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Quiz about American History by Decade the 1790s

American History by Decade: the 1790s Quiz

How much do you know about what happened in America during the 1790s?

A multiple-choice quiz by LIBGOV. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
LIBGOV

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
377,682

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
8 / 10

Plays
722

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. In 1791, the first state that was not part of the original 13 colonies joined the Union. Which state was it? Hint

Vermont

Tennessee

New York

Alabama

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. George Washington was elected to his second term as president in 1792. Who served as his vice president? Hint

Thomas Jefferson

John Adams

James Madison

James Monroe

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. In 1793, Eli Whitney patented an invention that would change American agriculture. What did he invent? Hint

Spread planter

Thresher

Cotton gin

Metal plow

NEXT>

Question 4 of 10

4. In 1793, Congress passed a law ensuring the right of a slave owner to recover any escaped slave. What was the name of this law? Hint

Compromise of 1793

Stop the Underground Railroad Proviso

Fugitive Slave Act

Slave Recovery Act

NEXT>

Question 5 of 10

5. In July 1794, a group of western Pennsylvania farmers took up arms to protest a tax that had been imposed on one of their products. What was the name of this insurrection? Hint

Whiskey Rebellion

Wheat Insurgency

Corn Uprising

Pork Defiance

NEXT>

Question 6 of 10

6. Tennessee became the 16th state in 1796. What other state had Tennessee been part of prior to joining the Union on its own? Hint

Kentucky

Texas

Georgia

North Carolina

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. John Adams was elected the 2nd president in 1796. To what now defunct political party did he belong? Hint

Democrat-Republican

Know Nothing

Whig

Federalist

8. In 1797, the United States sent three diplomats to France to negotiate a stop to French interference with trade between the United States and Great Britain. French foreign minister Talleyrand demanded a bribe before he would negotiate leading to an end to the diplomatic mission and a Quasi-War between the United States and France for the next two years. What was the alphabetic name for this incident? Hint

The ABC affair

The JFK affair

The PBR affair

The XYZ affair

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. In 1797, the United States ship The Constitution was launched in Boston and used against the Barbary Pirates near Tripoli. What is The Constitution's well known nickname? Hint

Old Faithful

The Indomitable

Greyhound of the Sea

Old Ironsides

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. In 1798, the Federalists in Congress passed several bills that allowed the United States to deport dangerous foreigners living in the United States and restricted speech critical of the federal government. What were these controversial bills called? Hint

The Alien and Sedition Acts

The Intolerable Acts

The Townshend Acts

The Don't Criticize the Federalists Acts

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. In 1791, the first state that was not part of the original 13 colonies joined the Union. Which state was it?

Answer: Vermont

Vermont had been an independent nation since 1777 (originally called The Republic of New Connecticut). The original Vermont constitution prohibited slavery and allowed universal adult male suffrage.

2. George Washington was elected to his second term as president in 1792. Who served as his vice president?

Answer: John Adams

The rules at the time stipulated that the person with the second most votes for president would become vice president. However, Washington was unanimously selected by all the electors, and so a second vote had to be held for vice president. Adams defeated George Clinton who was Governor of New York.

3. In 1793, Eli Whitney patented an invention that would change American agriculture. What did he invent?

Answer: Cotton gin

The cotton gin allowed an operator to separate the cotton fiber from the seeds on a large scale. The invention allowed large scale production of cotton in the Southern states that would become the backbone of their economies.

4. In 1793, Congress passed a law ensuring the right of a slave owner to recover any escaped slave. What was the name of this law?

Answer: Fugitive Slave Act

The Fugitive Slave Act was updated in 1850 to penalize any official in a non-slave state who did not return an escaped slave. The updated act increased tensions between the North and South prior to the Civil War.

5. In July 1794, a group of western Pennsylvania farmers took up arms to protest a tax that had been imposed on one of their products. What was the name of this insurrection?

Answer: Whiskey Rebellion

Five hundred farmers attacked the home of tax collector John Neville, and an army was sent led by George Washington to suppress the rebellion. Whiskey was the first domestic product taxed by the new federal government, and the farmers believed that only local authorities had the power to tax them.

6. Tennessee became the 16th state in 1796. What other state had Tennessee been part of prior to joining the Union on its own?

Answer: North Carolina

In 1784, three counties in what would eventually become Tennessee broke off from North Carolina and briefly formed the state of Franklin. Those counties eventually returned to North Carolina, but in 1790, North Carolina ceded the land that was to become Tennessee to the federal government.

7. John Adams was elected the 2nd president in 1796. To what now defunct political party did he belong?

Answer: Federalist

The Federalist party was the United States' first political party, and it lasted until 1816. The Federalist party believed in a strong federal government, a national bank, and wanted good relations with Great Britain. Jefferson's Democratic Republicans opposed all of these.

Answer: The XYZ affair

Congress demanded to see dispatches that were sent to President Adams about the incident. The dispatches Adams gave to Congress replaced several of the French participants' names with the letters X, Y, and Z which is what gave the incident its name.

9. In 1797, the United States ship The Constitution was launched in Boston and used against the Barbary Pirates near Tripoli. What is The Constitution's well known nickname?

Answer: Old Ironsides

The ship earned its nickname during the War of 1812. In battle with the HMS Guerriere, several shots bounced harmlessly off the side of the ship leading to the famous nickname.

Answer: The Alien and Sedition Acts

James Madison and Thomas Jefferson were vehemently opposed to the Alien and Sedition Acts because they appeared to violate the First Amendment guarantees of free speech. Jefferson pardoned all those prosecuted under the Alien and Sedition Acts when he became president.

Source: Author LIBGOV

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