The American Civil War Trivia Quiz

Answer: Pea Ridge

Fought in March of 1862, the Union forces under Brig. General Samuel Curtis defeated the Confederate army of Earl Van Dorn at Pea Ridge in northwestern Arkansas. If victorious, Van Dorn intended to march to St. Louis and then cross the Mississippi River and invade Illinois.

Answer: Cairo, IL

Cairo, a small town at the southern tip of Illinois, was the second most important place in the north because it sits at the confluence of the Ohio River and Mississippi River. Cairo served as the jumping off point for every western Union army movement in the beginning of the war.

Answer: General Ambrose Burnside

Burnside was born in Liberty, Indiana but would go on to become Rhode Island's state governor. Thomas and Scott were from Virginia. Farragut was from Tennessee. Thomas's family would disown him for not joining the South.

Answer: Alexander Stephens

Alexander Stephens and Abraham Lincoln were close friends while they both served in the U.S. House of Representatives. Sam Houston was governor of Texas when the state seceded. He refused to take the oath of loyalty to the C.S.A.

Answer: Charles Stone

Stone was jailed for six months, accused of, among other things, being too friendly with people of the South. He was never formally charged with anything. Edward Baker was killed in the fight at Ball's Bluff.

Answer: John Pemberton

Lt. General John Pemberton was a native of Philadelphia. His wife was from Virginia and while at West Point, he was such a lover of the South that he was nicknamed "States' Rights" Pemberton. He had two brothers that fought for the Union. The people of Mississippi never trusted him, never forgetting that he was a Yankee.

He was so devoted to the South that after he surrendered his army at Vicksburg, he resigned his commission and served out the remainder of the war as a Lt. colonel of artillery.

Answer: St. Albans

The raiders robbed the bank and terrorized the citizens, but failed to burn the town as they intended. They fled back to Canada where some of them were captured by Canadian authorities.

Answer: Allan Pinkerton

This faulty intelligence helped to frighten McClellan into missing glorious opportunities to capture Richmond or destroy the Army of Northern Virginia. While outnumbering Robert E. Lee's army 100,000 to 50,000, he thought he was outnumbered 200,000 to 100,000! McClellan was a bad enough general without this added handicap.

Answer: Chambersburg

Two-thirds of Chambersburg was burned to the ground on July 30, 1864 in response to the destruction of the Virginia Military Institute by Union General David Hunter.

Answer: Joseph Hooker

Though he failed as commander of the Army of the Potomac, Joe Hooker did much to rebuild the morale of the army after the disaster at Fredericksburg. He improved rations and camp life and perhaps his best idea, he issued distinctive badges to the army corps. This helped to create much needed esprit de corps.