Ninth Grade U.S. History Trivia Quiz

Answer: Lewis and Clark

Jefferson chose Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore the Louisiana Purchase. They set out by traveling up the Mississippi River and then west across the great expanse of land until they found the Pacific Ocean. They described their journey in a diary, and their trip west and the back again took almost three years.

Answer: A sudden and violent thunderstorm extinguished most of the fire

Fires were raging in public buildings including the White House. A violent thunderstorm, that has been called a "hurricane" by some (but was not), hit the city at about nightfall and a deluge of rain extinguished the fires and saved the city.

Answer: Both the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and the C&O Canal started construction on the same day

Both companies broke ground on the same day hoping to beat the other with the fastest way to the west. President John Quincy Adams was present at the scene of the canal ceremony and supposedly turned the first spade of earth. As things turned out the canal company had a very difficult time with flooding, labor problems, and the terrain but eventually finished their work at Cumberland, Md.

Answer: Because of the potato famine in Ireland

The diet of the Irish was dependent on the potato. A virus infected the potato leaving it worthless and many Irish citizens began starving. Many of those who could afford to, started leaving Ireland in large numbers in the 1840's and many of them landed at New York and settled there. Many of the first police officers and firemen in New York were Irishmen.

Answer: About 120 feet

The Wright Brothers took their "aeroplane" to the sands near Kitty Hawk and for good measure took along five members of the U.S. Life-Saving Service as witnesses. (What better witnesses could you have?) The plane took off, left the ground, and traveled approximately 120 feet on the first attempt.

Answer: September 17, 1862

The Battle of Antietam was fought at Sharpsburg, Md on September 17, 1862 between the Union forces and the Confederate army. While it will never be known with certainty, historians say that 23,000 men were either killed or injured in this battle. About 3,700 were killed although the number is probably higher. To give some perspective more Americans were killed on this day than during the entire Revolutionary War.

Answer: A time in the early 20th century when it was illegal to sell alcoholic beverages

The 18th amendment, which was passed in 1919 and took effect in 1920, ushered in a time called the Prohibition when it was against the law to sell or buy alcoholic beverages. Most historians now say it was a complete failure because it gave rise to illegal alcohol sales, violence, and gangsters rose to prominence. Prohibition ended in 1933.

Answer: The United States aircraft carriers were not in Pearl Harbor

When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor they sank many of the battleships that were anchored in the harbor. Luckily the aircraft carriers were at sea on patrol. Some say that this single factor allowed the United States to quickly recover and destroy the Japanese fleet.

Answer: NVA

The Civilian Conservation Corps hired men to construct roads, bridges, and other projects giving them work and hope. The Tennessee Valley Authority was a project where dams were constructed in the south giving electricity to many for the first time. The Works Project Administration was similar to the CCC and provided jobs for those unemployed persons who were on relief.

Answer: John D. Rockefeller

Rockefeller bought up many of the oil wells and refineries in the United States and founded Standard Oil in 1870. At one time he was accused of using monopolistic policies and later become the richest man in the world during his time.