American History Flashcards
What is one reason colonists came to America?
▪ freedom
▪ political liberty
▪ religious freedom
▪ economic opportunity
▪ practice their religion
▪ escape persecution
Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?
▪ American Indians
▪ Native Americans
What group of people was taken to America and sold as slaves?
▪ Africans
▪ people from Africa
Why did the colonists fight the British?
▪ because of high taxes (taxation without representation)
▪ because the British army stayed in their houses (boarding, quartering)
▪ because they didn’t have self-government
Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
▪ (Thomas) Jefferson
When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
▪ July 4, 1776
There were 13 original states. Name three
▪ New Hampshire
▪ Massachusetts
▪ Rhode Island
▪ Connecticut
▪ New York
▪ New Jersey
▪ Pennsylvania
▪ Delaware
▪ Maryland
▪ Virginia
▪ North Carolina
▪ South Carolina
▪ Georgia
What happened at the Constitutional Convention?
▪ The Constitution was written.
▪ The Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution.
When was the Constitution written?
▪ 1787
The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.
▪ (James) Madison
▪ (Alexander) Hamilton
▪ (John) Jay
▪ Publius
What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?
▪ U.S. diplomat
▪ oldest member of the Constitutional Convention
▪ first Postmaster General of the United States
▪ writer of “Poor Richard’s Almanac”
▪ started the first free libraries
Who is the “Father of Our Country”?
▪ (George) Washington
Who was the first President?*
▪ (George) Washington
What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
▪ the Louisiana Territory
▪ Louisiana
Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s
▪ War of 1812
▪ Mexican-American War
▪ Civil War
▪ Spanish-American War
Name the U.S. war between the North and the South
▪ the Civil War
▪ the War between the States
Name one problem that led to the Civil War.
▪ slavery
▪ economic reasons
▪ states’ rights
What was one important thing that Abraham Lincoln did?*
▪ freed the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation)
▪ saved (or preserved) the Union
▪ led the United States during the Civil War
What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
▪ freed the slaves
▪ freed slaves in the Confederacy
▪ freed slaves in the Confederate states
▪ freed slaves in most Southern states
What did Susan B. Anthony do?
▪ fought for women’s rights
▪ fought for civil rights
Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.*
▪ World War I
▪ World War II
▪ Korean War
▪ Vietnam War
▪ (Persian) Gulf War
Who was President during World War I?
▪ (Woodrow) Wilson
Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?
▪ (Franklin) Roosevelt
Who did the United States fight in World War II?
▪ Japan, Germany, and Italy
Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?
▪ World War II
During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?
▪ Communism
What movement tried to end racial discrimination?
▪ civil rights (movement)
What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?
▪ fought for civil rights
▪ worked for equality for all Americans
What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the United States?
▪ Terrorists attacked the United States
Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.
▪ Pueblo
▪ Apache
▪ Cherokee
▪ Navajo
