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About This Quiz
Some people say that American history is pretty darn easy, because there's "only" 240 years of it, as compared to the poor Chinese, British, or Syrians, who have to learn 5,000 years apiece. However, this erases not just the history of the colonial period before America became an independent nation, it also erases the Native American history that goes back much further to when humanity first trod between these shining seas. We must not forget figures like Hiawatha, an Iroquois leader whose ideas inspired the Founders, King Philip's War in the mid to late 1600's, or the voyage of the Mayflower in 1620. America's history is as old as anywhere else's, and it has the ruins, the oral, and the written history to prove it.
Still, there's an awful lot of action packed into the last 240 years, and simply getting to grips with that is a good place to begin. American history is often very badly taught, as scholars like James W. Loewen and Howard Zinn have shown us, tending to erase the contributions of women and people of color, and sometimes totally misstating facts: for example, Manhattan was not purchased for 24 beads. So let's see how well you know what actually went down!
In what (present-day) state did the Battle of the Alamo take place?
Arizona
California
New Mexico
Texas
The Alamo was a fort taken by Mexican President-General Santa Anna and his troops, during the time when Texas was a contested territory. It would not become a US state until 1845.
The failed US attempt to invade Cuba in 1961 was called the Bay of _____ Invasion.
Dogs
Parrots
Pigs
The invasion, directed by the CIA and carried out by a paramilitary group, is named after its landing point, La Bahia de los Cochinos (Bay of the Pigs). The area is also known as La Playa de Giron.
Wild Horses
Benedict Arnold was a traitor in which American War?
WWI
WWII
Revolutionary War
Benedict Arnold was a general in the colonial American army. He was apparently bitter about being passed over for promotions and for attacks on his character by other military officers.
Vietnam War
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Which president was in office during the Cuban Missile Crisis?
Eisenhower
Kennedy
Kennedy was the president who had to deal with this volatile situation. He persuaded Soviet premier Khruschev to withdraw the missiles by promising the US would not try to invade Cuba again.
Nixon
Truman
What did colonists throw into Boston harbor at the Boston Tea Party?
actual crates of tea
Colonists objecting to high taxes on imported goods, like tea, threw crates of British tea into the harbor. A bold move, except for the part where they disguised themselves as native Mohawk Americans while doing so. Dirty pool, guys!
British soldiers
tax money
tax forms
Which of these was the last state to be brought into the Union?
Alaska
Hawaii
Hawaii was not a state until 1960. It is the only state in the US where you can see a palace that once housed kings and queens.
New Mexico
Maine
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What happened at Wounded Knee?
an atomic-bomb test
a massacre of Indians
At least 150 -- as possibly as many as 300 -- Lakota died when U.S. troops opened fire. The flashpoint was reported to be a deaf Lakota man's rifle going off when soldiers tried to take it away from him. Once called the "Battle of Wounded Knee," the term "Massacre" has become more common in recent decades.
a presidential assassination
a mine collapse
What document did the Constitution replace?
The Articles of Confederation
America's first blueprint for its government was the Articles of Confederation. However, it did not allow for the levying of taxes -- a major flaw when a government needs to fund a military, a postal service and so on.
The Articles of Union
The Declaration of Independence
The Twelve Treatises
Which city had a "Great Fire" in 1871?
Boston
Chicago
The blame for the fire, which killed about 300 people, goes to the semi-fictitious "Mrs. O'Leary's Cow." The fire started in the O'Leary barn, where, supposedly, a cow kicked over a lantern. Whether this was the exact case is not known, but it makes a nice legend.
Miami
Nome
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Which president authorized US intervention in the Korean War?
Eisenhower
Kennedy
Nixon
Truman
Truman was president when the US led a UN force in support of South Korea. Eisenhower was president when the armistice was signed. However, the correct answer to "Who was president during the Korean War?" would be "Truman and every president after," since technically, the two sides are still at hostilities.
Which city had a great earthquake in 1906?
Denver
Los Angeles
San Francisco
San Francisco is part of a coastal fault system that causes periodic earthquakes. The one in 1906 led to blazes that the city's fire brigade was unprepared to handle. Since then, retrofitting and public-emergency procedures have vastly improved.
Seattle
Which of these is America's oldest university?
Unversity of Pennsylvania
Harvard University
Harvard was named after a chief donor, John Harvard, a minister. He died of tuberculosis at just 30 years old, so it's nice that his name is now immortal.
University of Virginia
College of William and Mary
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True or false: Was Ben Franklin ever a president?
True
False
Several of the Founding Fathers went on to hold the top office, but not Franklin. Hey, if you were an inventor, scientist, humorist, diplomat, writer, and business owner, you probably wouldn't want a tedious political desk job, either!
Who were the combatants in the Battle of Little Bighorn?
Escaped slaves against US troops
Plains Indians against US troops
The Battle of Little Bighorn is known as "Custer's Last Stand" for General George Custer, who was killed there in a shocking defeat by the indigenous peoples of the Plains.
US troops against Mexican troops
French Canadian explorers against armed American farmers
What did Benedict Arnold try to give up to the British?
Fort Knox
Washington's secret bunker
Jefferson's home, Monticello
The fort at West Point
West Point was not yet America's "war college." In 1780, it was a fortified stronghold for the revolutionaries -- and thanks to the interception of Arnold's plans, it did not fall to British forces.
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How many days did the Cuban Missile Crisis last?
Seven
Nine
Twelve
Thirteen
October 16-28, 1962, were the days during which the "Cold War" was probably closest to going "hot." The USSR was placing nuclear missiles on the island of Cuba, which the US found unacceptable.
Which play was Lincoln watching when he was assassinated?
Our American Cousin
"Our American Cousin" was a comedy of manners written only a few years earlier. It is not staged nowadays, probably more because its humor was so specific to the 19th century, not because it is now tainted by its link to the assassination.
Oklahoma!
Macbeth
Twelfth Night
True or false: Jefferson was a president?
true
Jefferson, like Ben Franklin, was a polymath interested in architecture, design, natural science and political theory. He still found time to be our third president.
false
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In what decade was the Social Security Act passed?
the 1870s
the 1890s
the 1920s
the 1930s
The Social Security Act, providing a basic "pension" for all American workers, was an innovation of the 1930s. It is funded by paycheck withdrawals and employer contributions.
The "witch hunts" of the 1950s sought to identify what kind of people?
communists
Although all of the above were "undesirables" in the 1950s, it was communists that Sen. Joseph McCarthy sought to drag out into the light.
illegal immigrants
homosexuals
mafia sympathizers
In 1912, the world was shocked by what unexpected event?
the crash of global stock markets
the abdication England's king
the throwing of the World Series
the sinking of the Titanic
It's a myth that the Titanic was billed as "unsinkable," but it was generally thought of as cutting-edge in terms of its modernity and safety. For it to sink on its maiden voyage shook the world's confidence in technology.
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Who was killed in the St. Valentine's Day massacre?
Congressional representatives
immigrants
Mafia members
In 1929, Al Capone ordered the shootings of seven men in the rival North Side gang. Capone, a South Sider, was trying to consolidate control over organized crime in Chicago.
postal workers
In 1848, gold was discovered in which state?
Alaska
California
Gold was discovered at Sutter's Creek. In the following years many hopeful young men went broke in attempts to become miners. The people who came west to sell gear, clothes and R&R services to miners in California did much better financially than the miners themselves.
Florida
Oregon
What was the nickname given to black soldiers in the Indian wars?
buffalo soldiers
The Indians were said to have given the black cavalry soldiers this name for two reasons. One, their hair was dark and curly, like buffalo coats; two, they fought fiercely, like bison, even when wounded.
coyote soldiers
cougar soldiers
wolf soldiers
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The Thompson submachine gun was the weapon of choice in the ______ era.
Civil War
Vietnam
Prohibition
The "Tommy Gun" was notorious during this time of alcohol smuggling and gangland crime. It has many nicknames, including the "Chicago Typewriter."
Revolutionary War
Which of these states was admitted to the Union in 1890?
Idaho
Montana
North and South Dakota
Washington
all of these
All of these western states were admitted in 1890. It's not coincidental that this was also a time of unrest and conflict with the native peoples of the West.
Who was the first woman to run for vice-president on a major-party ticket?
Hillary Clinton
Geraldine Ferraro
Ferraro was chosen as Walter Mondale's running mate in 1984. Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, though, handily won re-election.
Dianne Feinstein
Victoria Woodhull
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Which agency did Allen Dulles head up in the 1950s?
the CIA
Allen Dulles headed the CIA in the 1950s and was dismissed by President Kennedy in 1961. His brother, John Foster Dulles, was Eisenhower's secretary of state.
the FBI
NASA
the Ford Agency
What did the Warren Commission investigate?
the causes of the 1929 stock market crash
John F. Kennedy's assassination
The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy was known by this shortened name for its chairman, Chief Justice Earl Warren. The commission found that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone -- a finding that many still do not believe.
the Titianic's sinking
the fall of the Alamo
CIA officer Francis Gary Powers was caught doing what?
selling secrets to the Chinese
spying on the USSR with a U2 plane
Powers's U2 was shot down by the Soviets. The US tried to deny the nature of his mission, but with the Soviets retrieving the wreckage of the plane and capturing Powers (who parachuted to safety), it became undeniable the US was spying. Awkward.
trying to assassinate President Eisenhower
trying to assassinate Hitler
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On April 6, 1917, the United States entered which war?
the War of the Roses
the Crimean War
World War I
President Woodrow Wilson kept America out of the war for as long as possible, even winning re-election partly because of he didn't involve America in a foreign war. But the sinking of U.S. ships and Germany's overtures to Mexico (as an ally against the US) changed public opinion -- and the government's.
World War II
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory was the site of _______.
a fatal fire
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire killed 146 people, mostly immigrant garment workers, and spurred new standards for worker safety. Notably, the doors had been locked to prevent unauthorized breaks, so some workers leapt from eighth-, ninth-, or tenth-story windows.
secret communist gatherings
a presidential campaign speech
a workers' riot
Which of these presidents was assassinated?
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Johnson
William McKinley
The assassinations of Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy are notorious, but McKinley is also in this club. He was shot by a disgruntled anarchist and died eight days later.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
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Which of these presidents was impeached?
Bill Clinton
Of the above, only Clinton was actually impeached (for perjury and obstruction of justice related to the Monica Lewinsky affair). Nixon resigned before he could be impeached in the Watergate scandal.
Andrew Jackson
Richard Nixon
Lyndon B. Johnson
Which of these filmmakers has carved out a niche making films on recent American history?
Darren Aronofsky
Baz Luhrman
Patty Jenkins
Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone is a Vietnam veteran whose breakthrough film, about that war, was "Platoon." He went on to make "Born on the Fourth of July," "Nixon," "JFK," and "Snowden."
You Got:
/35
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