Question 1

Discuss the election of 1852. Which were the major political parties, what were the central issues of the campaign, and what was the outcome?

Accepted Answer

The election of 1852 was a pivotal moment in American politics, as it marked the end of the Whig Party's prominence and the rise of the Democratic Party as the dominant political force in the country. The major political parties in the election were the Democratic Party, led by Franklin Pierce, and the Whig Party, led by Winfield Scott. The central issues of the campaign revolved around the question of slavery and its expansion into new territories, as well as economic policies and the role of the federal government.

The Democratic Party supported the idea of popular sovereignty, which allowed the residents of new territories to decide for themselves whether to allow slavery. This position was popular in the South but controversial in the North. The Whig Party, on the other hand, was divided on the issue of slavery, with some members supporting the Compromise of 1850 and others advocating for a more aggressive stance against the expansion of slavery.

In the end, Franklin Pierce and the Democratic Party emerged victorious in the election of 1852. Pierce won a decisive victory in the Electoral College, carrying 27 of the 31 states and winning the popular vote by a significant margin. The Whig Party, on the other hand, suffered a devastating defeat, leading to its eventual collapse and the formation of the Republican Party as a new political force in the years that followed.

Overall, the election of 1852 was a turning point in American politics, as it solidified the Democratic Party's hold on power and set the stage for the intense debates and conflicts over slavery that would ultimately lead to the Civil War.

Question 2

The author of Uncle Tom's Cabin was Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False  True

Question 3

A major reason the Democrat James Buchanan won the 1856 election was that:

Accepted Answer

A)  the Republicans were mired in political scandal 
B)  the Democrats were the only remaining national party 
C)  the northern Whigs threw their support to the Democrats 
D)  slavery and sectional divisions were not an issue in the election 
E)  the Republicans did not have a candidate to run against him 
A)  the Republicans were mired in political scandal 
B)  the Democrats were the only remaining national party 
C)  the northern Whigs threw their support to the Democrats 
D)  slavery and sectional divisions were not an issue in the election 
E)  the Republicans did not have a candidate to run against him B

Question 4

The states of the Confederate States of America seceded after Lincoln's election because:

Accepted Answer

A)  Lincoln promised to abolish slavery immediately after taking office 
B)  Lincoln was pushing for an invasion of the South 
C)  the southern secessionists were convinced that Lincoln would move against slavery despite his assurances otherwise 
D)  the southern secessionists planned to invade the North and impose slavery on the entire Union 
E)  the southern secessionists believed that Jefferson Davis had won the 1860 election but was denied the office through fraud 
A)  Lincoln promised to abolish slavery immediately after taking office 
B)  Lincoln was pushing for an invasion of the South 
C)  the southern secessionists were convinced that Lincoln would move against slavery despite his assurances otherwise 
D)  the southern secessionists planned to invade the North and impose slavery on the entire Union 
E)  the southern secessionists believed that Jefferson Davis had won the 1860 election but was denied the office through fraud

Question 5

Lincoln won the election of 1860 by:

Accepted Answer

A)  appealing to fear 
B)  sweeping the free states 
C)  carrying the biggest states in both North and South 
D)  massive voter fraud 
E)  changing his position on slavery 
A)  appealing to fear 
B)  sweeping the free states 
C)  carrying the biggest states in both North and South 
D)  massive voter fraud 
E)  changing his position on slavery

Question 6

MATCHING
Match each description with the item below.
-Millard Fillmore

Accepted Answer

A) was a candidate for the presidency in the 1860 election 
B) led Pottawatomie Massacre 
C) elected president of the Confederate States of America 
D) died in July 1850 
E) caned Charles Sumner
F)the "Little Giant" who succeeded in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed by breaking it into separate proposals
G)argued that Congress needed to protect the right of slave owners to take their property into the territories
H)was the chief justice for Dred Scott case
I)was the 1848 Free-Soil presidential candidate
J)was the president who supported the Compromise of 1850 
A) was a candidate for the presidency in the 1860 election 
B) led Pottawatomie Massacre 
C) elected president of the Confederate States of America 
D) died in July 1850 
E) caned Charles Sumner
F)the "Little Giant" who succeeded in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed by breaking it into separate proposals
G)argued that Congress needed to protect the right of slave owners to take their property into the territories
H)was the chief justice for Dred Scott case
I)was the 1848 Free-Soil presidential candidate
J)was the president who supported the Compromise of 1850

Question 7

The Lincoln-Douglas debates:

Accepted Answer

A)  saw Douglas abandon popular sovereignty 
B)  bolstered Lincoln's presidential prospects in 1860 
C)  clinched Lincoln's election to the U.S. Senate 
D)  saw Lincoln state his belief in racial equality 
E)  saw Lincoln endorse the Dred Scott ruling 
A)  saw Douglas abandon popular sovereignty 
B)  bolstered Lincoln's presidential prospects in 1860 
C)  clinched Lincoln's election to the U.S. Senate 
D)  saw Lincoln state his belief in racial equality 
E)  saw Lincoln endorse the Dred Scott ruling

Question 8

John C. Calhoun believed that the Wilmot Proviso:

Accepted Answer

A)  would help keep the Union together 
B)  protected the interests of slaveholders 
C)  violated property rights 
D)  blamed the South for the Mexican-American War 
E)  would never pass Congress 
A)  would help keep the Union together 
B)  protected the interests of slaveholders 
C)  violated property rights 
D)  blamed the South for the Mexican-American War 
E)  would never pass Congress

Question 9

The proposed Lecompton Constitution would make Kansas a free state.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 10

Why did Uncle Tom's Cabin outrage slave owners?

Accepted Answer

A)  It was authored by Harriet Tubman. 
B)  It showed how the brutal realities of slavery harmed everyone associated with it. 
C)  It convinced many poor southern whites to oppose slavery. 
D)  It started the Civil War. 
E)  It was an objective description of life under slavery. 
A)  It was authored by Harriet Tubman. 
B)  It showed how the brutal realities of slavery harmed everyone associated with it. 
C)  It convinced many poor southern whites to oppose slavery. 
D)  It started the Civil War. 
E)  It was an objective description of life under slavery.

Question 11

Explain the issues that led to the Compromise of 1850 and show how the Compromise was fashioned and passed.

Accepted Answer

The issues that led to the compromise of

Question 12

Given the bitterness of the congressional debate, why was Stephen Douglas successful in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed?

Accepted Answer

A)  He dropped the question of the slave trade in the District of Columbia. 
B)  He could depend on a sympathy vote from supporters of deceased President Taylor. 
C)  His support for popular sovereignty allowed many abolitionist senators to vote with him. 
D)  He split the issues into separate bills. 
E)  He was in better health and was more charismatic than Clay. 
A)  He dropped the question of the slave trade in the District of Columbia. 
B)  He could depend on a sympathy vote from supporters of deceased President Taylor. 
C)  His support for popular sovereignty allowed many abolitionist senators to vote with him. 
D)  He split the issues into separate bills. 
E)  He was in better health and was more charismatic than Clay.

Question 13

The Republican party platform supported all of the following in 1860 EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

A)  a transcontinental railroad 
B)  a higher protective tariff 
C)  no further extension of slavery 
D)  John Brown's raid 
E)  free farms on federal lands out west 
A)  a transcontinental railroad 
B)  a higher protective tariff 
C)  no further extension of slavery 
D)  John Brown's raid 
E)  free farms on federal lands out west

Question 14

Through his execution, John Brown became a martyr for the anti-slavery cause.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 15

Author Harriet Beecher Stowe's background was indicative of the abolitionist movement's:

Accepted Answer

A)  weak moral compass 
B)  symbolic support of the Fugitive Slave Act 
C)  powerful religious underpinnings 
D)  willingness to accept slavery in some modified form 
E)  gradually weakening strength 
A)  weak moral compass 
B)  symbolic support of the Fugitive Slave Act 
C)  powerful religious underpinnings 
D)  willingness to accept slavery in some modified form 
E)  gradually weakening strength

Question 16

In 1856, the Republicans :

Accepted Answer

A)  declared their opposition to slavery 
B)  nominated William Seward for president 
C)  stood for states' rights 
D)  strongly condemned the nativist platform of the American party 
E)  campaigned vigorously all over the country 
A)  declared their opposition to slavery 
B)  nominated William Seward for president 
C)  stood for states' rights 
D)  strongly condemned the nativist platform of the American party 
E)  campaigned vigorously all over the country

Question 17

What did the Supreme Court rule in Dred Scott v. Sandford?

Accepted Answer

A)  Slaves who were taken to free states would be considered free. 
B)  Slaves who were taken to free territories would be considered free. 
C)  The Missouri Compromise was still legally binding. 
D)  Blacks did not have citizenship and therefore lacked legal standing. 
E)  State bans on slavery did not violate the property rights of masters. 
A)  Slaves who were taken to free states would be considered free. 
B)  Slaves who were taken to free territories would be considered free. 
C)  The Missouri Compromise was still legally binding. 
D)  Blacks did not have citizenship and therefore lacked legal standing. 
E)  State bans on slavery did not violate the property rights of masters.

Question 18

Why did the new Fugitive Slave Act outrage abolitionists?

Accepted Answer

A)  It offered a strong temptation to kidnap free blacks in northern free states. 
B)  It required the licensing of slave catchers. 
C)  It guaranteed fugitive slaves a jury trial. 
D)  It allowed northern states to become slave states. 
E)  It reintroduced the legal international slave trade. 
A)  It offered a strong temptation to kidnap free blacks in northern free states. 
B)  It required the licensing of slave catchers. 
C)  It guaranteed fugitive slaves a jury trial. 
D)  It allowed northern states to become slave states. 
E)  It reintroduced the legal international slave trade.

Question 19

Passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act was a victory for:

Accepted Answer

A)  abolitionists 
B)  immigrant groups in America 
C)  the concept of popular sovereignty 
D)  southerners who wanted a transcontinental railroad to run west from New Orleans 
E)  the preservation of the Union 
A)  abolitionists 
B)  immigrant groups in America 
C)  the concept of popular sovereignty 
D)  southerners who wanted a transcontinental railroad to run west from New Orleans 
E)  the preservation of the Union

Question 20

Explain how the Mexican-American War opened wounds between the North and the South as it spurred controversy over slavery in the acquired territories. Could the war be blamed for causing the Civil War?

Accepted Answer

The Mexican-American War opened wounds b

Exam 14: The Gathering Storm, 1848-1860

Discuss the election of 1852. Which were the major political parties, what were the central issues of the campaign, and what was the outcome?

The author of Uncle Tom's Cabin was Harriet Beecher Stowe.

A major reason the Democrat James Buchanan won the 1856 election was that:

The states of the Confederate States of America seceded after Lincoln's election because:

Lincoln won the election of 1860 by:

MATCHING Match each description with the item below. -Millard Fillmore

The Lincoln-Douglas debates:

John C. Calhoun believed that the Wilmot Proviso:

The proposed Lecompton Constitution would make Kansas a free state.

Why did Uncle Tom's Cabin outrage slave owners?

Explain the issues that led to the Compromise of 1850 and show how the Compromise was fashioned and passed.

Given the bitterness of the congressional debate, why was Stephen Douglas successful in getting the Compromise of 1850 passed?

The Republican party platform supported all of the following in 1860 EXCEPT:

Through his execution, John Brown became a martyr for the anti-slavery cause.

Author Harriet Beecher Stowe's background was indicative of the abolitionist movement's:

In 1856, the Republicans :

What did the Supreme Court rule in Dred Scott v. Sandford?

Why did the new Fugitive Slave Act outrage abolitionists?

Passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act was a victory for:

Explain how the Mexican-American War opened wounds between the North and the South as it spurred controversy over slavery in the acquired territories. Could the war be blamed for causing the Civil War?

The Collision of Cultures

England’s Colonies

Colonial Ways of Life

From Colonies to States

The American Revolution, 1776-1783

Strengthening the New Nation

The Early Republic, 1800-1815

The Emergence of a Market Economy, 1815-1850

Nationalism and Sectionalism, 1815-1828

The Jacksonian Era, 1828-1840

The South, Slavery, and King Cotton, 1800-1860

Religion, Romanticism, and Reform, 1800-1860

Western Expansion, 1830-1848

The War of the Union, 1861-1865

The Era of Reconstruction 1865-1877

Business and Labor in the Industrial Era, 1860-1900

The New South and the New West, 1865-1900

Political Stalemate and Rural Revolt, 1865-1900

Seizing an American Empire, 1865-1913

The Progressive Era, 1890-1920

America and the Great War, 1914-1920

A Clash of Cultures, 1920-1929

The Reactionary Twenties

The Great Depression, 1929-1939

The Second World War, 1933-1945

The Cold War and the Fair Deal, 1945-1952

Cold War America, 1950-1959

A New Frontier and a Great Society, 1960-1968

Rebellion and Reaction, 1960s and 1970s

Conservative Revival, 1977-1990

Twenty-first-century America, 1993-present

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