Lesson 1 - American History up to 1700

Question 1

When did Native Americans cross the Bering Strait into America?

Answer 1

Around 15,000 years ago, once the ice melted after the ice age.

Question 2

What term did Christopher Columbus use for Native Americans and why?

Answer 2

He called them “Indians” because he mistakenly thought he had reached India.

Question 3

What percentage of Indigenous people preferred to be called “American Indian” according to a 1995 survey?

Answer 3

50%.

Question 4

Who is believed to have been the first European to reach the New World, specifically Newfoundland, Canada?

Answer 4

Leif Erikson in the year 1000.

Question 5

What was the Great Dying, and how many deaths are estimated to have occurred?

Answer 5

The Great Dying was the death of about 56 million people due to disease, primarily smallpox, wiping out 90% of the population between 1492 and 1600.

Question 6

What was one of the main crops first cultivated by Native Americans in Tehuacán Valley of Mexico?

Answer 6

Maize (corn).

Question 7

What did the Spanish conquistadors introduce to Europe that became highly addictive?

Answer 7

Tobacco

Question 8

Who built the oldest buildings in the US, such as adobe houses between 1190 and 1270?

Answer 8

The Pueblo peoples

Question 9

What was the Iroquois Federation, and when was it created?

Answer 9

A group of several tribes in the Northeastern US, created around 1450.

Question 10

What was the first successful English colony in the New World, established in 1607?

Answer 10

Jamestown

Question 11

What was the Mayflower Compact, and why was it important?

Answer 11

A document signed by Pilgrims in 1620 stating that New England would be a democratic political body; it is seen as the first form of democracy in the U.S.

Question 12

What Native American tribesman helped the Pilgrims by teaching them how to cultivate corn?

Answer 12

Squanto, a Wampanoag tribesman

Question 13

What event in 1692 highlighted the dangers of mass hysteria and isolation in colonial America?

Answer 13

The Salem Witch Trials

Question 14

What was the original name of New York when the Dutch settled there?

Answer 14

New Amsterdam.

Question 15

What was the significance of the French Métis people in New France?

Answer 15

They were people of mixed French and Indigenous heritage and were considered French if they were Catholic.

Question 16

What colony did George Calvert establish as a refuge for English Catholics?

Answer 16

Maryland

Question 17

What was the economic focus of the Southern colonies in the 18th century?

Answer 17

Agriculture, especially tobacco.

Question 18

How did the French attempt to populate Louisiana in the 17th century?

Answer 18

By sending young French women (the King’s daughters) and later forcing prostitutes, prisoners, and asylum inmates to marry and move there.

Question 19

What was the primary reason the Portuguese and Spanish were searching for new routes during the Age of Exploration?

Answer 19

The Silk Route was controlled by the Turks and Venetians, making Asia and its spices inaccessible.

Question 20

What event triggered the migration of people to the New World during the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries?

Answer 20

The search for wealth and gold, particularly after the success of Spanish expeditions in Mesoamerica and the Caribbean.

Question 21

What happened to the Roanoke Colony in 1590?

Answer 21

The colony was found abandoned, with only the word “CROATAN” carved on a fence, and its fate remains unknown.

Question 22

What was the role of indentured servants in the early English colonies?

Answer 22

Indentured servants were people who worked for a set period of time in exchange for passage to the New World, and they later helped stabilize the Jamestown colony.

Question 23

Who was the monarch responsible for funding Christopher Columbus’ voyage to the New World?

Answer 23

Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon.

Question 24

What was the main cash crop of the Southern colonies in the 17th century?

Answer 24

Tobacco

Question 25

What was the significance of the Dutch East India Company in North America?

Answer 25

It sought new trading routes and founded settlements, including New Amsterdam (modern-day New York), which became a major trading hub.

Question 26

How did the French and English colonies in North America differ in terms of population settlement?

Answer 26

The French had fewer settlers, often relying on Métis and Indigenous people for support, while the English colonies had more migrants, especially from Puritan and other religious groups.

Question 27

What is the significance of the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494)?

Answer 27

It divided the New World between Spain and Portugal to avoid conflict over newly discovered lands.

Question 28

What role did the Wampanoag tribe play in the Pilgrims’ survival?

Answer 28

The Wampanoag, particularly Squanto, taught the Pilgrims how to grow corn and provided them with food, leading to their first successful harvest.

Question 29

What was the result of the English fighting the Spanish Armada in 1588?

Answer 29

The defeat of the Spanish Armada allowed England to establish more colonies in the New World.

Question 30

What was the primary reason for the establishment of Maryland by George Calvert?

Answer 30

It was intended as a refuge for English Catholics facing persecution in England.

Question 31

What was the first successful English colony established in the Caribbean?

Answer 31

St. Augustine, founded by the Spanish in 1565, was the first permanent European colony in the Americas, but it was not English.

Question 31

How did the English colony of Jamestown survive its early struggles in 1610?

Answer 31

It became stable with the arrival of indentured servants, African slaves, and the cultivation of tobacco.

Question 32

Who were the first Europeans to explore the Mississippi River and establish Louisiana?

Answer 32

Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette in the 1670s.

Question 33

What was the significance of the Iroquois Confederacy?

Answer 33

It was a political and military alliance of several tribes in the Northeastern US, founded in 1450, that played a significant role in trade and politics.

Question 34

What was the Pilgrims’ relationship with the Wampanoag tribe during their early settlement in New England?

Answer 34

Initially cooperative, but it soured as the Pilgrims denied the Wampanoag’s civil rights and tried to impose their ways on them.

Question 35

Why did many Puritans isolate themselves in the 17th century?

Answer 35

Due to their orthodox religious beliefs, they often withdrew from mainstream society, leading to tensions, such as the Salem Witch Trials.

Question 36

How did the Dutch influence the development of New York?

Answer 36

They established New Amsterdam, which became a major trading hub, and used a feudal system known as patroonship to encourage settlement.

Question 37

What was the primary motivation for the Pilgrims’ migration to the New World in 1620?

Answer 37

To escape religious persecution in England and establish a community based on Calvinist beliefs.

Question 38

What was the significance of the 1621 Thanksgiving feast between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag?

Answer 38

It was a celebration of the Pilgrims’ first successful harvest, where they gave thanks to the Native Americans for their help in survival.

Question 39

Why did the English establish colonies in the New World during the 16th and 17th centuries?

Answer 39

Primarily for religious freedom, economic opportunities, and to challenge Spanish dominance in the Americas.