America Before Independence Trivia Quiz

Answer: Native Americans

The exact way in which Native American tribes arrived in America is unknown, but there are some ideas. One of the most accepted, if not the most accepted, ideas is that they crossed the Bering Strait, which is 53 miles from Russia to Alaska. This trek occurred thousands of years ago, and the sea levels were so low that a land bridge existed meaning Native Americans could walk through without the use of a boat.

The reason they came is believed as a result of searching for food.

Answer: Columbus

Over a period of about 12 years, Columbus made four voyages to the New World. During his first voyage, he met a group of Native Americans called the Taino, a tribe of friendly people whom Columbus viewed as the best people in the world. The Taino warned Columbus about the Caribs (where we get the word Caribbean), also called the Canibs (where we get the world cannibal), although Columbus would not actually meet Caribs during his first voyage. When Columbus returned as part of his second voyage and upon learning the Caribs enslaved women and ate people (including, most likely, some of the men who stayed behind at the end of Columbus's first voyage), Columbus fought the Caribs and freed the enslaved.

Not all the Caribs were killed; some were brought to Europe as prisoners.

Answer: Virginia

Jamestown, Virginia can lay claim to being the first permanent English settlement and served as the capital of the Virginia Territory until 1699. In the 1600s, Virginia included not only modern-day Virginia, but also all or part of West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Pennsylvania.

The settlers came from England to Virginia to escape religious persecution, since they believed in a different denomination of Christianity than the state established religion of England, which at the time was Anglican.

The name Jamestown came from the then-king of England James I. It was here where these settlers would encounter the Pamunkey Native Americans, one of whom was Pocahontas.

Answer: Massachusetts

The Pilgrims boarded the Mayflower, intending to go to Jamestown, Virginia, where the other settlement was, but a storm took them off course, and the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Harbor in Massachusetts after a 66-day journey where the 102 passengers were crowded below deck. Having arrived in Massachusetts, they found the area deserted, which they later learned from a Native American named Samoset, was the result of an epidemic killing the Patauxet tribe a few years earlier, and other Native American tribes wanting to avoid that area.

They arrived near wintertime, and it was during the first winter, a harsh winter, that half of the Pilgrims died and nearly all of them were affected in some way by the winter. Fortunately, Someset and essentially Squanto, two Native Americans who spoke well enough English to talk with the Puritans, helped the Puritans out and taught them how to survive.

Answer: college

Harvard was the first available college in America, established in 1636 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. However, it was not the first college in America; that was Henricus in 1622 in Virginia. Henricus was never open, because while it was being built, Native Americans attacked the Virginians, forcing plans to be abandoned. For about the next 60 years, Harvard would be the only American college. Like all colleges at the time, it was focused on teaching the Bible to train potential future ministers.

This can be seen from an early motto: For Christ and the Church. (In the mid-1800s, the motto was changed to Veritas, meaning truth.)

Answer: Christianity

The First Great Awakening started in the 1730s and continued for a few more decades. This awakening was meant to return the American colonies back to Biblical roots and the teachings of Christianity. With the awakening, like many revivals, it is usually impossible to determine who started it, but key players often emerge. This revival started in Massachusetts but eventually spread to all the colonies, thanks to pastors like George Whitefield who would travel the country preaching sermon after sermon about the kind of Godly principles they should have. Topics include religious tolerance of all Christians regardless of denomination and issues relevant to the era, such as the characteristics of a good soldier, people ruling who respect God, and the repeal of the Stamp Act, which raised taxes on the American colonies.

Answer: Georgia

Georgia was founded by James Oglethorpe in 1732, meaning it was a colony for only 44 years. Compare this with Virginia, which was settled for 169 years. The name Georgia came from the then-king of England, George II. Persecuted Christians, such as Moravians, and Jews were among the first settlers.

Indeed, Oglethorpe wanted Georgia to be a religious colony, and that is one of the reasons why people came to Georgia. A year after Georgia was founded, Savannah became its capital. Augusta would become the capital in 1782 after the British captured Savannah.

It would remain the capital until 1782 when Louisville and Milledgeville became capitals. Atlanta would return to being Georgia's capital in 1868.

Answer: John Adams

In 1770, a British officer hit a colonist after said colonist insulted him. Other colonists heard the smacked man cry out and went out to investigate. During this, the crowd threw rocks and sticks at the British soldiers and dared the British to shoot at them.

More British troops arrived to defend their fellows in arms and attack the colonists. This resulted in the death of five colonists, the wounding of several more colonists, and the event would later become known as the Boston Massacre. The soldiers were arrested, but John Adams defended them, even though he was anti-British, because Adams believed everybody had a right to a lawyer and a fair trial. Several of the British he defended were cleared of any charges while others had reduced sentences. Adams stated that the British were acting in self-defense, something that even one of the five colonists who died acknowledged. Even though his fellow colonists hated the results of the trial, they understood why Adams defended the British, and the incident did not damage Adams's reputation.

Indeed, just a few years later, they elected him to be a delegate to the First Continental Congress.

Answer: William Henry Harrison

William Henry Harrison was born February 9, 1773, a little over three years before America gained independence from Great Britain. The first seven presidents (from Washington to Jackson) were also born before July 4, 1776. Martin van Buren, the eighth president, was the first president born after 1776.
Harrison's father, Benjamin, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and his grandson, also called Benjamin, would become the country's 23rd president.
Harrison is well known for being the first president to die in office, about 30 days after taking office. However, Harrison had other significant events happen in his life. He was the first president to have his photo taken while in office (John Quincy Adams was the first president to have his photo taken, but that was after his presidency ended). He was the first president elected from the Whig party and the first to have a campaign slogan (Tippecanoe and Tyler Too).
Harrison was also a military leader, with his most notable battle being the Battle of Tippecanoe. Native Americans led by Tecumseh wanted pioneers off their land, so in 1811, Harrison led troops to battle, if necessary, but a cease fire was negotiated instead. Tenskwatawa wanted to break the cease fire, so he and some Native Americans surrounded Harrison's men and attacked them. Harrison torched the town, securing victory for the pioneers. When the War of 1812 began, Tecumseh allied with Great Britain against the United States.

Answer: Mayflower Compact

The Mayflower Compact was signed by the Pilgrims in 1620 prior to debarking their ship. Since this area was not under any control, there was no government for the Pilgrims, so a governmental compact had to be written, hence the Mayflower Compact. Altogether, there were 102 "Pilgrims and strangers" on the Mayflower: 41 Pilgrims and 61 strangers. Pilgrims referred to those who separated from the Church of England, which they believed was teaching anti-Biblical concepts; strangers referred to those who were loyal to the Church of England.

The 41 Pilgrims signed the document. The compact stated that there would be a government of equal and just laws which shall be obeyed. The original Mayflower Compact has been lost, most likely during the American Revolution.

However, there were duplicates written of the compact, so we still know what the document said and who signed it.