8th Social Studies Test
Eighth Grade Social Studies
Test
Practice Test
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Copyright ©2000-2002 Measured Progress, All Rights Reserved
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8th Social Studies Test
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Practice Test
1. Which of the following was accomplished by the Civil Rights Act of 1964?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Segregation of public facilities was declared illegal.
Black Americans were allowed to run for public office.
American citizenship was granted to black Americans.
A minimum wage was established to assist low-income families.
2. In 1805, Georgia developed a system of distributing western land to citizens by means of a lottery.
Which definition of this system is correct?
A. Every head of a household received 160 acres plus 50 acres for each member of his family.
B. Land was divided up into 160-acre lots and citizens who moved onto the land first were awarded
the land.
C. Members of the Georgia legislature sold the land in 160-acre lots to speculators, who then sold it
to citizens.
D. Descriptions of 160-acre parcels of land were drawn from one barrel and given to a citizen whose
name was drawn from another barrel.
Use the information below to answer question 3.
The war was helping to change the role of women. With many men gone to war, women stepped in to fill
all types of jobs. At the University of Georgia, female students gained full admission to undergraduate
programs in September 1918. President Andrew Soule argued that women trained in nutrition and
extension work were needed for the war effort. He convinced the board of trustees to admit them.
3. To which war is the author referring?
A.
B.
C.
D.
the Civil War.
the Spanish-American War.
World War I.
World War II.
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4. Which event in the early 1970s contributed to the decision of many northern business owners and
citizens to move to the South?
A.
B.
C.
D.
the Vietnam War
the Arab oil embargo
the stock market crash
the drought in the Midwest
5. Which statement best describes President Andrew Johnson’s Reconstruction plan?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Johnson’s plan was strongly influenced by Radical Republicans.
Johnson believed the South deserved to be punished for its rebellion.
Johnson wanted to divide property between freed slaves and former plantation owners.
Johnson believed that former Confederate states should be restored to the Union.
6. Which of the following is NOT required by law of American citizens?
A.
B.
C.
D.
obtaining a driver's license
serving on a jury
voting in elections
paying taxes
Read the information in the box below to answer question 7.
7. The information in the box best describes which of the following?
A.
B.
C.
D.
urban areas
suburban areas
rural areas
metropolitan areas
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8. A civil engineer is planning a new road that will pass through the Ridge and Valley region of
Georgia. Which type of map would be most useful for the civil engineer to study?
A.
B.
C.
D.
topographical
natural resources
political
climate
9. Lookout Mountain is located in which geographic region of Georgia?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Piedmont
Coastal Plain
Ridge and Valley
Appalachian Plateau
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Use the graph below to answer question 10.
10. According to the graph, what happened to Georgia’s slave population between 1790 and 1810?
A.
B.
C.
D.
It quadrupled.
It tripled.
It doubled.
It remained the same.
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11. In 1795, several Georgia legislators became involved with illegal land speculation. What did their
action come to be called?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Land Plot Scandal
Yazoo Land Fraud
Oklahoma Land Rush
Trans-Oconee Land Scandal
12. After World War II in the United States, which of these trends contributed to the growth of Georgia?
A.
B.
C.
D.
a loss of confidence in exploring new scientific methods
a rapid increase in technological and industrial development
a renewed focus on the importance of farming and agriculture
a turning away from cooperation between business and government
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Use the graph below to answer question 13.
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13. Based on the information shown in the graph, which statement about birthrates in Georgia and in the
United States between 1930 and 1980 is true?
A. The greatest increase in the birthrate of Georgia was between 1950 and 1960.
B. The gap between Georgia’s birthrate and that of the United States was the largest in 1965.
C. During the Vietnam War, the birthrate of Georgia increased while that of the United States
decreased.
D. During the Great Depression, the birthrate of Georgia remained fairly steady while that of the
United States decreased.
14. Georgia borders which body of water?
A.
B.
C.
D.
the Pacific Ocean
the Caribbean Sea
the Atlantic Ocean
the Gulf of Mexico
15. What was the name of the document by which Great Britain recognized the United States of America
as an independent nation?
A.
B.
C.
D.
the Townshend Act
the Treaty of Alliance
the Treaty of Paris (1783)
the Declaration of Independence
16. Which major national health organization has its headquarters in Atlanta?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Mayo Clinic
Centers for Disease Control
National Cancer Foundation
National Institutes of Health
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Use the map below to answer question 17.
17. Which state is located at 38°N and 97°W?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Utah
Texas
Kansas
Arkansas
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18. Which of the following is an influential Georgian from the colonial period?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Johnathan Bryan
Hernando de Soto
Eugene Talmadge
Alexander Stephens
19. Betty Sue lives in Cairo, Georgia. She will be going to college at the University of Maine in the fall.
Which of the following will she need that she may not already have?
A.
B.
C.
D.
bathing suit
designer jeans
warm coat
white sandals
20. You are trying to locate Dooly and Crisp Counties in Georgia. Which kind of a map should you use?
A.
B.
C.
D.
physical
political
thematic
topographical
21. Which man represented Georgia at the Constitutional Convention of 1787?
A.
B.
C.
D.
James Madison
William Few
James Oglethorpe
Alexander Stephens
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22. Why did Southerners favor secession rather than accepting Abraham Lincoln's election as president
of the United States?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Lincoln did not receive a majority of popular votes.
Lincoln wanted to stop the spread of slavery.
Lincoln said he would emancipate all slaves if elected.
Lincoln wanted settlers in territories to vote on slavery.
23. The “Forward Atlanta” program of the 1960s was launched to help Georgia’s capital city achieve
A.
B.
C.
D.
host city status for the Olympic games.
business and industrial growth.
greater racial harmony.
social and political change.
24. What is Georgia’s largest source of state revenue?
A.
B.
C.
D.
poll tax
sales tax
income tax
inheritance tax
25. Hart County, Georgia, was named for Nancy Hart. What role did Nancy Hart play in Georgia history?
A.
B.
C.
D.
She started the first public school in Georgia.
She was the first female senator from Georgia.
She was a legendary heroine of the Revolutionary War.
She was the wife of the first elected governor of Georgia.
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26. Why was “No taxation without representation” the colonists’ slogan about British taxes?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Colonists paid many taxes and received few services from the British.
Colonists wanted to form their own mercantile organization.
Colonists wanted their own elected officials to be part of the British Parliament.
Colonists wanted a monopoly on the trade in molasses.
27. Which air currents helped travelers sailing from Savannah to London, England in the nineteenth
century?
A.
B.
C.
D.
jet stream
trade winds
Gulf Stream
prevailing westerlies
28. Which ethnic group contributed to Atlanta’s population growth by moving there from rural areas of
Georgia to seek new opportunities in the city?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Hispanic Americans
Asian Americans
Native Americans
African Americans
29. Which explorer is most associated with the exploration of Georgia?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Ponce de León
Amerigo Vespucci
Hernando de Soto
Christopher Columbus
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30. Frederick Douglass was an important member of the abolitionist movement. Which phrase best
describes him?
A.
B.
C.
D.
the only Southern congressman who opposed slavery
a leader in the Underground Railroad who led hundreds to freedom
a well-spoken and well-educated former slave who was a powerful orator
an aide to President Lincoln who developed the Emancipation Proclamation
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