American History: Overview

Question 1

What happened in 1942?

Answer 1

In 1942, Christopher Columbus set sail from Palos on his three ships.

Question 2

Who is Amerigo Vespucci; John Cabot?

Answer 2

Amerigo Vespucci confirmed the New World was separate from Asia. John Cabott reached the New World in 1497.

Question 3

Who is Jacques Cartier?

Answer 3

In 1534, he claimed the land for the French King.

Question 4

What is the first English settlement?

Answer 4

In 1607 - the Pilgrim Fathers - founded the first settlement in Jamestown, Virginia. In 1619, the first slaves were brought to Jamestown from Africa.

Question 5

What is Mayflower Compact?

Answer 5

In 1620, the English ship Mayflower transported the Puritan settlers to Plymouth. Mayflower Compact was the first government document written and signed on the ship.

Question 6

When was New England formed?

Answer 6

New England was officially formed in 1620, and it consisted of 6 states.

Question 7

Who is William Bradford?

Answer 7

One of the signatories of the Mayflower Compact and the author of ‘Of Plymouth Plantation’ in which he documented the Mayflower voyage. Because of this document, he is considered the father of American history.

Question 8

Who was Anne Hutchinson?

Answer 8

A Puritan spiritual adviser and a critic of Puritan morality. Expelled from Massachusetts Bay colony in 1637. Claimed to possess the ability to interpret the Bible herself.

Question 9

Who was the first accomplished New World poet?

Answer 9

Anne Bradstreet. The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung in America. Dialogue Between Old England and New.

Question 10

What is King Phillip’s War also known as?

Answer 10

The First Indian War from 1675 to 1676.

Question 11

Who was Mary Rowlandson?

Answer 11

The literary figure who wrote one of the first ‘captivity narratives in which she recounts her capture by the Native Americans during the First Indian War.

Question 12

When did the French-Indian War start and why?

Answer 12

1756-1763. Native Americans joined the battle against the British in fear of the British taking over their land.

Question 13

Pontiac’s Rebellion of 1763?

Answer 13

The Indians waged a war against the British. It was one of the major decisive battles.

Question 14

What started the American Revolution?

Answer 14

The growing estrangement between the crown and the colonies. The Boston Tea Party in 1773.

Question 15

What is the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793?

Answer 15

An act making it illegal to aid the escaped slaves.

Question 16

Which Act restricted ships from engaging in foreign trade?

Answer 16

The Embargo Act of 1807.

Question 17

Which countries fought in the 1812 War?

Answer 17

America and Britain.

Question 18

What was started by the Indian Removal Act in 1830?

Answer 18

It authorized the forceful relocation of the Indians, one of them being the Trail of Tears which resulted in the death of many Native Americans, who had to walk from Mississippi to Oklahoma.

Question 19

To which war did the Texas Revolution and its main battle, the Battle of Alamo, lead?

Answer 19

The Mexican-American War.

Question 20

Who is David Crockett?

Answer 20

One of the United State’s first heroes, who died fighting at the Alamo.

Question 21

What pushed the country closer to the Civil War?

Answer 21

The ‘Dred Scott decision’ of 1875.

Question 22

Who assassinated Abraham Lincoln?

Answer 22

John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865.

Question 23

What was the last major battle of Indian wars?

Answer 23

The Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890.

Question 24

What are the five major American wars?

Answer 24

The Seven Year’s War (1756-1763); The War for Independence (1775-1783); The War of 1812-1814; The Mexican-American War (1846-1848); American Civil War (1861-1865)