Name __________________________
Period _____
Directed Reading 2A
60 Points
Answer the following questions in complete sentences, except where you can fill in the
blanks, by reading pages 192-198 in The American Journey. (The Articles of Confederation)
1. Although the Americans won their independence, they had trouble winning Britain’s
_______________. Ignoring the terms of the Treaty of Paris, the British kept troops at
frontier posts in American territory. The British believed the new American government
was weak and _______________.
2. In ____________________ (month & year), the Continental Congress asked the states
to organize their governments, and each moved to quickly adopt a state constitution, or
_______________ of government.
3. Experience with British rule made Americans cautious about placing too much power in
the hands of a single ruler. For that reason, states limited the power of the
____________________. ____________________ (state) even replaced the office with
an elected council of _______________ (#) members.
4. Most states established two-house, or _______________, legislatures.
5. What two things did writers of state constitutions want to do?
6. In most states, only _______________ males who were at least 21 years old could vote.
These citizens also had to own a certain amount of _______________ or pay a certain
amount of taxes. Some states allowed __________________ American males to vote.
7. The state constitutions restricted the powers of the governors, which made the
_______________ the most powerful branch of government. They struggled to make
_______________ more fair, but there were many disagreements.
8. Americans agreed that their country should be a _______________, a government in
which citizens rule through _________________________.
9. At first most Americans favored a _______________ central government. The states
would act independently on most issues, working together through a central government
only to complete what two tasks?
10. Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation in ____________________ (month &
year). Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress had the authority to conduct
foreign affairs, maintain armed forces, borrow money, and issue _______________.
11. Under the Articles, Congress could not regulate _______________, force citizens to join
the army, or impose _______________.
12. If Congress needed to raise _______________ or troops, it had to ask the state
legislatures—but the states were not required to _______________.
13. In addition the government lacked a chief _______________. The Confederation
government carried on much of its business through congressional _______________.
14. Each state had one vote in Congress, regardless of its _______________, and all states
had to approve the Articles as well as any ____________________.
15. On ____________________ (date), the Confederation formally became the government
of the United States.
16. The Confederation Congress could not pass a law unless _______________ (#) states
voted in favor of it. Despite its weaknesses, under the Confederation government,
Americans won their independence and _______________ foreign trade.
17. By the 1790s, the number of settlers west of the Appalachians was approaching
__________ (#). These western settlers hoped to organize their lands as states and join
the union, but the Articles contained no _______________ for adding states.
18. In 1784 Congress, in a plan proposed by _________________________, divided the
western territory into self-governing districts. When, and to whom, could a district
petition for statehood?
19. In 1785, the Confederation Congress passed an ordinance that established a procedure
for ____________________ and selling the western lands north of the Ohio River. The
law divided the territory into townships __________ (#) miles long and wide. Townships
were divided into 36 sections of 640 acres each that would be sold at public
____________________ for at least $1 an acre.
20. The Northwest Ordinance of __________ (year) created a single territory out of the
lands north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi River. The lands were to be
divided into _______________ (#) to _______________ (#) smaller territories.
21. When the population of a territory reached __________ (#), the people could petition
for statehood. Each new state would come into the Union with the same rights and
____________________ as the original thirteen states.
22. The Northwest Ordinance included a bill of rights for the settlers, guaranteeing freedom
of _______________ and trial by _______________. It also stated, “There shall be
neither _______________ nor involuntary servitude in said territory.”
23. By 1781, the money printed during the Revolutionary War had ____________________,
or fallen in value, so far that it was almost worthless. No __________ or ____________
backed up these bills. Between 1779 and 1781, the number of Continental dollars
required to buy one Spanish silver dollar rose from 40 to __________ (#). In Boston
and other areas, high prices led to food _______________.
24. The war left Congress with a large __________. Congress had borrowed money from
American citizens and foreign governments. It still owed Revolutionary
_______________ their pay. Congress _______________ funds from the states but
they contributed only a small portion of the money needed.
25. In 1781, Congress created a department of finance under Philadelphia merchant
_________________________. He proposed a five percent tax on imported goods.
____________________’s opposition killed the measure.
26. In the _________________________ of 1783, Britain had promised to withdraw from
lands east of the ____________________ River. Yet British troops continued to occupy
several strategic forts in the ____________________ region.
27. American merchants complained that the British were keeping Americans out of the
____________________ and other profitable British markets. Why were the British not
willing to talk to John Adams about these difficulties?
28. In 1784, _______________, anxious to halt American _______________ into the
territory it claimed, closed the lower Mississippi River to American shipping.
29. In __________ (year) American diplomats reached an agreement with this country that
was blocked by representatives from the _______________ states.
30. _________________________ described the Confederation government as “little more
than the shadow without the substance.”