Practice TestUS History
Unit Six
• Instructions for Use:A. Click the mouse and a question will appear, some with
answers to choose from, some without.B. Click on the answer you think is correct or if there are not
answers to choose from try to answer it in your head and then click the mouse button.
C. The correct answer will then be highlighted or will appear on the screen.
D. Click the mouse button again and the next question will appear.
If you cannot finish the Practice test in one sitting, use the scroll bar on the right to remember where you left off.
This established the maximum number of immigrants who were allowed into the United
States from each foreign country.
• Answer– Quota System
Although its membership sharply increased as a result of the Red Scare and nativism, its power declined once its criminal activity and racial violence became exposed.
• Answer– Ku Klux Klan
This is an economic and political system based on a single party government ruled by a
dictatorship.
• Answer– Communism
Their radical opposition to any and all forms of government led many with similar beliefs to be harassed, arrested, and
deported during the Red Scare.
• Answer– Anarchists
As Attorney General, he sent government agents out on a series of illegal raids to hunt
down suspected radicals.
• Answer– Mitchell Palmer
As president of the United Mine Workers, he led the miners on a strike that eventually resulted in a significant wage increase.
• Answer– John L. Lewis
Which of the following called for the abolition of private property in order to equally distribute
wealth and power?
a. quota system
b. Isolationism
c. Nativism
d. communism
To expand its membership in the 1920s, the Ku Klux Klan engaged in all of the following
except
a. blaming national problems on immigrants.
b. encouraging white women to join the organization.
c. playing on people's fears of political radicals.
d. allowing members to profit from recruiting new members.
The immigration policies of the 1920s limited immigration from all of the following countries
except
a. Italy.
b. Japan.
c. Mexico.
d. England.
According to Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer, what was "eating its way into the homes of the American workman, its
sharp tongues . . . licking the altars of the churches"?
a. Communism
b. the philosophy of nativism
c. the hopelessness of poverty
d. governmental abuse of civil rights
Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer believed that he needed to protect the American people
from
a. big business.
b. political radicals.
c. corruption and fraud.
d. labor union members.
Nativists who found fault with the Emergency Quota Acts of 1921 would have been most
likely to say which of the following?
a. It did not restrict immigration enough.
b. It threatened industry with a labor shortage.
c. It discriminated against the wrong immigrants.
d. It violated U.S. principles by restricting immigration.
Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were charged with, and convicted of,
a. treason.
b. anarchy.
c. receiving bribes.
d. robbery and murder.
To protect their own interests, employers often accused striking workers of being
a. spies.
b. Communists.
c. bigots.
d. nativists.
During the 1920s, union membership
a. remained constant.
b. increased slightly.
c. increased considerably.
d. dropped considerably.
Which of the following was most closely tied to the public's negative reactions to organized
labor in the 1920s?
a. fears of rising prices
b. fears of communism
c. fears of a depression
d. resentment of labor's advances
Why was the Kellogg-Briand Pact considered useless?
a. It didn't prevent war; it only punished countries that started wars.
b. It made the process of repaying war debts too easy.
c. It provided no means of enforcing the "no war" agreement.
d. It failed to include several of the strongest military powers.
Which of the following rose dramatically in the early 1920s?
a. Wages
b. labor union membership
c. Tariffs
d. the build-up of armaments
The Fordney-McCumber Tariff was meant to
a. help Britain and France pay off their war debts.
b. raise taxes on goods entering the United States.
c. help Germany pay off its war debts.
d. raise taxes on goods leaving the United States.
John L. Lewis is most closely associated with which of the following?
a. the coal miners' strike
b. the steel mill strike
c. the Boston police strike
d. the Teapot Dome scandal
The Teapot Dome scandal centered around
a. gold mines.
b. union members.
c. high tariffs.
d. oil-rich lands.
What might an anarchist have said about the scandals that plagued President Harding's
administration?
a. In a successful government, all officials should be chosen by the public.
b. The scandals are more proof that all forms of government should be abolished.
c. Such scandals would not happen in a communist government.
d. Mistakes made by cabinet members should not damage the reputation of the president.
The main factor causing urban sprawl in the 1920s was
a. the automobile.
b. the use of electricity.
c. growth in industry.
d. a change in the birthrate.
Which of the following is not considered a sign that the prosperity of the 1920s was
superficial?
a. the economic situation on farms
b. the success of the advertising industry
c. the number of products purchased on credit
d. the difference in income between workers and managers
The first practical peacetime use of airplanes was for
a. crop-dusting.
b. carrying mail.
c. carrying passengers.
d. weather forecasting.
Which of the following is not considered a direct result of the growing popularity and
availability of the automobile?
a. changes in American landscape
b. changes in American architecture
c. urban sprawl
d. changes in the advertising industry
This Protestant movement was grounded in the literal, word for word, interpretation of the Bible.
• Answer– Fundamentalism
It was difficult to enforce the laws governing prohibition for all of the following reasons
except
a. many people were determined to break the laws.
b. insufficient funds were provided to pay for enforcement.
c. many law enforcement officials took bribes from smugglers and bootleggers.
d. prohibition banned only alcoholic beverages manufactured in the United States.
To obtain liquor illegally, drinkers went underground to hidden nightclubs known as
a. speakeasies.
b. penthouses.
c. tenements.
d. tea rooms.
John T. Scopes challenged a Tennessee law that forbade the teaching of
a. biology.
b. evolution.
c. creationism.
d. fundamentalism.
Fundamentalists believed that
a. evolution and creationism could coincide.
b. prohibition should be repealed.
c. the Bible should be taken literally.
d. drinking alcohol was acceptable.
Except for ___, all of the following were likely to approve of prohibition in the 1920s and early
1930s.
a. recent immigrants
b. rural residents of the South
c. members of organized crime syndicates
d. the Women's Christian Temperance Union
___ increased during the 1920s.
a. Child labor
b. The birthrate
c. The school dropout rate
d. The crime rate
The main significance of the trial of John T. Scopes was that ___.
a. it ended the career of William Jennings Bryan, who was unable to defend fundamentalism
b. its outdoor setting allowed many Americans to witness the justice system in action
c. it highlighted the struggle between science and religion in American schools
d. led to the repeal of a law that made teaching evolution in schools illegal
Except for ___, alcohol caused all of the following, according to most fundamentalists.
a. urban slums
b. child abuse
c. Crime
d. evangelism
A flapper was a young woman who did everything except
a. seemed casual and independent.
b. found true equality with men.
c. often smoked and drank in public.
d. wore short skirts.
e. openly discussed courtship and relationships.
In the 1920s, women in the workplace found everything except
a. they could earn as much as men.
b. many assembly-line jobs were available.
c. some previously "men only" jobs were available to them.
d. most paid workers were still men.
In the 1920s, women at home found all except
a. more ready-made foods and clothing were available.
b. they were usually expected to work outside the home.
c. their children spent most of their days at school and in organized activities.
d. they experienced greater equality in marriage.
"Double standard" refers to
a. stricter social and moral standards for women than for men in the 1920s.
b. lower wages women earned compared to those earned by men in the 1920s.
c. amount of work that women did both at home and outside the house in the 1920s.
d. unfair treatment of women in the workplace in the 1920s.
This artist produced intensely colored canvases that captured the grandeur of New
York.
• Answer– Georgia O'Keefe
He was a small-town pilot who made the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic.
• Answer– Charles A. Lindbergh
This writer's poems celebrated youth and a life of independence and freedom from traditional
restraints.
• Answer– Edna St. Vincent Millay
In This Side of Paradise and The Great Gatsby, this novelist portrayed wealthy people
leading hopelessly empty lives.
• Answer– F. Scott Fitzgerald
Wounded in World War I, this writer criticized the glorification of war and introduced a tough, simplified
style of writing that set a new literary standard.
• Answer– Ernest Hemingway
The first American to win a Nobel prize for literature, he used the character in Babbit to mock
Americans for their conformity and materialism.
• Answer– Sinclair Lewis
F. Scott Fitzgerald described the 1920s as the
a. Harlem Renaissance.
b. Jazz Age.
c. Prohibition Age.
d. Roaring Twenties.
_____ marked the works of many famous writers of the 1920s, including the Lost
Generation.
a. Fierce patriotism
b. Celebration of small-town life
c. Critical views of American culture
d. Deep respect for tradition
Concert music composer ___ was influenced by both the music of ___ and traditional music.
a. Louis Armstrong, George Gershwin
b. Bessie Smith, Georgia O'Keeffe
c. George Gershwin, Louis Armstrong
d. Paul Robeson, Duke Ellington
Ernest Hemingway, author of The Sun Also Rises, introduced ___.
a. a simplified style of writing
b. an elaborate style of writing
c. a patriotic movement in literature
d. glorification of war in literature
This black nationalist association was founded by Marcus Garvey.
• Answer– Universal Negro Improvement Association
This was a literary and artistic movement that celebrated African-American culture.
• Answer– Harlem Renaissance
Among the founders of this association was W. E. B. Du Bois.
• Answer– National Association for the Advancement of
Colored People
This major dramatic actor 's performance in Shakespeare's Othello was widely acclaimed.
• Answer– Paul Robeson
In many of her novels, books of folklore, poetry, and short stories, this writer portrayed the lives of poor,
unschooled Southern African Americans.
• Answer– Zora Neale Hurston
This jazz pianist and composer won fame as one of America's greatest composers. He wrote such pieces
as "Mood Indigo" and "Sophisticated Lady."
• Answer– Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington
This trumpet player's astounding sense of rhythm and ability to improvise has led many to consider him the single most important
and influential musician in the history of jazz.
• Answer– Louis Armstrong
This writer's militant verses urged African Americans to resist prejudice and
discrimination.
• Answer– Claude McKay
This man was the Harlem Renaissance's best-known poet, who described the difficult lives of
working-class African Americans.
• Answer– Langston Hughes
This was caused by African American's changing attitude toward's themselves and
their search for jobs.
• Answer– The Great Migration
Under his leadership the NAACP made anti-lynching laws one of its main priorities.
• Answer– James Weldon Johnson
The Harlem Renaissance refers to
a. a struggle for civil rights led by the NAACP.
b. a population increase in Harlem in the 1920s.
c. a program to promote African-American owned businesses.
d. a celebration of African-American culture in literature and art.
The NAACP did all of the following except
a. fight for legislation to protect African Americans.
b. work with anti-lynching organizations.
c. propose that African Americans move back to Africa.
d. publish The Crisis.
Jazz music was born in New Orleans and was spread to the North by such musicians as
a. Louis Armstrong.
b. Zora Neale Hurston.
c. Paul Robeson.
d. Langston Hughes.
The "Great Migration" of 1910-1920 refers to the movement of ___.
a. immigrants from Europe to America
b. people from rural areas and towns to large cities
c. African Americans from the United States to Africa
d. African Americans from the South to northern cities
The ___ fought for legislation to protect African-American rights under the leadership
of ___.
a. NAACP,Marcus Garvey
b. UNIA, Langston Hughes
c. NAACP,James Weldon Johnson
d. UNIA, Claude McKay
This term specifically refers to the stock market crash of October 29, 1929.
• Answer– Black Tuesday
This term is the name of the most widely used measure of the stock market's health.
• Answer– Dow Jones Industrial Average
In an effort to curb the financial loss farmers were suffering, Congress tried to pass the McNary-Haugen
bill, which would have mandated this on key crops.
• Answer– Price Supports
This term refers to paying a small percentage of a stock's price as a down payment and
borrowing the rest.
• Answer– Buying on margin
This term refers to making extremely risky business transactions on the chance of making
quick or considerable profits.
• Answer– Speculation
This reduced the flow of goods into the United States and prevented other countries from earning American
currency to buy American exports.
• Answer– Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act
This is an arrangement in which consumers agree to buy now and pay later for purchases, often on an
installment plan that includes interest charges.
• Answer– credit
This is the period from 1924 to 1940 in which the economy plummeted and unemployment
skyrocketed.
• Answer– Great Depression
Which of the following increased in the 1920s?
a. farmers' debts
b. prices for farm products
c. foreign demand for U.S. farm products
d. domestic demand for U.S. farm products
Which was not a cause of the Great Depression?
a. tariffs on foreign goods
b. the availability of easy credit
c. a growing number of homeless people
d. a crisis in the farm sector
What does buying a stock on margin mean?
a. purchasing the stock outside the regular stock exchange
b. buying the stock for someone else
c. paying less than the market price of the stock
d. borrowing money to help pay for the stock
Buying stocks on the chance of a quick profit without considering risks is known as
a. buying on margin.
b. speculation.
c. profit-taking.
d. living on credit.
Within a few years, the Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act led to
a. a dramatic drop in world trade.
b. Hoover's reelection as president.
c. more demand for American manufactured goods.
d. an unequal distribution of income in the United States.
All of the following were important causes of the Great Depression except
a. both individuals and businesses built up large debts because of easy credit.
b. tariffs on foreign imports were lowered.
c. the federal government did not insure people's bank accounts.
d. the stock market crashed.
Which was not a cause of the Dust Bowl?
a. drought
b. high winds
c. thick layers of prairie grasses
d. overproduction of crops
Which of the following was not an effect of the Great Depression?
a. Many children had a poor diet.
b. Many families became homeless.
c. Many men became unemployed.
d. Many people started farming.
What name was given to the men and boys who rode the rails as they searched for work?
a. Bonus Marchers
b. Speculators
c. Hoboes
d. Okies
An example of the psychological stress caused by the Great Depression was the rise in the
number of
a. children who were malnourished.
b. people who committed suicide.
c. women who worked outside the home.
d. men who stood in bread lines.
One long-range effect of the Great Depression was that many people
a. grew to like President Hoover.
b. became risk takers in the stock market.
c. developed habits of saving and thriftiness.
d. came to believe in small government.
Causes of the farming crisis of the 1920s included the fact that
a. demand for crops fell after World War I.
b. most people did not own electric refrigerators.
c. the Dust Bowl took much land out of production.
d. federal price-supports of corn and wheat were not effective.
After the stock market crash, how did President Hoover try to help the economy?
a. by closing banks
b. by lowering foreign tariffs
c. by funding handouts of food and clothing
d. by asking businesses not to lay off employees
Who made up the Bonus Army that marched on Washington?
a. World War I veterans and their families
b. farmers forced off their land by dust storms
c. unemployed industrial workers and their families
d. business and labor leaders who agreed to work together
Which candidates ran for president in 1932?
a. Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover
b. Calvin Coolidge and Franklin D. Roosevelt
c. Herbert Hoover and Alfred E. Smith
d. Herbert Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt
Which of the following describes a government system for giving payments or food to the
poor?
a. rugged individualism
b. direct relief
c. Bonus Army
d. price support
In calling shantytowns "Hoovervilles," people conveyed their
a. patriotism.
b. trust in Hoover.
c. disgust with Hoover.
d. grudging respect for Hoover.
The aim of the Federal Home Loan Bank Act was to
a. encourage new construction.
b. increase the value of homes and farms.
c. make it easier for banks to foreclose on farms and homes.
d. prevent farmers and homeowners from losing their property.
Herbert Hoover's approach to the Depression economy was based on a belief in
a. voluntary cooperation.
b. separation of church and state.
c. the golden rule.
d. direct government relief.
During the Great Depression, the overall unemployment rate was about
a. 100 percent.
b. 75 percent.
c. 25 percent.
d. 10 percent.
This established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), with the greater goal of restoring
public confidence in the banking system.
• Answer– Glass-Steagall Banking Act
This provided direct relief in the form of food and clothing to the neediest people hit by the
depression--the unemployed, the aged, and the ill.
• Answer– Federal Emergency Relief Administration
This helped to create prosperity in a poverty-stricken region by providing funds to build and repair
dams, flood-control projects, and power plants.
• Answer– Tennessee Valley Authority
This paid farmers to lower production and, in some cases, to destroy crops, with the greater goal of
raising crop prices and farm income.
• Answer– Agricultural Adjustment Act
This put almost 3 million young men to work building roads, developing parks, and helping insoil-erosion and flood-control projects.
• Answer– Civilian Conservation Corps
This authorized the Treasury Department to inspect banks and to close those that were unsound, with the greater goal of restoring
public confidence in the banking system.
• Answer– Emergency Banking Relief Act
This created an administration that set fair prices on many products and established labor standards, with the greater
goal of ensuring fair business practices and promoting industrial growth.
• Answer– National Industrial Recovery Act
This required corporations to provide complete information on all stock offerings, with the greater goal
of restoring public confidence in the stock market.
• Answer– Federal Securities Act
What was the first major action Roosevelt took as president?
a. He called the first meeting of the "Brain Trust.“
b. He proposed a reorganization of the Supreme Court.
c. He closed all of the nation's banks and ordered inspections.
d. He established the Civil Works Administration to provide job relief.
Which of the following was not a goal of the New Deal?
a. increase crop production
b. relief for the needy
c. economic recovery
d. financial reform
Which of the following was the main objective of the Agricultural Adjustment Act?
a. to increase farm production
b. to raise prices of farm products
c. to provide pensions for retired farmers
d. to encourage more people to enter farming
Which of the following pieces of New Deal legislation was ruled unconstitutional by the
Supreme Court?
a. Wagner Act
b. Social Security Act
c. Emergency Banking Relief Act
d. National Industrial Recovery Act
Which of the following reached a new high during Roosevelt's first term as president?
a. tariff rates
b. employment rates
c. the national debt
d. per capita income
Which of the following of Roosevelt's ideas failed to become a law?
a. federally supported loans for housing
b. the reorganization of the Supreme Court
c. the establishment of regional planning authorities
d. the creation of a federally supported pension program
This required corporations to provide complete, truthful information on all stock
offerings.
• Answer– Federal Securities Act
This was created to reform, and to restore confidence in, the stock market by providing a means to monitor the
market and to enforce laws regarding the sales of stocks and bonds.
• Answer– Securities and Exchange Commission
This set a national minimum hourly wage and prohibited factory labor for children under
sixteen years of age.
• Answer– Fair Labor Standards Act
Created through the Glass-Steagall Banking Act of 1933, this originally protected up to
$5,000 of an individual's bank account.
• Answer– Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
___ were least likely to be a part of the New Deal coalition.
a. Rural Democrats
b. African Americans
c. Southern Republicans
d. Unionized industrial workers
By decreasing farm surpluses, New Deal policies helped to ___.
a. lower the cost of food
b. increase the food supply
c. raise the price of farm goods
d. combat the effects of the Dust Bowl
___ claimed that the New Deal policies were inadequate and proposed a social program
called Share-Our-Wealth.
a. Huey Long
b. Francis Townsend
c. John L. Lewis
d. Charles Coughlin
The Federal Emergency Relief Administration was most helpful to___.
a. farmers in isolated rural areas
b. the unemployed, the aged, and the ill
c. politicians and business owners
d. mass-production industrial workers
The American public perceived many characteristics in President Roosevelt, but ___
was probably not one of them.
a. Compassion
b. Determination
c. self-confidence
d. economic conservatism
The Supreme Court ruled that the ___ was unconstitutional on the grounds that its provisions were
local matters and should be regulated by the states.
a. Federal Securities Act
b. Fair Labor Standards Act
c. Wagner Act
d. Agricultural Adjustment Act
Which of the following was most directly responsible for creating new jobs and putting
people to work?
a. Social Security Act
b. Fair Labor Standards Act
c. National Labor Relations Act
d. Works Progress Administration
What role did Eleanor Roosevelt play in the Roosevelt administration?
a. She served as a cabinet member.
b. She focused on being an excellent hostess.
c. She was an important advisor on foreign policy.
d. She was an important advisor on domestic policy.
This protected the right of workers to join unions and established the National Labor Relations Board to
settle disputes between employers and employees.
• Answer– Wagner Act
This provided for bank inspections by the Treasury Department and a means for making
federal loans to solid banks.
• Answer– Emergency Banking Relief Act
This provided a pension for retired workers and their spouses and aided people with disabilities, poor mothers
with dependent children, and the needy elderly.
• Answer– Social Security Act
This addressed the problems of unemployment and poverty by creating jobs that ranged from the
construction of airports and libraries to the sewing of clothing for the needy.
• Answer– Works Progress Administration
Who was the first woman to serve in the cabinet?
a. Arlene Francis
b. Frances Perkins
c. Eleanor Roosevelt
d. Mary McLeod Bethune
___ helped organize the "Black Cabinet," a group of influential African Americans who advised the
Roosevelt administration on racial issues.
a. Dorothea Lange
b. Mary McLeod Bethune
c. Frances Perkins
d. Eleanor Roosevelt
Who wrote the novel The Grapes of Wrath about the grim lives of Oklahomans fleeing the
Dust Bowl during the Depression?
a. Grant Wood
b. John Steinbeck
c. Richard Wright
d. Dorothea Lange
___ used music to express the hardships of American life during the Depression.
a. Woody Guthrie
b. Grant Wood
c. Diego Rivera
d. Richard Wright
Of the following New Deal policies, ___ had the biggest long-term impact on the American
economy.
a. Social Security Act
b. Civilian Conservation Corps
c. Tennessee Valley Authority
d. Federal Emergency Relief Administration
The _____ reflected President Roosevelt's concern for the natural environment.
a. Civil Works Administration
b. National Youth Administration
c. Civilian Conservation Corps
d. Works Progress Administration
His classic novel, Native Son, depicts the difficulties faced by a young man trying to survive in a racist
world.
• Answer– Richard Wright
His famous painting, "American Gothic," depicts two stern-faced farmers standing stiffly
in front of their farmhouse.
• Answer– Grant Wood
This classic novel written by John Steinbeck focuses on the difficulties faced by people who, forced off the
Great Plains during the Dust Bowl, move to California.
• Answer– The Grapes of Wrath
One of the most popular movies of all time, this sweeping drama about life among Southern plantation owners during
the Civil War starred Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable.
• Answer– Gone with the Wind