“The Americans”
Grade 11
McDougal Littell
NAME ___________________________________
Unit 2 Chapter Test
Main Ideas
Choose the letter of the best answer.
1) Which of the following marked the collapse of Populism?
5) Why did little of the free land offered by the Homestead Act
end up being claimed by settlers?
(a) the Panic of 1891
(b) the founding of the Grange
(a) The land was too difficult to farm.
(c) the “Cross of Gold” speech
(b) Few settlers wanted to move West at the time.
(d) the election of William McKinley
(c) Most of it was taken by people seeking profits.
(d) The government put too many restrictions on its use.
2) William McKinley won the election of 1896 because
6) Why did the Populist Party propose such reforms as the
popular election of U.S. senators and the secret ballot?
(f) he campaigned harder than his opponent.
(g) he had the support of the East and Midwest.
(h) he delivered the “Cross of Gold” speech.
(j) he had the backing of the Populist Party.
3) Demand for beef in the East contributed to
(f) They wanted to make it harder to predict election
outcomes.
(g) They wanted to give people a greater voice in
government.
(h) They thought the reforms would help their candidates
win elections.
(j) They wanted to end Republican control of the senate.
(a) the invention of the cowboy’s way of life.
(b) the end of the long drives.
(c) the development of the Chisholm Trail.
(d) the decline of the railroads.
4) Most Native Americans responded to restrictions placed
upon them by the U.S. government by
(f) abiding by signed treaties.
(g) ignoring the restrictions.
(h) moving from their lands.
(j) seeking monetary compensation.
Interpreting Charts
Using the exhibit, choose the letter of the best answer.
7) What do popular vote totals for Wyoming and South
Dakota indicate?
(a) Most voters in those states favored the
Democratic/Populist candidate.
(b) Most voters in those states favored the Republican
candidate.
(c) Voters favored a candidate from another party.
(d) Voters were about evenly divided in their preference.
Main Ideas
Choose the letter of the best answer.
8) The Sherman Act
11) The use of standardized time and time zones was
introduced in order to benefit
(f) outlawed the formation of trusts that interfered with
free trade.
(a) telephone and telegraph operators.
(g) was supported by millionaire industrialists.
(b) railroad companies and train travelers.
(h) was used by labor unions to fight for workers’ rights.
(c) manufacturers who dealt in interstate trade.
(j) encouraged the establishment of large-scale
businesses.
(d) factory owners whose workers had set schedules.
9) In the late 1800s, collective bargaining was a technique
used to
12) Which of the following most allowed manufacturers to
build their factories away from rivers?
(f) electricity
(a) expand industry.
(g) steel beams
(b) win workers’ rights.
(h) railroads
(c) restrict labor unions.
(j) the telephone
(d) organize labor unions.
10) What was the goal of the Interstate Commerce Act?
(f) to build new railroads
(g) to destroy the railroad industry
(h) to lower excessive railroad rates
(j) to increase the power of railroads
13) How did the Grangers influence government?
(a) Their candidate, a farmer, became president of the
United States.
(b) They convinced the governor of Illinois to support the
building of a new railroad.
(c) They won a case in the Supreme Court overturning
laws that protected farmers.
(d) They convinced state legislators to pass laws regulating
railroads.
Map Skills
Using the exhibit, choose the letter of the best answer.
14) What is the time difference between Pacific and Eastern
time?
15) What change does the map show between 1870 and
1890?
(a) one hour
(c) three hours
(a) The Eastern time zone gained many more railroads.
(b) two hours
(d) four hours
(b) Cleveland became a new center of rail transportation.
(c) Railroads expanded greatly in the West.
(d) Omaha, Nebraska, was finally connected by rail to the
East.
Main Ideas
Choose the letter of the best answer.
16) Which of the following is true of the Gentlemen’s
Agreement?
(f) It decreased Japanese immigration.
(g) It resulted in segregated classrooms.
(h) It caused anti-American rioting in Japan.
(i) It banned aliens from working in industry.
17) Which of the following had some of the same goals as the
Americanization movement?
(a) settlement houses
(b) graft
(c) Chinese Exclusion Act
(d) patronage
18) The Stalwarts were strong supporters of
(f) low tariffs.
(g) high tariffs.
(h) the spoils system.
(i) civil service reform.
19) The original purpose of the row house was to
(a) alleviate slum conditions.
(b) integrate lower-class neighborhoods.
(c) provide inner-city housing for wealthy families.
(d) provide single-family homes for working-class families.
20) What was the relationship between political machines and
immigrants in many cities?
(f) In order to save jobs for American workers, political
machines opposed immigration.
(g) Political machines convinced many immigrants to run
for political office.
(h) Political machines helped immigrants with their needs
in return for votes.
(i) Political machines advocated hiring immigrants but
opposed granting them citizenship.
21) Which of the following issues prompted the assassination
of President Garfield?
(a) tariffs
(b) kickbacks
(c) immigration
(d) civil service reform
Interpreting Charts
Using the exhibit, choose the letter of the best answer.
22) Between which two years did the sharpest drop in
Japanese immigration occur?
(f) 1883 and 1884
(g) 1890 and 1891
(h) 1903 and 1904
(j) 1908 and 1909
Main Ideas
Choose the letter of the best answer.
23) Skyscrapers were made possible by the invention of
25) The popularity of bicycling and amusement parks reflected
which trend of the 1900s?
(a) safer fire escapes.
(b) larger bricks and stronger cement.
(a) wider public access to the fine arts
(c) the elevator and a steel framework.
(b) an interest in leisure activities
(d) the airplane and the bicycle.
(c) a rising literacy rate
(d) new ways of shopping and advertising
24) Who expressed the belief that racism would end as
blacks acquired practical work skills and proved their
economic value to society?
26) Which effect can be traced directly to the Supreme
Court’s ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson?
(f) Southern blacks lost their voting rights for 60 years.
(f) W.E.B. Du Bois
(g) Ida B. Wells
(g) Lynching of African Americans continued into the
1920’s.
(h) Booker T. Washington
(h) Racial segregation was permitted for nearly 60 years.
(j) William Torrey Harris
(j) Race riots broke out in New York and other large cities.
Map Skills
Using the exhibit, choose the letter of the best answer.
A center of population is a geographic point that has an equal distribution of people around it in all directions.
27) During which period did the center of population shift the
least?
28) Which city would have been least justified in calling itself
a center of population?
(a) 1790-1840
(f) Annapolis
(b) 1840-1880
(g) Washington, D.C.
(c) 1880-1910
(h) E. St. Louis
(d) 1910-1960
(j) Richmond