Chapter 17-18

Question 1

John Tyler joined the Whig party because he

Answer 1

could not stomach the dictatorial tactics of Andrew Jackson.

Question 2

The Whigs placed John Tyler on the 1840 ticket as vice president to

Answer 2

attract the vote of the states’ rightists.

Question 3

After President John Tyler’s veto of a bill to establish a new Bank of the United States,

Answer 3

he was expelled from the Whig party, all but one member of his cabinet resigned, an attempt was made in the House of Representatives to impeach him, Tyler also vetoed a Whig-sponsored high-tariff bill.

Question 4

The only member of President Tyler’s Whig cabinet who did not resign in protest over his policies was

Answer 4

Daniel Webster

Question 5

During an 1837 Canadian insurrection against Britain,

Answer 5

America was unlawfully invaded by the British.

Question 6

As a result of the panic of 1837,

Answer 6

several states defaulted on their debts to Britain.

Question 7

The British-American dispute over the border of Maine was solved

Answer 7

by a compromise that gave each side some territory.

Question 8

The Aroostook War was the result of

Answer 8

a dispute over the northern boundary of Maine.

Question 9

Arrange the following in chronological order: (A) annexation of Texas, (B) Webster-Ashburton Treaty, (C) settlement of the Oregon boundary, (D) Aroostook War.

Answer 9

D, B, A, C

Question 10

Some people in Britain hoped for a British alliance with Texas because

Answer 10

the alliance would give abolitionists the opportunity to free slaves in Texas.

Question 11

One argument against annexing Texas to the United States was that the annexation

Answer 11

might give more power to the supporters of slavery.

Question 12

Texas was annexed to the United States as a result of

Answer 12

President Tyler’s desire to help his troubled administration.

Question 13

Arrange in chronological order the United States’ acquisition of (A) Oregon, (B) Texas, (C) California.

Answer 13

B, A, C

Question 14

The primary group that was instrumental in strengthening and saving American claims to Oregon were

Answer 14

American missionaries to the Indians.

Question 15

Most Americans who migrated to the Oregon Country were attracted by the

Answer 15

rich soil of the Willamette River Valley.

Question 16

The nomination of James K. Polk as the Democrats’ 1844 presidential candidate was secured by

Answer 16

southern expansionists

Question 17

The area in dispute between the United States and Great Britain in 1845 lay between

Answer 17

the Columbia River, the forty-ninth parallel, and the Pacific Ocean.

Question 18

In the 1840s, the view that God had ordained the growth of an American nation stretching across North America was called

Answer 18

Manifest Destiny

Question 19

In the presidential election of 1844, the Whig candidate, Henry Clay,

Answer 19

favored both the annexation of Texas and the postponement of that annexation

Question 20

The election of 1844 was notable because

Answer 20

it was fought over numerous issues.

Question 21

The group most supportive of gaining control of all the Oregon Country was the

Answer 21

northern democrats

Question 22

In the Oregon treaty with Britain in 1846, the northern boundary of the United States was established to the Pacific Ocean along the line of

Answer 22

49º.

Question 23

One reason that the British government decided to compromise on the Oregon Country border was

Answer 23

their belief that the territory was not worth fighting over.

Question 24

In his quest for California, President James K. Polk

Answer 24

first advocated buying the area from Mexico.

Question 25

Arrange the following in chronological order: (A) Bear Flag revolt, (B) Slidell mission rejected, (C) declaration of war on Mexico, (D) American troops ordered to the Rio Grande Valley.

Answer 25

B, D, C, A

Question 26

In 1846 the United States went to war with Mexico for all of the following reasons except

Answer 26

the impulse to satisfy those asking for “spot” resolutions.

Question 27

President Polk’s claim that “American blood [had been shed] on the American soil” referred to news of an armed clash between Mexican and American troops near

Answer 27

the Rio Grande

Question 28

During the Mexican War, the Polk administration was called on several times to respond to “spot” resolutions indicating where American blood had been shed to provoke the war. The resolutions were frequently introduced by

Answer 28

Abraham Lincoln

Question 29

One goal of Mexico in its 1846-1848 war with the United States was to

Answer 29

free black slaves

Question 30

When the war with Mexico began, President James K. Polk

Answer 30

hoped to fight a limited war, ending with the conquest of California.

Question 31

Match each American officer below with his theater of command in the Mexican War.
A. Stephen W. Kearny
B. Zachary Taylor
C. Winfield Scott
D. John C. Frémont
1. northern Mexico
2. California
3. Santa Fe
4. Mexico City

Answer 31

A-3, B-1, C-4, D-2

Question 32

The terms of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo ending the Mexican War included

Answer 32

United States payment of $15 million for the cession of northern Mexico.

Question 33

Those people most opposed to President James K. Polk’s expansionist program were the

Answer 33

antislavery forces

Question 34

The Wilmot Proviso

Answer 34

symbolized the burning issue of slavery in the territories.

Question 35

The Wilmot Proviso, introduced into Congress during the Mexican War, declared that

Answer 35

slavery would be banned from all territories that Mexico ceded to the United States.

Question 36

The largest single addition to American territory was

Answer 36

the Mexican Cession

Question 37

The first Old World Europeans to come to California were

Answer 37

Spanish

Question 38

The Spanish Franciscan missionaries treated the native inhabitants of California

Answer 38

very harshly

Question 39

When the Mexican government secularized authority in California,

Answer 39

Californios eventually gained control of the land.

Question 40

The Californios’ political ascendancy in California ended

Answer 40

as a result of the influx of Anglo golddiggers.

Question 41

In order to maintain the two great political parties as vital bonds of national unity, party leaders

Answer 41

avoided public discussion of slavery.

Question 42

The United States’ victory in the Mexican War resulted in

Answer 42

renewed controversy over the issue of extending slavery into the territories, a possible split in the Whig and Democrat parties over slavery, the cession by Mexico of an enormous amount of land to the United States, a rush of settlers to new American territory in California.

Question 43

The Wilmot Proviso, if adopted, would have

Answer 43

prohibited slavery in any territory acquired in the Mexican War.

Question 44

The debate over slavery in the Mexican Cession

Answer 44

threatened to split national politics along North-South lines.

Question 45

Stephen A. Douglas’s plans for deciding the slavery question in the Kansas-Nebraska scheme required repeal of the

Answer 45

Missouri Compromise

Question 46

One of Stephen Douglas’ mistakes in proposing the Kansas-Nebraska Act was

Answer 46

underestimating the depth of northern opposition to the spread of slavery

Question 47

According to the principle of popular sovereignty, the question of slavery in the territories would be determined by

Answer 47

the people in any given territory

Question 48

In the Compromise of 1850, Congress determined that slavery in the New Mexico and Utah territories was

Answer 48

to be decided by popular sovereignty

Question 49

Most American leaders believed that the only way to keep the new Pacific Coast territories from breaking away from the United States control was to

Answer 49

construct a transcontinental railroad

Question 50

The Young Guard from the North

Answer 50

were most interested in purging and purifying the Union

Question 51

Many northern states passed personal liberty laws in response to the Compromise of 1850’s provision regarding

Answer 51

runaway slaves

Question 52

The event that threatened to destroy the longstanding equality of free and slave states in the United States Senate was the

Answer 52

discovery of gold in California

Question 53

A scheme to acquire Cuba from Spain in the 1850s was known as the

Answer 53

Ostend Manifesto

Question 54

In light of future evidence, it seems apparent that in the Compromise of 1850 the South made a tactical blunder by

Answer 54

demanding a strong fugitive-slave law

Question 55

In the debates of 1850, Senator William H. Seward, as a representative of the northern Young Guard, argued that

Answer 55

Christian legislators must obey God

Question 56

The debate over slavery in the Mexican Cession

Answer 56

threatened to split national politics along North-South lines

Question 57

Which of the following was not among the issues that concerned southerners in 1849-1850?

Answer 57

There was a growing chance that a constitutional amendment would abolish slavery.

Question 58

The South grew increasingly worried about the future of slavery because

Answer 58

the admission of California might permanently tip the political balance against them

Question 59

Harriet Tubman gained fame

Answer 59

by helping slaves escape into Canada

Question 60

The election of 1852 was significant because it

Answer 60

marked the end of the Whig party

Question 61

The Wilmont Proviso, if adopted, would have

Answer 61

prohibited slavery in any territory acquired in the Mexican War

Question 62

A southern route for the transcontinental railroad seemed the best because

Answer 62

the railroad would be easier to build in this area

Question 63

For a short time in the 1850’s, William Walker, an American adventurer, seized control of

Answer 63

Nicaragua

Question 64

In order to maintain the two great political parties as vital bonds of national unity, party leaders

Answer 64

avoided public discussion of slavery

Question 65

The fatal split in the Whig party in 1852 occurred over

Answer 65

slavery

Question 66

The public liked popular sovereignty because it

Answer 66

fit in with the democratic tradition of self-determination

Question 67

Of those people going to California during the gold rush

Answer 67

a distressingly high proportion were lawless men

Question 68

An event that helped the cause of compromise in 1850, was when President Zachary Taylor

Answer 68

died suddenly and Millard Fillmore became president

Question 69

The man who opened Japan to the United States was

Answer 69

Matthew Perry

Question 70

The most alarming aspect of the Compromise of 1850 to northerners was the decision concerning

Answer 70

the new Fugitive Slave Law

Question 71

Stephen A. Douglas proposed that the question of slavery in the Kansas-Nebraska territory be decided by

Answer 71

popular sovereignty

Question 72

The Pierce administration’s secret scheme to gain control of Cuba was stopped when

Answer 72

the secret Ostend Manifesto was leaked to the public