Q&A Hero

Q: Which of the following is NOT true of American politics in the 1870s and 1880s? A) The Republicans dominated the Northeast. B) The Democrats dominated the South. C) National elections were usually decided in the swing states. D) The influence of the Civil War generation had faded. E) Nationally, the two parties were evenly balanced in strength.

Q: President McKinley attempted to direct the Republicans toward ________. A) inflation through increased currency B) economic growth with subsidies and tariffs C) the regulation and control of industry D) adopting the free coinage of silver E) decreasing the Treasury's supply of gold

Q: Which best describes the decision that shattered the Populist Party in 1896? A) the endorsement of candidate William Jennings Bryan B) the admission of African Americans to the party's ranks C) the nomination of James Weaver for the presidency D) the expulsion of all African American members E) the support of free coinage of silver

Q: Why did the Populists nominate Tom Watson for vice president in the 1896 election? A) because they felt him to be a stronger candidate than William Jennings Bryan B) because they wanted a Republican vice president to balance the Democratic ticket C) because Watson, unlike William Jennings Bryan, supported free coinage of silver D) because they felt that choosing Watson would ensure the survival of the Populist party E) because they endorsed a Democrat for president and wanted a Populist for vice president

Q: Why did support for free silver coinage grow rapidly from 1894 to 1896? A) because it seemed a simple, compelling answer to the economic crisis B) because workers joined farmers in support of silver coinage C) because Cleveland Democrats joined workers in support of silver coinage D) because the country was rapidly running out of gold reserves E) because silver would ensure there would be less money in circulation

Q: During the 1890s, writers who rejected romanticism often wrote ________. A) stories depicting everyday life in regional settings B) grand epic stories in which the hero always defeated the villain C) disparaging tales about ethnic groups, perpetuating anti-immigrant feelings D) political pamphlets championing their candidate E) allegorical stories that used many examples from the Bible

Q: What was the significance of a 1901 study of working-class families? A) It revealed that child labor had virtually ceased. B) It showed that the number of working women had decreased. C) It showed that about half of the principal breadwinners were out of work. D) It revealed that children were attending school in record numbers. E) It showed that fewer immigrants were in the working class.

Q: Why did Populists not gain as many seats in Congress as they had expected in the 1894 election? A) In the South, Democrats used fraud and violence to keep people from voting for Populists. B) In the Midwest, discontented voters tended to vote for Democrats and not Populists. C) The unemployed, who supported the Populists, did not vote as widely as expected. D) In the South, despite Populist support, more people ultimately voted Republican. E) The Populist supporters in New England chose to vote Republican instead.

Q: In the Pullman strike of 1894, what did Grover Cleveland's intervention accomplish? A) It provided business an effective antilabor weapon to hinder unions. B) It ensured the success of the strike. C) It failed to end either the strike or the rioting. D) It gave workers the protection of a court injunction. E) It led to the creation of the Pullman Porters' Union.

Q: What was one result of the election of 1892? A) It brought mixed results for the Populists. B) It provided the Populists with a regional platform. C) It saw many voters switching to the Populist Party. D) It had little effect on national issues. E) It led to more than a million votes for Leonidas Polk.

Q: Which of these describe the Ocala Demands? A) the political demands of the Farmers' Alliance B) the Democratic platform in support of the gold standard C) William Jennings Bryan's political platform D) the demands presented by those involved in the Pullman strike E) the platform of the Republican party in the 1890 elections

Q: Why did the Colored Farmers' National Alliance end? A) A posse of white Southerners lynched fifteen strikers. B) The price of cotton increased significantly. C) Southern planters used strike breakers in the cotton fields. D) The Farmers' Alliance expelled all African Americans from the group. E) African Americans were integrated into the Farmers' Alliance.

Q: In 1890, the American electorate rejected ________. A) Democratic legislative activism by crushing the party in the congressional elections B) Republican legislative activism by crushing the party in the congressional elections C) both major parties by electing many third-party, especially Populist candidates D) Republican passiveness by crushing the party in the congressional elections E) Democratic passiveness by crushing the party in the congressional elections

Q: Why was the Republican-controlled Congress elected in 1890 notable? A) It was unable to assert federal authority. B) Its legislation shaped the future policy of the nation. C) It was overwhelmingly reelected. D) It gained the support of the Democrats. E) It spent frugally in an effort to build up the Treasury.

Q: What was the result of the 1895 Supreme Court case involving the E. C. Knight Company? A) The regulatory powers of the federal government were strengthened. B) There was stronger regulation over manufacturing. C) The ruling had little effect on national policy. D) The Supreme Court strengthened the Sherman Antitrust Act. E) Antitrust legislation was weakened.

Q: What were the opinions of Democrats and Republicans with regard to tariffs in the 1880s? A) Republicans wanted to lower the tariff so that Americans could spend more, but Democrats wanted to keep the tariff to pay for infrastructure. B) Both Democrats and Republicans wanted the tariff to be lowered, but Democrats wanted to lower it to cut taxes while Republicans wanted to lower it to boost business. C) Democrats wanted to lower the tariff to trim taxes, but Republicans felt that lowering it undermined American business and industry. D) Republicans wanted to lower the tariff to boost business, but Democrats felt that the tariff should remain as it was. E) Democrats wanted to raise the tariff in order to fund public education, but Republicans wanted to lower the tariff in order to inspire consumer spending.

Q: Which of the following was part of the Republican Party platform in the post-Civil War era? A) lower tariffs B) free trade measures C) subsidies to railroads D) decentralized federal power E) the promotion of states' rights

Q: As president, William McKinley ________. A) was an activist B) did not get along with Congress C) was perceived as a reactionary D) decreased federal power while in office E) maintained an isolated administration

Q: How did the election of 1896 affect the Populists? A) The party gained a congressional majority. B) The party switched names to the Democratic party. C) The party disappeared. D) The party lost the election but remained a third party for decades. E) The party remained powerful, due to the fact that it had won a majority of the popular vote.

Q: The two major presidential candidates of the 1896 election were ________. A) William Howard Taft and William Jennings Bryan B) Thomas Reed and Grover Cleveland C) William Jennings Bryan and William McKinley D) Marcus A. Hanna and Thomas Watson E) Grover Cleveland and William Jennings Bryan

Q: When the Democrats endorsed silver in 1896, the Populists ________. A) disbanded and merged with the Democrats B) seconded the nomination of Bryan C) disbanded and merged with the Republicans D) seconded the nomination of McKinley E) nominated Watson for president

Q: The dominant issue of the election of 1896 was ________. A) monetary standards B) tariffs C) political patronage D) railroad regulation E) race relations

Q: The writings of Mark Twain ________. A) reflected the mood of romanticism in literature B) portrayed life in the tenements of the East C) focused exclusively on adventure and escapism D) included local dialects and regional stories E) never gained international prominence

Q: The greatest change in American literature during the late 1800s was the rise of ________. A) poetry B) evolutionism C) realism D) romanticism E) impressionism

Q: The election of 1894 was noteworthy because ________. A) the Republicans became the majority party B) it swept Grover Cleveland out of office C) it brought about the end of the Populists D) it led to a massive defeat for the Democrats E) it was a triumph for proponents of silver

Q: In the elections of 1894, ________. A) Grover Cleveland had strong support for his policies B) few voters supported a strong, active government C) the Populist Party became a major political party D) the deadlock between the Republicans and Democrats ended E) Americans became more suspicious of government power

Q: Which of the following was an unintended result of the repeal of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act? A) Democrats were confined to the North. B) Democrats became the majority party. C) It contracted the currency. D) The rate of inflation rose. E) Farm prices rose sharply.

Q: The president of the United States during the depression that began in 1893 was ________. A) Herbert Hoover B) Grover Cleveland C) Rutherford B. Hayes D) William McKinley E) Theodore Roosevelt

Q: The president broke the Pullman strike on grounds that it ________. A) had exposed the United States to foreign invasion B) had interfered with the collection of taxes C) had raised the possibility of open class warfare D) had obstructed the delivery of the mail E) had forced wealthy travelers to ride in ordinary passenger cars

Q: The individual who rocketed to national attention because of the Pullman strike was ________. A) Jacob Coxey B) Theodore Dreiser C) Eugene V. Debs D) Henry Adams E) Thomas Watson

Q: The Panic of 1893 ________. A) was caused by a stock market sell-off B) was confined to a small group of investors C) had little effect on the national government D) brought quick, decisive action by the government E) caused banks to increase their number of loans

Q: The Populist candidate for president in 1892 was ________. A) William Jennings Bryan B) James B. Weaver C) Mary E. Lease D) William McKinley E) Grover Cleveland

Q: The primary objective of the Alliance movement was to ________. A) form a social organization for farmers B) organize and politicize the American farmer C) ensure equal distribution of wealth D) elect Democrats and Republicans who represented farmers E) protect farmers against greedy cattle ranchers

Q: Which was an organization of farmers that formed during the late 1880s? A) the Colored Farmers' Alliance B) the Northern Alliance C) the Western Alliance D) the Grange E) the Farm Workers' Association

Q: Supporters of the free coinage of silver ________. A) were convinced it would help the agrarian sectors B) were primarily found in the North and East C) wanted to draw power away from the federal government D) found little support for their views in Congress E) thought it would deflate the currency

Q: The Sherman Antitrust Act ________. A) was vague and at the mercy of the courts B) had little effect on antitrust policy C) was only concerned with regulating railroads D) did not have criminal penalties for violators E) was used aggressively by the Justice Department

Q: During his first term in office, Grover Cleveland ________. A) increased federal activities B) was committed to higher tariffs C) curtailed federal activities D) brought dishonor to the Democratic Party E) was reelected in a landslide in 1888

Q: The man who entered the White House after the disputed election of 1876 was ________. A) Grover Cleveland B) William McKinley C) Rutherford B. Hayes D) Benjamin Harrison E) William Jennings Bryan

Q: Many early commissions in the 1870s were established to regulate the ________ industry. A) agricultural B) textile C) railroad D) construction E) cattle

Q: Following the impeachment of Andrew Johnson, ________. A) the executive office became weaker in relation to Congress B) the executive office asserted its authority C) the Supreme Court gained in power D) the Supreme Court became less influential E) power was equally divided between the president and Congress

Q: In the South, a "grandfather clause" waived the literacy requirement for voters whose ancestors had ________. A) already passed a literacy test B) fought in the Civil War C) been white D) voted before 1867 E) a college degree

Q: Which of the following groups made up the bulk of the electorate until 1900? A) white males B) white men and women C) white and black males D) white and Hispanic males E) white and Asian American males

Q: Why were Americans fascinated by politics during the Gilded Age? A) Women and men were voting for the first time. B) African Americans were able to use their newly won suffrage. C) The quality of political candidates was excellent. D) Most Americans saw it as a form of entertainment. E) Cash incentives made people eager to vote.

Q: What does the following quote mean? "The United States was born in the country and moved to the city." A) The United States started out as a small country, but became extremely populated over time. B) Most Americans were uncomfortable with living in large cities until the nineteenth century. C) The size of the country grew exponentially larger once people started living in cities. D) Most Americans preferred living in rural areas, but were forced to move to cities because that was where most jobs were located. E) The United States began as a rural country and then became much more urban over time.

Q: How did the role of children in American society change in the late nineteenth century? A) Children were valued more as people who could contribute to the family and not just as people to be left alone for many years. B) Children were viewed less as "little adults" who should contribute to the family as soon as possible, and viewed more as young people who needed years to grow up. C) People began to think of children as less in need of general education and more in need of vocational education tailored to the jobs they would eventually get. D) Children were no longer thought of as "free help" and were instead paid for many of the chores they did at home. E) People began to understand the necessity for children to learn important skills as apprentices and not just at home with their families.

Q: How did working-class families and middle-class families experience urbanization and industrialization differently? A) Working-class families tended to have strong family ties as a result of their urban lives and work, whereas women and children in middle-class families tended not to participate in the work that men did. B) Working-class families often did not spend much time together because everyone worked at different times, but middle-class families tended to work and socialize together. C) In middle-class families only the men earned money, but in working-class families, some women did work out of the home. D) In working-class families, more children lived with their parents into their twenties, whereas in middle-class families children tended to leave home as soon as they got work. E) Working-class families tended to have fewer members of the household engaged in work, which is what kept them in a permanent state of poverty.

Q: Why did some immigrants resist the settlement house movement? A) They did not trust organizations that were headed by women. B) They felt that settlement houses kept them segregated from the rest of the society. C) They did not want their children educated by Americans. D) They did not want other people to tell them how to live and act. E) They believed that living in a settlement house would never get them out of poverty.

Q: Why were many women part of the settlement house reform movement? A) They believed that poverty was the worst problem in the society and must be prevented. B) Men were not interested in urban poverty, and women were the only ones left to tackle the problem. C) The women who helped start settlement houses could bring their children there, which made it easier for them. D) It was one of the few places in the American society in which they could use their talents. E) Women believed that education was the only way to eradicate poverty in the United States.

Q: What was the Social Gospel? A) an organization that promoted reforms of the era, including temperance B) a musical group which worked on creating awareness about social evils C) a religious program carried out in Chicago state prisons D) a religious philosophy that addressed both spiritual and social concerns E) a nickname for the doctrines of the social Darwinists

Q: What did Henry George propose as a solution to poverty in the modern society? A) to let nature take its evolutionary course B) to replace all taxes with a "single tax" on land C) a socialist utopia in which the government owns the means of production D) to establish worker and farmer cooperatives to own the means of production E) to make churches the center of social reform instead of the government

Q: Which of these was true of the experience of African Americans in the period from about 1870 to 1890? A) The end of the Civil War brought implementation of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments. B) Race riots occurred, but were confined to the South. C) The works of writers such as Harriet Beecher Stowe continued to have a profound effect in the South. D) Lynchings became a thing of the past E) They saw their civil rights and even their safety erode significantly.

Q: Why did many whites support Booker T. Washington's Atlanta Compromise? A) because it rejected militancy and attacks on white dominance B) because it rejected the idea that blacks needed equal rights in the American society C) because it called for blacks to get a college education and to fight actively for their rights D) because it called for the integration of schools and an end to "separate but equal" E) because it promoted the idea of professional careers for blacks

Q: Which of the following places events in the correct chronological order? A) Morrill Land Grant Act, Plessy v. Ferguson, establishment of Tuskegee Institute B) Plessy v. Ferguson, Morrill Land Grant Act, establishment of Tuskegee Institute C) Establishment of Tuskegee Institute, Morrill Land Grant Act, Plessy v. Ferguson D) Morrill Land Grant Act, establishment of Tuskegee Institute, Plessy v. Ferguson E) Plessy v. Ferguson, establishment of Tuskegee Institute, Morrill Land Grant Act

Q: How did the focus of higher education change between 1880s and 1900s? A) Art and culture became an intrinsic part of education. B) Agricultural training courses increased rapidly. C) Standards for admission to universities fell. D) Education for blacks and whites became more equal. E) Curricula increasingly focused on practical knowledge.

Q: Changes in higher education included all of the following EXCEPT ________. A) an increased number of colleges and universities B) the first separate graduate schools C) an increased emphasis on a classical curriculum D) more educational opportunities for women E) the new discipline of sociology was introduced

Q: Educational changes in the years 1877 to 1900 did NOT include ________. A) a decrease in illiteracy B) "practical" courses in manual training and homemaking for older children C) development of the kindergarten D) compulsory school attendance in all states E) "separate but equal" schools for African Americans in the South

Q: What was a result of the Supreme Court's Plessy v. Ferguson decision? A) Segregation of schools and public transportation was deemed legal. B) Integration of schools was to occur with deliberate speed. C) Illiteracy among school-aged children would be eradicated. D) De facto segregation could no longer occur. E) Teachers at black schools were paid the same as their white counterparts.

Q: Which of the following authors argued that the American ideal of women's "innocence" really meant their ignorance? A) Charlotte Perkins Gilman in Women and Economics B) Edward Bliss Foote in Plain Home Talk of Love, Marriage, and Parentage C) Bessie and Marie Von Vorst in The Woman Who Toils D) Helen Campbell in Women Wage Earners E) Jane Addams in Twenty Years at Hull House

Q: What was the significance of the decline in fertility rates in America between 1800 and 1939? A) It reflected the later marriage age among immigrant families. B) It reflected a higher infant mortality rate due to primitive medical practices. C) It reflected a conscious decision of many Americans to postpone or limit their families. D) It showed that more Americans were remaining single rather than marrying and having children. E) It showed that fewer Americans were dying of disease now that vaccines had come into popular use.

Q: What did the popularity of sports in the United States indicate? A) the influence of European culture B) the increased amount of leisure time C) the breakdown of sexual barriers D) increased freedom for children E) the boredom of industrial workers

Q: Why did reformers turn their attention to prohibiting the sale of alcoholic beverages in the nineteenth century? A) They felt that high tariffs on alcohol were leading more people into poverty. B) They felt that large producers of alcoholic beverages were driving smaller companies out of business. C) They did not want Americans to import alcoholic beverages from other countries. D) They believed that drunkenness was the cause of many social evils. E) They were worried that people were buying harmful liquor because alcoholic beverages were not regulated.

Q: Significant medical developments in Victorian America included all of the following EXCEPT ________. A) eradication of tuberculosis, typhoid, and diphtheria B) discovery that germs cause infection and disease C) relatively safe and painless surgery D) more antiseptic practices in childbirth E) development of vaccines to prevent diseases

Q: Which statement about American life in the late nineteenth century is NOT true? A) Meals tended to be heavy and so did people. B) Medical science was still hopelessly primitive. C) Infant mortality declined between 1877 and 1900. D) There were few hospitals and no hospital insurance. E) Food prices were constantly getting lower.

Q: Which of the following was NOT a reason that urban political machines stayed in power? A) Municipal governments rarely provided public services such as water. B) They understood how to use the political system for their own good. C) They performed social services for immigrants. D) There was little regard for the political system. E) The cities needed the services they provided.

Q: What was one consequence of the urban growth of the late nineteenth century? A) urban renewal of neighborhoods B) growth of middle-class neighborhoods C) development of urban planning D) powerful city political machines E) construction of better housing

Q: How did immigrant families compare to native-born families in the late nineteenth century? A) Immigrant families married earlier than native-born families, and as a result, had more children. B) Immigrant families had fewer children than native-born families, mostly because they lived in cramped tenements that could not support large families. C) Immigrant families tended to marry later and have more children than native-born families. D) Immigrant families were usually headed by single women, whereas native-born Americans tended to have nuclear families. E) Immigrant families married much earlier than native-born families, and also tended to die at much earlier ages.

Q: Why was mainstream society troubled by the influx of new immigrants in the 1880s? A) They feared that immigrants would try to assimilate into the American society. B) They worried that the unskilled immigrants would lower factory standards. C) They feared that the government would give immigrants equal rights. D) They felt that immigrants would monopolize newly available western lands. E) They worried that the new immigrants could not be assimilated.

Q: Which statement about late nineteenth-century immigrants is NOT true? A) Most came seeking economic opportunities. B) Most were highly skilled craftsmen. C) Most were young males. D) Most settled along the eastern seaboard. E) Often they already knew someone in the United States.

Q: Jane Addams was the founder of ________. A) the South End House in Boston B) the Henry Street Settlement in New York C) Golden Home in San Francisco D) Hull House in Chicago E) the Neighborhood Guild in New York

Q: ________ wrote the book Looking Backward, which described a future of socialism in America. A) Walter Rauschenbusch B) Edward Bellamy C) Richard Frick D) Jane Addams E) Henry George

Q: As a young lawyer, Clarence Darrow believed that ________. A) aiding the poor was interfering with the evolutionary process B) capitalism must be overthrown C) without poverty there would be no crime D) capital punishment was essential to the maintenance of civil order E) a single tax on corporate profits would solve all social problems

Q: Which of these was the result of Jim Crow laws? A) legal distinctions between black and white civil rights B) racial segregation across the South C) the repeal of the Fifteenth Amendment D) expanded higher education for blacks E) the closing

Q: The Social Darwinists ________. A) believed the laws of nature applied to society B) were active reformers in the late nineteenth century C) had an overwhelming influence on American society D) raised important questions about the ill effects of business trusts E) stressed society's responsibility to aid the poor.

Q: W. E. B. Du Bois ________. A) supported the views of Booker T. Washington B) advocated revolutionary tactics for African Americans C) founded the Tuskegee Institute D) believed educational advancement was the key to success E) was the author of the Atlanta Compromise

Q: Booker T. Washington ________. A) believed African Americans should fight for equal rights B) had little hope for the future of African Americans in the American society C) believed that self-help was the best plan for African Americans D) emphasized the importance of higher education for African Americans E) founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People

Q: A major change in the college curriculum of the late nineteenth century was to ________. A) train students for the ministry B) emphasize classical curriculum C) have students follow a rigorous, prescribed curriculum D) stress the practical application of education E) eliminate electives from the curriculum

Q: A major difference between northern and southern schools was that ________. A) more students attended school in the South B) all southern states had compulsory school attendance laws C) fewer southern states had compulsory school attendance laws D) northern states provided segregated school systems E) southern schools provided better curricula

Q: Public schools in the 1870s and the 1880s ________. A) placed greater value on educating females B) vigorously stressed discipline and routine C) ignored moral, religious education D) emphasized egalitarianism between students and teachers E) were considered better than factories by most students

Q: A founder of the National American Woman Suffrage Association was ________. A) Rheta Childe Dorr B) John H. Kellogg C) Susan B. Anthony D) Charlotte Gilman E) Rebecca Ablowitz

Q: In the 1880s and 1890s, the common-law doctrine of femme couverte ________. A) was revised to adapt to the changes of the period B) provided women with freedom in their marriages C) brought women new political rights D) was strongly supported by women E) was central to the idea of the new woman