2008 civics test: The 1800s and recent history

Questions 71 to 87 of the official 2008 list, with every accepted answer and a short note on each.

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1800s

Seven questions on the nineteenth century: the Louisiana Purchase, the wars of the century, the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln, the Emancipation Proclamation and Susan B. Anthony.

1. 71 What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?

   • the Louisiana Territory
   • Louisiana

   The purchase about doubled the size of the country, adding land west of the Mississippi River.

2. 72 Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.

   • War of 1812
   • Mexican-American War
   • Civil War
   • Spanish-American War

   One answer is enough. Note the dates: only wars between 1800 and 1899 count here.

3. 73 Name the U.S. war between the North and the South.

   • the Civil War
   • the War between the States

   It was fought from 1861 to 1865 between the Union (the North) and the Confederacy (the South).

4. 74 Name one problem that led to the Civil War.

   • slavery
   • economic reasons
   • states’ rights

   One answer is enough. The northern and southern states disagreed above all about slavery.

5. 75 What was one important thing that Abraham Lincoln did? 65/20

   • freed the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation)
   • saved (or preserved) the Union
   • led the United States during the Civil War

   Lincoln was the 16th president. He led the country through the Civil War and was killed in 1865.

6. 76 What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?

   • freed the slaves
   • freed slaves in the Confederacy
   • freed slaves in the Confederate states
   • freed slaves in most Southern states

   Lincoln issued it on January 1, 1863. It declared slaves in the Confederate states to be free.

7. 77 What did Susan B. Anthony do?

   • fought for women’s rights
   • fought for civil rights

   Susan B. Anthony campaigned for decades for women's right to vote, which came in 1920, after her death.

Recent American History and Other Important Historical Information

Ten questions on the twentieth century and after: the world wars and the presidents who led the country through them, the Cold War, the civil rights movement, Martin Luther King, Jr., and September 11, 2001.

1. 78 Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s. 65/20

   • World War I
   • World War II
   • Korean War
   • Vietnam War
   • (Persian) Gulf War

   One answer is enough. Only wars between 1900 and 1999 count here.

2. 79 Who was President during World War I?

   • (Woodrow) Wilson

   Woodrow Wilson was president from 1913 to 1921. The United States entered World War I in 1917.

3. 80 Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?

   • (Franklin) Roosevelt

   Franklin Roosevelt was elected four times and served from 1933 until his death in 1945.

4. 81 Who did the United States fight in World War II?

   • Japan, Germany, and Italy

   These three countries were called the Axis powers.

5. 82 Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?

   • World War II

   Eisenhower commanded the Allied forces in Europe in World War II and was president from 1953 to 1961.

6. 83 During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?

   • Communism

   The United States feared the spread of communism and a war fought with nuclear weapons.

7. 84 What movement tried to end racial discrimination?

   • civil rights (movement)

   The movement of the 1950s and 1960s won laws that ended legal segregation and protected the right to vote.

8. 85 What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do? 65/20

   • fought for civil rights
   • worked for equality for all Americans

   King led peaceful protests for equal rights. He was killed in 1968. A national holiday honours him in January.

9. 86 What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the United States?

   • Terrorists attacked the United States.

   Hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon near Washington; a fourth crashed in Pennsylvania.

10. 87 Name one American Indian tribe in the United States. [USCIS Officers will be supplied with a list of federally recognized American Indian tribes.]

    • Cherokee
    • Navajo
    • Sioux
    • Chippewa
    • Choctaw
    • Pueblo
    • Apache
    • Iroquois
    • Creek
    • Blackfeet
    • Seminole
    • Cheyenne
    • Arawak
    • Shawnee
    • Mohegan
    • Huron
    • Oneida
    • Lakota
    • Crow
    • Teton
    • Hopi
    • Inuit

    One answer is enough. Choose a name you can say easily, and learn to pronounce it clearly.

Studying this part

• This part has 17 of the 100 questions, numbers 71 to 87 in the official list.
• 3 questions here are marked 65/20: no. 75, no. 78, no. 85. Applicants who qualify for the 65/20 special consideration study only the marked questions.
• Where several answers are listed, one is enough unless the question asks for more. Choose the one you find easiest to say.
• Cover the answers with your hand or use the button below, say your answer aloud, then check.

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