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History of the Americas
Explore questions in the History of the Americas category that you can ask Sparky!
- [John Muir Yellowstone Park]Muir's ideas are most directly a reaction to the(A) increasing usage and exploitation of western landscapes(B) increase in urban populations, including immigrant workers attracted by a growingindustrial economy(C) westward migration of groups seeking religious refuge(D) opening of a new frontier in recently annexed territory
- "Shortly after this, my mother's widowed sister, . . . who kept a factory boarding house inLowell [Massachusetts], advised her to come to that city. . . ."My mother, feeling obliged to have help in her work besides what I could give, and alsoneeding the money which I could earn, allowed me . . . to go to work in the mill. . . ."The working hours of all the girls extended from five o'clock in the morning until sevenin the evening, with one half hour for breakfast and dinner. . . ."I cannot tell you how it happened that some of us knew about the English factorychildren, who as it was said, were treated so badly. . . ."In contrast to this sad picture, we thought of ourselves as well off . . . enjoying ourselves inour own good way, with our good mothers and our warm suppers awaiting us."Harriet Hanson Robinson, Loom and Spindle, or Life Among Early Mill Girls,describing events in the 1830s, published in 189852. Which of the following most directly contributed to the developments described inthe excerpt?(A) The concept of republican motherhood after the American Revolution(B) Large-scale immigration from southern and eastern Europe(C) The expansion and increased organization of industrial production(D) The wartime need for women to fill jobs previously held by men
- "My purpose is not to persuade children from their parents; men from their wives; norservants from their masters: only, such as with free consent may be spared: But that each[English] parish, or village, in city or country, that will but apparel their fatherless children,of thirteen or fourteen years of age, or young married people, that have small wealth tolive on; here by their labor may live exceeding well: provided always that first there besufficient power to command them, . . . and sufficient masters (as carpenters, masons,fishers, fowlers, gardeners, husbandmen, sawyers, smiths, spinsters, tailors, weavers, andsuch like) to take ten, twelve, or twenty, or as is their occasion, for apprentices. The mastersby this may quickly grow rich; these [apprentices] may learn their trades themselves, to dothe like; to a general and an incredible benefit for king, and country, master, and servant."John Smith, English adventurer, A Description of New England, 161638. The excerpt suggests that promoters such as Smith most typically presented migrationas a means for(A) workers to achieve social mobility and economic opportunity(B) people to earn wages to send home to their families(C) countries to acquire new sources of mineral wealth(D) joint-stock companies to generate profits
- [Washington Farewell]27. Most historians would argue that the recommendations of Washington's address ceasedto have a significant influence on United States foreign policy as a result of(A) westward expansion in the nineteenth century(B) support for Cuban revolutionaries in the Spanish-American War(C) Woodrow Wilson's support for international democratic principles during the FirstWorld War(D) involvement in the Second World War
- [She's a WOW]The poster most directly reflects the(A) wartime mobilization of United States society(B) emergence of the United States as a leading world power(C) expanded access to consumer goods during wartime(D) wartime repression of civil liberties
- [John C Calhoun]Which of the following most directly undermines Calhoun's assertions?(A) Many slaves adopted elements of Christianity.(B) Many slaves engaged in forms of resistance to slavery.(C) Abolitionist societies encountered difficulty organizing in Southern states.(D) A majority of White Southerners were not slaveholders.
- [Colonies, Atlantic Trade]The trends described by Taylor most directly illustrate which of the following majorhistorical developments in the Atlantic world?(A) The growth of mercantile empires that stretched across the Atlantic(B) The increasing 46nglicization of the English colonies(C) The phenomenon known as the Columbian Exchange(D) The rise of the trans-Atlantic slave trade
- [Jacob Riis]Conditions like those shown in the image contributed most directly to which of thefollowing?(A) The passage of laws restricting immigration to the United States(B) An increase in Progressive reform activity(C) A decline in efforts to Americanize immigrants(D) The weakening of labor unions such as the American Federation of Labor
- [She's a WOW]The poster was intended to(A) persuade women to enlist in the military(B) promote the ideals of republican motherhood(C) advocate for the elimination of sex discrimination in employment(D) convince women that they had an essential role in the war effort
- "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part ofman toward woman, having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny overher. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world."He has never permitted her to exercise her inalienable right to the elective franchise."He has compelled her to submit to laws, in the formation of which she had no voice. . . ."Having deprived her of this first right of a citizen, the elective franchise, thereby leavingher without representation in the halls of legislation, he has oppressed her on all sides. . . ."He has taken from her all right in property, even to the wages she earns."Seneca Falls Convention, Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, 18487. The ideas expressed in the excerpt most directly challenged the prevailing ideal in theearly nineteenth century that(A) women should enjoy full and equal rights with men(B) women should focus on the home and the domestic sphere(C) the ability of women to earn wages was a positive development(D) women should educate their children about the rights and responsibilities ofcitizenship
- [Life of Mill Girls]Which of the following was a major difference in economic development between theNortheast and the South in the first half of the 1800s?(A) Southern exports had a far lower value than exports from the Northeast.(B) Banking and shipping grew more rapidly in the South than in other regions.(C) The South relied much less on wage labor than the Northeast.(D) The South had few commercial connections with other regions of the United States.
- [Washington Farewell]The ideas expressed in Washington's address most strongly influenced which UnitedStates foreign policy decision in the twentieth century?(A) The establishment of the United Nations in 1945(B) The formation of the NATO alliance between the United States and WesternEurope in 1949(C) The refusal to join the League of Nations in 1919(D) The oil embargo against Japan in 1941
- [Map of Colonia Settlement]The map most directly depicts the(A) inland expansion of the colonial population(B) effects of industrialization(C) pattern of American Indian resistance(D) decline of tobacco production
- [Jacob Riis]The conditions shown in the image depict which of the following trends in the latenineteenth century?(A) The growing gap between wealthy people and people living in poverty(B) The rise of the settlement house and Populist movements(C) The increased corruption in urban politics(D) The migration of African Americans to the North
- [Map of Colonial Settlement]The pattern of colonial settlement up to 1700 resulted most directly from which of thefollowing factors?(A) The large size of British colonial populations relative to American Indianpopulations(B) British recognition of Native American sovereignty(C) The orientation of the British colonies toward producing commodities for exportto Europe(D) British government attempts to impose greater control over the colonies in thelate 1600s
- [Graph of Immigration, spike in mid-late 1800s]The main trend shown in the graph was most directly associated with which of thefollowing processes occurring in the United States at the time?(A) The convergence of European and American cultures(B) The emergence of an industrialized economy(C) The displacement of American Indians from the Southeast(D) The resurgence of evangelical Protestantism
- "In 1739 arrived among us from Ireland the Reverend Mr. [George] Whitefield, who hadmade himself remarkable there as an itinerant preacher. He was at first permitted to preach insome of our churches; but the clergy, taking a dislike to him, soon refused him their pulpits,and he was obliged to preach in the fields. The multitudes of all sects and denominationsthat attended his sermons were enormous. . . . It was wonderful to see the change soon madein the manners of our inhabitants. From being thoughtless or indifferent about religion, itseemed as if all the world were growing religious, so that one could not walk thro' the town inan evening without hearing psalms sung in different families of every street."Benjamin Franklin, The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin1. Whitefield's impact suggests that religious culture among British North Americancolonists in the 1700s was most directly shaped by(A) Roman Catholic influences(B) interest in commerce and business(C) trans-Atlantic exchanges(D) reliance on agriculture
- [She's a WOW]Which of the following represents a later example of the change highlighted in the poster?(A) Feminist calls for equal economic opportunities in the 1970s(B) The growing feminist protests against United States military engagements abroadin the 1970s(C) The increasing inability of the manufacturing sector to create jobs for women inthe 1970s and 1980s(D) The growing popular consensus about appropriate women's roles in the 1980s and 1990s
- [Quotas]Which of the following evidence would best support Ngai's argument in the excerpt?(A) Census data showing the changing percentages of the foreign-born populationfrom 1920 to 1930(B) Narratives describing the challenges of immigrant family life in the 1920s(C) Diplomatic correspondence reflecting the increasing isolationism of United Statesforeign policy in the 1920s and 1930s(D) Census data revealing the Great Migration of African Americans to cities in theNorth and West in the 1920s
- "I believe that it must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who areresisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures. I believe wemust assist free peoples to work out their own destinies in their own way. I believe thatour help should be primarily through economic and financial aid which is essential toeconomic stability and orderly political processes."President Harry Truman, address before a joint session of Congress articulatingwhat would become known as the Truman Doctrine, 194717. In his statement Truman had the goal of(A) restraining communist military power and ideological influence(B) creating alliances with recently decolonized nations(C) reestablishing the principle of isolationism(D) avoiding a military confrontation with the Soviet Union