American History Quiz

1. In which year did the United States declare independence?

1. 1774
2. 1776
3. 1778
4. 1781

2. Who was the first President of the United States?

1. Benjamin Franklin
2. George Washington
3. John Adams
4. Thomas Jefferson

3. What was the main cause of the American Civil War?

1. Economic rivalry between states
2. Slavery and states' rights
3. Taxation without representation
4. Territorial expansion westward

4. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?

1. Benjamin Franklin
2. George Washington
3. John Adams
4. Thomas Jefferson

5. What was the Louisiana Purchase?

1. A trade agreement with France
2. The purchase of Louisiana state from France
3. The purchase of New Orleans from Spain
4. The US acquisition of 828,000 sq miles from France in 1803

6. Which President issued the Emancipation Proclamation?

1. Abraham Lincoln
2. Andrew Johnson
3. James Buchanan
4. Ulysses S. Grant

7. What event started the Great Depression?

1. A banking collapse in 1928
2. The drought of the 1930s
3. The stock market crash of 1929
4. World War I ending

8. In which year did the United States enter World War I?

1. 1914
2. 1915
3. 1917
4. 1918

9. What year did American astronauts first land on the moon?

1. 1967
2. 1968
3. 1969
4. 1971

10. What was the name of the 1955 civil rights act that Rosa Parks helped spark?

1. Civil Rights Act of 1964
2. Freedom Rides
3. Montgomery Bus Boycott
4. Selma to Montgomery March

11. Which US President served the longest term?

1. Abraham Lincoln
2. Dwight D. Eisenhower
3. Franklin D. Roosevelt
4. Woodrow Wilson

12. What was the significance of the 19th Amendment (1920)?

1. It abolished slavery
2. It allowed direct election of senators
3. It established Prohibition
4. It gave women the right to vote

13. Which US President was assassinated in Dallas, Texas in 1963?

1. Dwight D. Eisenhower
2. John F. Kennedy
3. Lyndon B. Johnson
4. Richard Nixon

14. What was the name of America's policy of supplying weapons to Britain before entering WWII?

1. Lend-Lease Act
2. Marshall Plan
3. Monroe Doctrine
4. Truman Doctrine

15. What was Prohibition in the United States?

1. The ban on alcohol production and sale (1920-1933)
2. The ban on child labour
3. The ban on immigration
4. The ban on slavery

16. Which event triggered America's involvement in the Vietnam War?

1. The communist takeover of China
2. The French withdrawal from Vietnam
3. The Gulf of Tonkin incident
4. The Korean War ending

17. What was the Marshall Plan?

1. A civil rights plan by Thurgood Marshall
2. A post-war nuclear defence policy
3. A US military strategy in WWII
4. The US plan to rebuild Europe after WWII

18. Which US state was the last to join the union?

1. Alaska
2. Arizona
3. Hawaii
4. New Mexico

19. Who was the first African American President of the United States?

1. Barack Obama
2. Colin Powell
3. Jesse Jackson
4. Thurgood Marshall

20. What was the name of the scandal that led to President Nixon's resignation?

1. Iran-Contra
2. Teapot Dome
3. Watergate
4. Whitewater