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HIST 120 Midterm Study Guide
Your midterm is worth 100 points and is on 3/18 from 5‒6:30 PM. The midterm is closed-note and
closed-book. Please bring a LARGE Examination Blue Book (available at the student bookstore). Make
sure to come to class on time; otherwise, you may not have enough time to complete the midterm. After
the midterm there will be a 15 minute break. From 6:45‒7:50 PM there will be a mini-lecture on
Jeffersonian America.
You may not take a bathroom break: go to the bathroom before the midterm begins. The only things that may
be on your desk during the midterm are your exam and bluebook, something with which to write, and water or a
drink. If I see you handling an electronic device (for example, a cell phone) during the midterm you will
receive an F on the midterm. If I see you talking to anyone during the midterm you will receive an F on the
midterm.
Essays (60 points)
Four of these will appear on the midterm; you will have to choose two to answer. Each question is worth 30
points. Your answers should be around 1.5 pages long (single-spaced, in a large Bluebook).
1. Assess the impact of disease on the history of the Americas after 1492.
2. What can the Salem Witch Trials of 1692‒93 tell us about Puritan society and how Puritans viewed the
world around them in the late seventeenth century?
3. Discuss the causes and the outcomes of the French and Indian War.
4. Over the course of the eighteenth century how did American colonists come to see themselves as having
more in common with each other than with Great Britain?
5. Explain how the following influenced Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence:
a. John Locke
b. the Stamp Act
c. the Intolerable Acts
6. Did the American colonists win the Revolutionary War or did the British lose it? Use specific examples
to support your argument.
7. In what important respects do the Articles of Confederation and the US Constitution differ? How does
each reflect the specific times in which they were written?
HIST 120
Dr. Schaffer
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Identifications (40 points)
Ten of these will appear on the midterm; you will have to choose five to identify. Each ID is worth 8 points. In
your answer you should briefly (but in complete sentences) address the following: who, what, where, when,
why & why it’s important. You answers should be around 1 paragraph long.
Cahokia
defeat of the Spanish armada (1588)
frontier of exclusion
the Columbian exchange
Virginia House of Burgesses (est. 1619)
corporate colony
the Pueblo Revolt
John Winthrop, “A Model of Christian Charity”
Anne Hutchinson
Cotton Mather, Wonders of the Invisible World
King Philip’s War
Act Concerning Religion (1649)
mercantilism
New Light revivalists
impressment
Benjamin Franklin
Peace of Paris (1763)
virtual representation vs actual representation
HIST 120
Sugar Act
New York Suspending Act (1767)
Daughters of Liberty
Boston Tea Party
Battle of Trenton
Battle of Saratoga
Battle of Monmouth Courthouse
Margaret Morris
Continental Army
Joseph Plumb Martin
Peace of Paris (1783)
Northwest Ordinance
the “three-fifths rule”
First National Bank (est. 1791)
Antifederalists
Whiskey Rebellion
election of 1796
judicial review
Dr. Schaffer
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Tips for doing well on the midterm:
1. Write outline answers to all of the identifications and all of the essay questions on this study guide.
Then study your answers. Notice that there are many instances of overlap between ID terms and essay
questions. For instance, you may want to write an outline answer to essay Question #4 that includes
discussion the some of the following: two of the picture IDs, New Light revivalists, impressment, the
Peace of Paris (1763), Benjamin Franklin, virtual representation vs actual representation, Sugar Act,
New York Suspending Act, Daughters of Liberty, the Boston Tea Party, the Continental Army, Joseph
Plumb Martin.
2. Notice that 60% of the points on the exam come from the essay questions! Budget your study-time and
your exam-time accordingly.
3. Provide dates for events, people, and sources that you discuss.
4. Regarding the picture IDs: do not only tell me things that anyone could ascertain by looking at the
picture. Give me context. Explain the significance of certain features of the picture.
5. I expect you to incorporate information from the assigned primary and secondary sources wherever
appropriate. For example, for Continental Army I would recommend describing the experiences of
Joseph Plumb Martin. Moreover, what you write about a source should demonstrate that you have
actually read the source (as opposed to just the introduction to the source).
6. If there are important terms in the essay questions (for instance: Puritans, Massachusetts Bay Colony,
Revolutionary War), remember to explain them and provide dates for them (where appropriate).
HIST 120
Dr. Schaffer