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WorksheetsU.S. History - First Semester Exam
Total questions: 50
Worksheet time: 25mins
Both the Knights of Labor and the American Federation of Labor shared which goal?
To help large corporations increase their production.
To introduce new and improved techniques to factories
To promote immigration of skilled workers from Asia to Europe
To organize workers to demand better conditions from employers.
In the late 1800s, which factor directly contributed to the growth of the American steel industry?
Government regulation
New production techniques
The formation of labor unions
Employee ownership
The Interstate Commerce Act (1887) and the Sherman Antitrust Act (1890) were efforts by the federal government to -
Favor big business over small companies
Regulate aspects of business
Expand the positive features of their trusts.
Move toward government ownership of key industries.
Which was an important benefit of the laissez-fair policies of the federal government in the late nineteenth century?
American businesses were able to avoid the ups and downs of the business cycle.
American workers found it easy to organize into labor unions.
American entrepreneurs were able to invest in their businesses with little government interference.
American workers felt secure about the safety conditions in factories.
In the late nineteenth century, critics of big business claimed that monopolies in the United States harmed the economy by -
Unfairly limiting competition
Decreasing the urban growth rate
Preventing technological innovation
Failing to keep pace with European industries.
Which best describes the positive contribution of Andrew Carnegie?
Carnegie helped workers obtain better conditions in his factories.
Carnegie obtained secret rebates from railroad companies shipping his products.
Carnegie obtained near monopoly control of one part of a national industry, rather than engaging in several related activities.
Carnegie showed how to organize large-scale production as well as how to use profits in philanthropic activities.
What was the main purpose of the antitrust legislation passed by Congress?
To restrict foreign access to American markets
To reduce the average size of business
To protect competition between private businesses
To promote corporate consolidation
After 1880, where did the majority of 'New Immigrants' to the United States come from?
Northern and Western Europe
Canada and Latin America
Southern and Eastern Europe
China and Southeast Asia
During the late nineteenth century, where were the reservations located that North American Indian tribes were sent to?
In sparsely populated areas of the West
Near large cities in the Northwest
East of the Mississippi River
Along the major rivers of the Midwest
During the last part of the nineteenth century, most immigrants to the United States found work as -
Educated professionals.
Unskilled factory and sweatshop workers
Scientists and technicians
Skilled craftsman
In the late nineteenth century, the 'bosses' of urban political machines often -
Denied voting rights to the poor.
Wasted money on military spending.
Discriminated against migrant workers.
Accepted bribes in return for favors.
During the late 1800s and early 1900s, prejudice against 'New Immigrants' increased because these immigrants -
Had job skills superior to those of most American workers.
Formed their own labor unions to receive higher wages.
Came from cultural backgrounds different from those of the majority of Americans.
Tried to replace American democracy with other forms of government.
The Homestead Act (1862) promoted the development of western lands by -
Creating a system of dams for crop irrigation
Moving Native American Indians to reservations
Providing free land for settlers
Removing all restrictions on immigration
Between 1880 and 1900, most immigrants coming to the United States settled in cities because.
Factory and workshop jobs were available there.
Little available farmland remained in the Midwest.
Most immigrants came from large cities in Europe.
City laws afforded special rights and protections for immigrants.
How did the passage of the Dawes Act affect Native American Indians?
It attempted to assimilate them into mainstream American culture.
It started a series of Indian Wars on the Great Plains
It supported their existing cultural traditions.
It forced their removal from areas east of the Mississippi River
Books such as The Octopus by Frank Norris, How the Other Half Lives by Jacob Riis, and The Jungle by Upton Sinclair exposed problems that resulted from -
The naturalization of immigrants
Environmental conservation
Western expansion
Rapid industrialization
In the early 1900s, Progressive Era reformers sought to increase public participation in government by supporting the -
Expansion of the 'spoils' system
Direct election of U.S. Senators
Creation of the Electoral College
Formation of the Federal Reserve system
Which goal, set at a women's convention in Seneca Falls in 1848, was finally achieved during the Progressive Era?
Ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment
Creation of the Interstate Commerce Commission
Adoption of a graduated income tax
Passage of the Food and Drug Act
During the Progressive Era, public demands for direct consumer protection resulted in passage of the -
Federal Reserve Act
Interstate Commerce Commission
Pure Food and Drug Act
Pendleton Act
During the early 1900s, the term 'muckrakers' was used to describe -
Newspaper columnists who reported on celebrities
People who demonstrate against war
Writers who exposed the evils in American society
Politicians who criticized Progressive Era Presidents
What was the goal of those who supported the Seventeenth Amendment, providing for direct election of U.S. Senators?
Expanding the power of the legislative branch
Providing equal voting rights to minority groups
Basing Senate representation on state population
Making the Senate more responsive to the people
Which idea led to the creation of the Interstate Commerce Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Food and Drug Administration?
Business practices must be regulated in the public interest.
An economy works best without government regulation.
Workers should be allowed to bargain collectively with owners.
Domestic industry should be protected from foreign competition.
When Susan B. Anthony refused to pay a fine for her actions in the election of 1872, she stated: 'Not a penny shall go to this unjust claim.' Her statement was made in support of -
The Sixteenth Amendment
Settlement houses
Judicial review
Women's suffrage
What was the primary reason for the establishment of the Open Door Policy?
To encourage Chinese immigration to the United States
To gain control of the Panama Canal Zone
To protect the United States trade in China
To improve relations with China
Which geographic factor played a role in the construction of the Panama Canal?
Heavy rains and mountainous terrain led to frequent mud slides.
Workers faced attacks by Panamanian nationalists.
Cutting through the bedrock had to be done without heavy machinery.
Similar elevations of the Atlantic and Pacific allowed for swift construction.
As a result of the Spanish-American War, the United States saw the need to build the Panama Canal because -
New colonies had been acquired in Africa.
The United States navy could then move more quickly between oceans.
United States railroads could not transport enough manufactured goods.
Spanish opposition to the canal had ended.
The Spanish-American War (1898) marked a turning point in American foreign policy because the United States
Developed a plan for peaceful coexistence.
Refused to become a colonial power.
Pledged neutrality in future European conflicts.
Emerged as a new world power.
Which policy sought to further American interest in Latin America by using the financial power of American business?
Policy of 'Watchful Waiting'
Balance of Power
Dollar Diplomacy
Big Stick Policy
In 1919, isolationists in the Senate opposed U.S. membership in the League of Nations because they-
Feared the creation of the Security Council
Resisted colonialism in Africa and Asia
Opposed membership in the League of Nations by Germany
Did not want involvement in future foreign wars.
The major purpose of President Wilson's Fourteen Points (1918) was to -
Persuade Congress to enter World War
Provide aid for rebuilding war-torn nations.
Set goals for achieving peace after World War I
Punish Germany for sinking of the Lusitania.
What was a major reason the United States entered World War I?
Japanese forces had occupied Manchuria.
German troops had landed on American soil.
Germany had resumed unrestricted submarine warfare.
The Austro-Hungarian Empire had invaded Belgium.
Why did Senator Henry Cabot Lodge oppose U.S. membership in the League of Nations?
He feared Americans would have to pay the costs of League operations.
He believed that League decisions would involve the nation in foreign wars.
He was concerned the League would force the nation to reduce its army.
He was alarmed that Wilson would be the League of Nations President
'The success of American soldiers during World War I was largely credited to his leadership, and he returned to the United States as a true hero.' This statement was made by a speaker attending the funeral of -
Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Woodrow Wilson
John J. Pershing
Henry Cabot Lodge
Why was national attention drawn to William Jennings Bryan and Clarence Darrow in the Scopes trial of 1925?
The case upheld the right of veterans to protest in Washington, D.C.
The case reversed a previous Supreme Court decision on free speech.
The case represented a conflict between modern science and religion.
The case revealed the extent of prejudice against immigrants.
The executions of Sacco and Vanzetti in the 1920s demonstrated the -
Increase in Nativist attitudes.
The persistence of lynchings
Corruption of political machines
Federal government's war on crime
Prohibition, established by the Eighteenth Amendment, stated that —
Only imported alcoholic beverages could be sold.
Americans must be 18-years old to purchase alcoholic beverages.
The manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages was banned.
Alcoholic beverages could be sold only in government-run stores.
During the 1920's, Congress passed a series of immigration laws that were primarily designed to.
Increase immigration from Asia.
Expand the workforce for the growing economy.
Prohibit immigration from Latin America
Limit immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe
During the first three decades of the 20th century, main reason African Americans left the South?
The Dawes Act made free land available in the West.
More factory jobs were available in the North.
Many white landowners refused to accept them as sharecroppers.
Racial discrimination did not occur in states outside the South.
What was an important result of Prohibition during the 1920s?
Religious tolerance grew.
Woman's suffrage was restricted.
Racial prejudice increased.
Respect for the law decreased.
What did President Harding mean when he introduced the phrase a 'return to normalcy' after World War I?
Increased United States involvement in Europe.
No longer selling liquor in the United States
Restoring a Democratic president to power
Going back to a peacetime economy
Which was an effect of the Great Depression on the American economy?
High unemployment and overproduction
Large business investments and low taxes
Too much money in circulation and high stock prices
High unemployment and falling real estate values.
Which was a guiding principle of New Deal economic policies?
'Rugged individualism' will end social inequality.
Government must assume greater responsibility for helping the unfortunate.
Pro-business tax breaks would solve the problems of the Depression.
Antitrust legislation could destroy the free enterprise system.
What is ONE major cause of the Great Depression?
Prior overproduction of manufactured goods
A decrease in the supply of consumer goods
An increase in demand for imported products.
An increase in the price of wheat on the world market
The New Deal changed American political thinking because it was based on the principle that the-
The economy will fix itself if left alone.
The Federal government should attempt to solve social and economic problems.
Political parties must work together to deal with national problems.
States should take a leadership position in solving social issues.
What problem were both the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and the Works Progress Administration (WPA) developed to address?
Excessive stock market speculation
Increase the government's tax revenue.
Provide jobs for the unemployed
Restoring the public's faith in financial institutions.
What was Roosevelt's goal in creating the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)?
Stimulate economic growth.
Increase the government's tax revenue.
Provide jobs for the unemployed
Restore the public's faith in financial institutions.
Which economic factor contributed directly to the start of the Great Depression?
Low worker productivity
Decreasing tariff rates
High income taxes
Buying stocks on margin
During the New Deal period, Congress blocked President Franklin D. Roosevelt's attempt to -
Pay farmers not to produce crops.
Appoint additional Justices to the Supreme Court
Regulate the banking industry.
Decrease Federal spending.
The 'dust bowls' described in John Steinbeck in The Grapes of Wrath had greatest impact on -
Residents of urban slums
Plantation owners in the rural south
Farmers on the Great Plains
Workers in factory sweatshops
What was the main intent of the Mexican Repartition Act?
To send Mexican American immigrants back to Mexico
To encourage Mexican American immigrants to work in the United States
To eliminate discrimination against Mexican Americans in the United States
To grant citizenship to Mexican Americans living in the U.S. for 5 years
