Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin proved to be the most influential publication in arousing the northern and European public against the evils of slavery
All of the following are true statements about Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel EXCEPT:
it helped spark the Civil War
it was inspired by the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act
Stowe claimed that God wrote the book
it sold hundreds of thousands of copies in the United States and beyond
it relied on Stowe's many personal experiences and firsthand knowledge of slavery
Pro-Southern Kansas pioneers brought numerous slaves with them in order to guarantee that Kansas would not become a free state.
Why was the Lecompton Constitution considered a sly maneuver?
It included provisions for allowing slavery in Kansas even if the people voted against slavery
It was an attempt to make Kansas a free state, despite earlier agreement that Kansas would be admitted as a slave state
It resolved competing land claims in favor of slaveholders
It sought to bypass normal preconditions for moving from territory status to statehood
It led to the establishment of two different governments in Kansas - one supporting slavery and the other supporting the abolitionist cause.
The violence in Kansas was provoked by both radical abolitionists and militant pro-slavery forces
What was Preston Brooke's claim to fame?
He was a pro-slavery congressman who staunchly defended his home state of South Carolina's position on including slavery in the new territories
He badly beat Senator Charles Sumner over a provocative speech against popular sovereignty and slavery
He challenged Sumner to a duel for having insulted his countrymen and a distant cousin
He was expelled from the House or Representatives for his violent outbursts
He staged an attack on Kansas that came to be known as Bleeding Kansas
By opposing the pro-slavery Lecompton Constitution in Kansas, Senator Stephen A. Douglas was able to unite the Democratic party.
The Know-Nothing party, which first appeared oon teh political scene during the 1856 election, was so named because:
of its hard line stand supporting new immigrants
of the secretive nature of the party
it chose as its presidential candidate a man who many joked did not know much about politics
it was a band of armed ruffians who secretly staged violent attacks on groups it disliked
it was known for planting negative stories about opposing candidates in newspapers and slinging mud behind the scenes
Both South Carolina and Massachusetts defiantly re-elected the principal figure in the Brooks-Sumner beating incident.
Which of the following was NOT part of the Supreme Court's ruling in the landmark Dred Scott case ?
A slave could be taken into any state and remain a slave, regardless of whether the state itself was slave or free
The Compromise of 1820 was never constitutional
Northern states could be held legally accountable and required to offer compensation to slaveholders for not returning runaway slaves.
Dred Scott and his wife were to retain their slave status for life, unless their owner determined to set them free
As a slave, Dred Scott could not sue in federal courts
Although the Republican candidate (Fremont) lost to Buchanan, the election of 1856 demonstrated the growing power of the new antislavery party
The economic crash of 1857 was caused by all of the following EXCEPT:
inflated currency values
feverish land speculation
overproduction of grain
rapid decline in cotton prices overseas
the collapse of hundreds of businesses
The Dred Scott decision upheld the doctrine of popular sovereignty that the people of each territory should determine whether or not to permit slavery.
Why was Abraham Lincoln nicknamed "Honest Abe"?
Because he emerged from humble circumstances to champion the cause of the common man
Because he worked hard, earned an education, and achieved everything on his own merits
Because, as a lawyer, he would decline cases that went against his conscience
Because of his impassioned and eloquent response to the Kansas-Nebraska Act
Because he offered simple humble statements of his political principles when running for office
In the Lincoln-Douglas debates, Lincoln's criticisms forced Douglas to back away from his support for popular sovereignty.
The major significance of the famed Lincoln-Douglas Debate in 1858 was that it:
led to Lincoln's victory against Douglas in the Illinois senate race
helped Lincoln's star to rise in the political arena, while Douglas's began to fall
led to passage of the Freemont Doctrine
was the first time two presidential candidates held a public debate
inspired Lincoln's nomination for vice president on the ticket with John Fremont
John Brown's raid at Harpers Ferry failed to set off a slave uprising but succeeded in inflaming passions in both North and South
Which of the following is NOT a true statement about the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860?
He was not the abolitionist the South thought him to be
He was a majority president
His election gave South Carolina the excuse it needed to secede
His election was due to northern voters
He was not the first choice for the Republican party candidate
Lincoln's victory should not have caused fear in the South over slavery because:
the Supreme Court was evenly split in terms North-South political views
the nation remained so politically divided that no majority will could have prevailed
there were more slave states than free states
Southern Democrats' control of the House would offset Northern Republicans' control of the Senate
It would require a constitutional amendment to end slavery in slave states, and there were enough votes to quash such an effort.
Lincoln made a strong effort to get the South to accept the Crittenden Compromise in order to avoid a civil war.
Which of these states was NOT among the half-dozen that joined South Carolina in seceding within just six weeks?
Alabama
Mississippi
Florida
Missouri
Texas
Lame duck President Buchanan did not move to block Southern states from seceding mainly because he:
considered the move a bluff
hoped to negotiate a peace with the South
did not believe states could secede
was a pacifist and did not want to use force
did not want the North calling the shots
Which of the following were NOT among Southern justifications for secession
They were exerting their majority political status and clout
They were inspired by nationalist movements around the globe
They thought they had voluntarily entered the Union and could voluntarily withdraw
They saw parallels between their own experience and that of the colonists and King George
They feared that the rise of the Republican Party signaled their eventual domination by the North
Hinton R. Helper's "The Impending Crisis of the South" contented that:
slavery violated the essential principles of the U.S. Constitution
slavery was contrary to the religious values held by most Americans
slavery did great harm to the poor whites of the South
slavery violated the human rights of African-Americans
As presented to Congress, the Lecompton Constitution provided for:
the admission of Kansas as a free state
a statewide referendum on slavery to be held after Kansas's admission to the Union
a prohibition against either New England or Missouri involvement in Kansas politics
the admission of Kansas as a slave state
The fanatical abolitionist John Brown made his first entry into violent antislavery politics by:
killing 5 pro-slavery settlers at Pottawatomie Creek, Kansas
organizing a slave rebellion in Missouri
leading an armed raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry Virginia
organizing an armed militia of blacks and whites to conduct escaped slaves to Canada
The Panic of 1857 encouraged the South to believe that:
its economy was fundamentally stronger than that of the North
it ought to take new steps to develop its own banking and manufacturing institutions
it would be wise to support the Homestead Act
its economic future was closely tied to that of the North
A key issue in the Lincoln-Douglas debates was whether:
secession from the Union was legal
the people of a territory could prohibit slavery in light of the Dred Scott decision
Illinois should continue to prohibit slavery
whether Kansas should be admitted to the Union as a slave or a free state
In the campaign of 1860, the Democratic Party
tired to unite around the compromise "popular sovereignty" views of Stephen A. Douglas
campaigned on a platform of restoring the compromises of 1820 and 1850
split in two, with each faction nominating its own presidential candidate
threatened to support secession if the sectional-based Republicans won the election
Lincoln won the presidency
with an electoral majority derived only from the North
with a majority of both the electoral and popular vote
primarily because of the divisions in the Democratic Party
with an electoral majority evenly derived from all sections of the nation.
