AMH 2010 - Final Exam UPDATED
ACTUAL Exam Questions and CORRECT
Answers
In the years before the Civil War, which slaves were most likely to run away to hide out for short
periods in local areas before returning to their plantation? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Female Slaves
How did field slaves on southern plantations during the 1820s to 1850s most commonly voice
their frustrations? - CORRECT ANSWER - Through song
Why did settlers from the United States organize a rebellion against Mexican rule in 1836? -
CORRECT ANSWER - Antonio López de Santa Anna had appointed a military
commander for Texas to force the settlers to obey Mexican laws.
How did successful southern cotton planters use their profits? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Planters wanted to display their success with large estates and a luxurious lifestyle. The success
of cotton planters from the 1840s on therefore fueled a period of conspicuous consumption
among the southern elite.
Why did unifying all southern whites around a shared sense of racial identity become more
important for slave owners in the years before the Civil War? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Outside the United States many countries were abolishing slavery. For example, Britain forbade
slavery in its colonies in 1834, France in 1848.
Why were house slaves among the most feared by owners in the South in the first half of the
nineteenth century? - CORRECT ANSWER - The close relationship with the master's
family allowed house slaves to learn family secrets and endear themselves to family members,
which gave them leverage over the planter and his family.
What did the economies of the North and South have in common between 1820 and 1850? -
CORRECT ANSWER - Cotton tied together the economies of the North and South as
southern cotton was turned into textiles in northern mills.
, How did plantations change over the course of the nineteenth century? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Plantations increased in size over the nineteenth century as conquest of new
territories combined with increased investment in land to bring more and more land under
cultivation.
Which of the following was true about free blacks in the South from the 1830s to the 1850s? -
CORRECT ANSWER - States regulated the lives of free blacks, and most forbade them
from returning to their state once they left. Some even prohibited free blacks from residing
within their borders at all.
Why could poorer whites not afford to antagonize affluent planters in the American South in the
first half of the nineteenth century? - CORRECT ANSWER - Few poor whites could
afford to alienate the planter elite, who served as affluent benefactors and the providers of credit,
transportation, and assistance.
How did the Liberty Party change the election of 1844? - CORRECT ANSWER - The
small Liberty Party adamantly opposed slavery, denounced the annexation of Texas, and gained
just enough votes in New York to throw the state and the election to Polk.
What was the central point of the platform of the Free-Soil Party in the election of 1848? -
CORRECT ANSWER - The Free-Soil Party broke political conventions of its time by
drawing attention to the issue of slavery rather than avoiding it. Its platform centered on the
exclusion of slaves from western territories.
Which of the following is true of the National Trades Union formed in 1834? - CORRECT
ANSWER - The National Trades Union was established in 1834, with delegates
representing more than twenty-five thousand workers across the North. These organizations
aided skilled workers but refused admission to women and unskilled men.
In addition to the growth of coastal cities, where did boomtowns emerge in the early to mid-
nineteenth century? - CORRECT ANSWER - Along inland waterways
ACTUAL Exam Questions and CORRECT
Answers
In the years before the Civil War, which slaves were most likely to run away to hide out for short
periods in local areas before returning to their plantation? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Female Slaves
How did field slaves on southern plantations during the 1820s to 1850s most commonly voice
their frustrations? - CORRECT ANSWER - Through song
Why did settlers from the United States organize a rebellion against Mexican rule in 1836? -
CORRECT ANSWER - Antonio López de Santa Anna had appointed a military
commander for Texas to force the settlers to obey Mexican laws.
How did successful southern cotton planters use their profits? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Planters wanted to display their success with large estates and a luxurious lifestyle. The success
of cotton planters from the 1840s on therefore fueled a period of conspicuous consumption
among the southern elite.
Why did unifying all southern whites around a shared sense of racial identity become more
important for slave owners in the years before the Civil War? - CORRECT ANSWER -
Outside the United States many countries were abolishing slavery. For example, Britain forbade
slavery in its colonies in 1834, France in 1848.
Why were house slaves among the most feared by owners in the South in the first half of the
nineteenth century? - CORRECT ANSWER - The close relationship with the master's
family allowed house slaves to learn family secrets and endear themselves to family members,
which gave them leverage over the planter and his family.
What did the economies of the North and South have in common between 1820 and 1850? -
CORRECT ANSWER - Cotton tied together the economies of the North and South as
southern cotton was turned into textiles in northern mills.
, How did plantations change over the course of the nineteenth century? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Plantations increased in size over the nineteenth century as conquest of new
territories combined with increased investment in land to bring more and more land under
cultivation.
Which of the following was true about free blacks in the South from the 1830s to the 1850s? -
CORRECT ANSWER - States regulated the lives of free blacks, and most forbade them
from returning to their state once they left. Some even prohibited free blacks from residing
within their borders at all.
Why could poorer whites not afford to antagonize affluent planters in the American South in the
first half of the nineteenth century? - CORRECT ANSWER - Few poor whites could
afford to alienate the planter elite, who served as affluent benefactors and the providers of credit,
transportation, and assistance.
How did the Liberty Party change the election of 1844? - CORRECT ANSWER - The
small Liberty Party adamantly opposed slavery, denounced the annexation of Texas, and gained
just enough votes in New York to throw the state and the election to Polk.
What was the central point of the platform of the Free-Soil Party in the election of 1848? -
CORRECT ANSWER - The Free-Soil Party broke political conventions of its time by
drawing attention to the issue of slavery rather than avoiding it. Its platform centered on the
exclusion of slaves from western territories.
Which of the following is true of the National Trades Union formed in 1834? - CORRECT
ANSWER - The National Trades Union was established in 1834, with delegates
representing more than twenty-five thousand workers across the North. These organizations
aided skilled workers but refused admission to women and unskilled men.
In addition to the growth of coastal cities, where did boomtowns emerge in the early to mid-
nineteenth century? - CORRECT ANSWER - Along inland waterways
