stay out of foreign affairs

d)

The passing of the Fugitive Slave Law

21.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act led to people flooding into these territories from the north and south to vote on slavery. This led to what event?

a)

Bleeding Kansas

b)

Red Kansas

c)

Civil War I

d)

Missouri Compromise Conflict

22.
The Missouri Compromise Line determined the status of slavery in future states.  North of the line slavery was ___________ or banned, South of the line slavery was _________.
a)
permitted, prohibited
b)
prohibited, permitted or allowed
c)
sometimes prohibited, never allowed
d)
cheap, expensive
23.

What did Uncle Tom’s Cabin convince the North of?

a)

That it was ok to own a slave

b)

That you shouldn’t have more than two slaves

c)

That Uncle Tom had a nice cabin

d)

That slavery was wrong

24.

What Claim Did Dred Scott Sue With?

a)

Slavery Is Illegal

b)

Since He Had Once Lived In An Anti-Slavery Area He Would Always Be Free

c)

No One Should be a Slave or Own Slaves.

d)

People with Slaves Should be Prosecuted

25.

The Dred Scott decision...

a)

angered southerners, satisfied northerners.

b)

satisfied southerners, angered northerners.

c)

promoted the abolitionist movement.

d)

resulted in a compromise between the North & South.

26.
What was the Supreme Court's decision in the Dred Scott case?
a)
That slavery diminished the national character.
b)
That African American rights were protected by the Constitution.
c)
That African Americans did not have the right to sue in federal court because they were not citizens
d)
That slavery should be abolished by executive order
27.
The Election of 1860 was won by the...
a)
Republican Party
b)
Northern Democratic Party
c)
Southern Democratic Party
d)
Constitutional Union Party
28.

The Missouri Compromise, the compromise of 1850, and the Kansas-Nebraska Act were all efforts to

a)

end fighting between Midwestern farmers and native American Indians

b)

increase the number of people who voted in presidential elections

c)

encourage manufacturing in the west

d)

settle disputes over the spread of slavery to the western territories

29.
What caused Southern States to secede from the Union?
a)
The Election of Lincoln in 1860
b)
The Dred Scott Decision
c)
Harper's Ferry
d)
Bleeding Kansas
30.

Which law allowed slave holders to gain access to the north to retrieve their runaway slaves

a)

Fugitive Immigrant Law

b)

Runaway Slave Clause

c)

Fugitive Slave Law

d)

Property Abandonment Clause

31.

Which of the following is a right of a state not to follow a federal law?

a)

Nullification

b)

Abolitionism

c)

Secession

d)

Segregation

32.

Which northern state was admitted to the United States as a free state as part of the Missouri Compromise?

a)

Maine

b)

California

c)

Michigan

d)

Minnesota

33.

The Fugitive Slave Act was added to this compromise to please Southern states:

a)

Compromise of 1850

b)

Georgia Platform

c)

Missouri Compromise

d)

Kansas-Nebraska Act

34.

What does the term “popular sovereignty” describe?

a)

The right of the states to vote on laws

b)

Abolitionism

c)

The right of the federal government to nullify laws

d)

The vote to end the Civil War

35.

What is being described: Maine had to agree to outlaw slavery, territories wanted to become new states, and abolitionists wanted to change laws?

a)

Missouri Compromise

b)

Georgia Platform

c)

Kansas-Nebraska Act

d)

Compromise of 1850

36.

A southern politician who believed in the doctrine of nullification would have been most supportive of

a)

States’ rights.

b)

Crop diversification.

c)

Abolition

d)

A strong federal government.

37.

In what way is the Kansas-Nebraska Act similar to both the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850?

a)

Each decided the legality of slavery in new states.

b)

Each was concerned with religion.

c)

Each was written to end the Civil War.

d)

Each was written by Alexander Stephens.

38.

Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860. He was a

a)

Republican

b)

Democrat

c)

Confederate

d)

Independent

39.

Shortly after Lincoln’s election, Georgia

a)

Seceded from the Union.

b)

Seceded from the Confederacy.

c)

Remained loyal to the Union.

d)

Abolished slavery to avoid war.

40.

The economy of the South depended largely on

a)

Slave labor.

b)

New technology.

c)

Manufacturing.

d)

Politics.

41.

Southerners’ belief that states should have higher authority than the federal government was called:

a)

States’ rights

b)

National rights

c)

Confederate rights

d)

Popular sovereignty

42.

Abolitionists wanted to

a)

Get rid of slavery.

b)

Limit slavery to large plantations.

c)

Feed the hungry.

d)

Give women the right to vote.

43.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act

a)

Ended slavery in the South

b)

Banned slavery in new territories

c)

Created the Republican Party

d)

Introduced popular sovereignty to unorganized territories

44.

The Fugitive Slave Act

a)

Banned slavery in Washington D.C.

b)

Provided safety for escaped slaves

c)

Forced all Americans to help catch escaped slaves

d)

Offered free slaves land in the West

45.

What was decided in the Supreme Court case of Dred Scott v. Sanford?

a)

Slaves who were taken into free Northern states could not be taken back into the South and enslaved again

b)

Slavery was a violation of First Amendment rights

c)

Slaves were not permitted to serve in the United States Army

d)

Slaves had no citizen rights and were not protected by the Constitution

46.

The underlying cause of the Civil War was

a)

The Supreme Court's unwillingness to rule on slavery

b)

The Democratic party commitment to Abolitionism

c)

Section tensions created by slavery and states rights

d)

The North's unwillingness to compromise on tariffs

47.

In 1860 and 1861 seven Southern states seceded from the Union in protest of

a)

The election of Republican Abraham Lincoln

b)

John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry

c)

The beating of Charles Sumner

d)

The Supreme Court's Dred Scott decision

48.

Which statement best describes the economic differences between the North and South before the Civil War?

a)

Transportation was more developed in the North than in the South

b)

Jobs on plantations attracted more European immigrants to the South than to the North

c)

The Northern Economy was primarily agricultural while the southern economy was based on manufacturing

d)

The Southern economy was more diverse (based on more than one thing) than the Northern economy

49.

The Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850 were attempts by the federal government to

a)

Settle border disputes with Mexico

b)

Control the migration of settlers to the western territories

c)

Reduce the conflict over slavery

d)

Limit immigration from Europe

50.

What effect did Uncle Tom's Cabin have in the North?

a)

It didn't affect them

b)

It made them want to expand slavery

c)

It made them realize just how bad slavery was and began to fight against it

d)

It led to increased sympathy for slave owners in the South

51.

Runaway slaves used the ______ to escape to the North and freedom.

a)

Transcontinental Railroad

b)

Underground Railroad

c)

Escaped Slave Expressway

d)

The Ohio River

52.

California would enter the union as a free state and a tough new law dealing with runaway slaves was part of _______?

a)

Compromise of 1850

b)

The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850

c)

Dred Scott case

d)

Slave codes

53.

This abolitionist took part in "Bleeding Kansas" and led a raid on Harper's Ferry, VA

a)

Dred Scott

b)

Jefferson Davis

c)

John Brown

d)

Abraham Lincoln

54.

These states allowed slavery but did not secede from the Union.

a)

Free states

b)

Border states

c)

Slave states

d)

Territories

55.

Why was it important that Maryland did NOT secede from the Union?

a)

Maryland grew most of the nation's corn

b)

Maryland controls access to the Ohio river

c)

All railroads go through Maryland

d)

Washington DC would have been surrounded by Confederate states

56.

different geographical areas of the U.S. have different beliefs and values, which can cause tension.

a)

Sectionalism

b)

Localism

c)

Partiality

d)

Provincialism

57.

Which economy relied heavily on Industrialization and paid labor

a)

North

b)

South

c)

West

58.

Which economy relied heavily on agriculture and slavery

a)

North

b)

South

c)

West

59.

How did tariffs on imports play a role in dividing the north and south?

a)

North wanted tariffs to protect American industry and the south opposed tariffs on their farm goods

b)

South wanted tariffs to keep away European food imports and the north opposed on their raw materials