AP U.S. HISTORY
UNIT 1 PRACTICE TEST
Contact and Colonization, c. 1491 to c. 1607
25 questions — modeled on official AP question styles and stimulus formats.
Give yourself 30 minutes. Answers and explanations begin on a separate page after the questions.
Multiple Choice Questions
Questions 1–2 refer to the following passage.
“From the great earthen mounds of Cahokia along the Mississippi, home to a sophisticated agricultural and trading
society, to the multi-story adobe dwellings of the Pueblo peoples in the arid Southwest, to the salmon-based economies of
Pacific Northwest peoples, Native American societies before European contact varied enormously in their social
structures, economies, and relationships with the environment.”
1. The passage most directly supports which of the following conclusions about Native American societies before
European contact?
A) Native American societies were culturally and economically uniform across the continent
B) Native American societies developed diverse, complex social and economic structures shaped by their varied
environments
C) Native American societies had no permanent settlements prior to European contact
D) Agricultural societies did not exist in the Americas before 1492
E) All Native American societies practiced identical forms of governance
2. The Mississippian culture centered at Cahokia, referenced in the passage, is most notable among historians as
evidence of:
A) A purely nomadic hunter-gatherer society with no permanent settlements
B) A large, complex, urbanized society supported by agriculture and extensive regional trade networks
C) The first Native American society to adopt European farming techniques
D) A society located exclusively in the arid Southwest
E) A society with no social hierarchy or political organization
Questions 3–4 refer to the following passage.
“They brought us parrots and balls of cotton thread and spears... and many other things, and we exchanged them for
other things, such as glass beads... They were very well built, with very handsome bodies... They do not carry arms or
know them... They should be good servants.” — adapted from the journal of Christopher Columbus, 1492
3. Columbus's description in the passage most directly reflects which set of motivations that shaped early European
exploration and colonization of the Americas?
A) A purely scientific desire to map unknown territory, with no economic motivation
B) An interest in the potential for trade goods and the labor of indigenous peoples to serve European economic
interests
C) A commitment to establishing peaceful, equal trading partnerships with no exploitation
, D) An exclusive focus on religious conversion with no economic interest
E) A rejection of any further contact with indigenous peoples
4. Columbus's voyage and the encounters it initiated are most directly associated with the beginning of which broader
process?
A) The Columbian Exchange
B) The Atlantic slave trade's end
C) The decline of Spanish influence in the Americas
D) The founding of the first permanent English colony
E) The end of European interest in overseas expansion
Questions 5–7 refer to the following passage.
“The Spaniards, with their horses and swords and lances, began to slaughter and practice strange cruelty among the
Indians... They forced their way into native settlements, sparing neither children nor the aged... and they laid waste to this
land.” — adapted from the writings of a 16th-century Spanish Dominican friar critical of Spanish colonial treatment of
Native Americans
5. This passage is most likely drawn from the writings of which historical figure?
A) Christopher Columbus
B) Hernan Cortés
C) Bartolomé de las Casas
D) John Smith
E) Samuel de Champlain
6. The critique expressed in the passage was most directly aimed at which system of forced indigenous labor used in
Spanish colonies?
A) The encomienda system
B) The joint-stock company system
C) The headright system
D) The Atlantic slave trade exclusively
E) The fur trade partnership system used by the French
7. The system criticized in the passage granted Spanish colonists the right to:
A) Demand tribute and forced labor from indigenous peoples in a designated area, in exchange for supposedly
“protecting” and Christianizing them
B) Purchase enslaved Africans exclusively, with no involvement of Native American labor
C) Vote in Spanish colonial elections
D) Receive free land grants with no labor obligations attached
E) Establish independent, self-governing indigenous republics
8. The Spanish colonial “casta” system was primarily used to:
A) Classify and rank colonial society based on race and ancestry (e.g., peninsulares, criollos, mestizos, and others)
B) Organize colonists by religious denomination only
C) Distribute land equally among all colonists regardless of background
D) Eliminate all social distinctions in Spanish colonies
E) Classify colonists by their region of origin in Spain only
Questions 9–10 refer to the following passage.
UNIT 1 PRACTICE TEST
Contact and Colonization, c. 1491 to c. 1607
25 questions — modeled on official AP question styles and stimulus formats.
Give yourself 30 minutes. Answers and explanations begin on a separate page after the questions.
Multiple Choice Questions
Questions 1–2 refer to the following passage.
“From the great earthen mounds of Cahokia along the Mississippi, home to a sophisticated agricultural and trading
society, to the multi-story adobe dwellings of the Pueblo peoples in the arid Southwest, to the salmon-based economies of
Pacific Northwest peoples, Native American societies before European contact varied enormously in their social
structures, economies, and relationships with the environment.”
1. The passage most directly supports which of the following conclusions about Native American societies before
European contact?
A) Native American societies were culturally and economically uniform across the continent
B) Native American societies developed diverse, complex social and economic structures shaped by their varied
environments
C) Native American societies had no permanent settlements prior to European contact
D) Agricultural societies did not exist in the Americas before 1492
E) All Native American societies practiced identical forms of governance
2. The Mississippian culture centered at Cahokia, referenced in the passage, is most notable among historians as
evidence of:
A) A purely nomadic hunter-gatherer society with no permanent settlements
B) A large, complex, urbanized society supported by agriculture and extensive regional trade networks
C) The first Native American society to adopt European farming techniques
D) A society located exclusively in the arid Southwest
E) A society with no social hierarchy or political organization
Questions 3–4 refer to the following passage.
“They brought us parrots and balls of cotton thread and spears... and many other things, and we exchanged them for
other things, such as glass beads... They were very well built, with very handsome bodies... They do not carry arms or
know them... They should be good servants.” — adapted from the journal of Christopher Columbus, 1492
3. Columbus's description in the passage most directly reflects which set of motivations that shaped early European
exploration and colonization of the Americas?
A) A purely scientific desire to map unknown territory, with no economic motivation
B) An interest in the potential for trade goods and the labor of indigenous peoples to serve European economic
interests
C) A commitment to establishing peaceful, equal trading partnerships with no exploitation
, D) An exclusive focus on religious conversion with no economic interest
E) A rejection of any further contact with indigenous peoples
4. Columbus's voyage and the encounters it initiated are most directly associated with the beginning of which broader
process?
A) The Columbian Exchange
B) The Atlantic slave trade's end
C) The decline of Spanish influence in the Americas
D) The founding of the first permanent English colony
E) The end of European interest in overseas expansion
Questions 5–7 refer to the following passage.
“The Spaniards, with their horses and swords and lances, began to slaughter and practice strange cruelty among the
Indians... They forced their way into native settlements, sparing neither children nor the aged... and they laid waste to this
land.” — adapted from the writings of a 16th-century Spanish Dominican friar critical of Spanish colonial treatment of
Native Americans
5. This passage is most likely drawn from the writings of which historical figure?
A) Christopher Columbus
B) Hernan Cortés
C) Bartolomé de las Casas
D) John Smith
E) Samuel de Champlain
6. The critique expressed in the passage was most directly aimed at which system of forced indigenous labor used in
Spanish colonies?
A) The encomienda system
B) The joint-stock company system
C) The headright system
D) The Atlantic slave trade exclusively
E) The fur trade partnership system used by the French
7. The system criticized in the passage granted Spanish colonists the right to:
A) Demand tribute and forced labor from indigenous peoples in a designated area, in exchange for supposedly
“protecting” and Christianizing them
B) Purchase enslaved Africans exclusively, with no involvement of Native American labor
C) Vote in Spanish colonial elections
D) Receive free land grants with no labor obligations attached
E) Establish independent, self-governing indigenous republics
8. The Spanish colonial “casta” system was primarily used to:
A) Classify and rank colonial society based on race and ancestry (e.g., peninsulares, criollos, mestizos, and others)
B) Organize colonists by religious denomination only
C) Distribute land equally among all colonists regardless of background
D) Eliminate all social distinctions in Spanish colonies
E) Classify colonists by their region of origin in Spain only
Questions 9–10 refer to the following passage.
