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Civil War Medical Stuff Trivia Quiz

While watching a news interview show that had an expert on Civil War Medicine history I decided to create this quiz.

A multiple-choice quiz by foxgap. Estimated time: 6 mins.

Author
foxgap

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
107,531

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
25

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
13 / 25

Plays
5522

Awards
Top 5% quiz!

Last 3 plays: Guest 174 (14/25), Guest 174 (13/25), Guest 172 (14/25).

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 25

1. The foundations of the development of modern medicine in the U.S. started during the Civil War.

True

False

NEXT>

Question 2 of 25

2. Roughly, how many people died during the Civil War? Hint

82,000

2,000,000

620,000

450,000

NEXT>

Question 3 of 25

3. Did Civil War surgeons and medical teams know about germ theory and antiseptics?

Yes

NEXT>

Question 4 of 25

4. About how many medical schools were there in America prior to the Civil War? Hint

Over 100

Only 6

Over 200

Over 40

NEXT>

Question 5 of 25

5. Besides medical school what other method of becoming a doctor was there? Hint

Picked by the governor

To have once been a dentist

Self study by mail

Apprenticeships with established doctors

NEXT>

Question 6 of 25

6. What was the usual course of studies in medical schools prior to the Civil War? Hint

Two 6 month terms of lectures

Eight years of study

Four years of study

Two years

NEXT>

Question 7 of 25

7. Were new recruits allowed to enter service with chronic diseases or physical defects?

Yes

NEXT>

Question 8 of 25

8. Why did many new recruits become victims of illnesses? Hint

All of these

Poor diets

Large numbers of people in camps

Unsanitary conditions

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Question 9 of 25

9. What percentage of deaths were due to disease rather than wounds? Hint

67%

10%

50%

45%

NEXT>

Question 10 of 25

10. In August of 1862 what did Jonathan Letterman, the medical director of The Army of the Potomac, develop to help in the care of wounded soldiers? Hint

Medical chests of surgical instruments

Morphine

An organized system of ambulances

Ether

NEXT>

Question 11 of 25

11. Were horses and mules an important part of medical evacuation plans during the Civil War?

Yes

NEXT>

Question 12 of 25

12. How many horses are estimated to have died during the Civil War? Hint

1,000,000

500,000

80,000

2,000,000

NEXT>

Question 13 of 25

13. Where did wounded soldiers typically receive their first care after being picked up from the battlefield? Hint

Field hospital

Field dress station

General area hospital

Main battle hospital

NEXT>

Question 14 of 25

14. Jonathan Letterman was quoted as saying what about the wounded? Hint

"We try to save them all, sadly some do die"

"Humanity teaches us that a wounded and prostrate foe is not then our enemy"

"Treat our boys first, the Rebs can wait"

"What a waste, they're all good boys"

NEXT>

Question 15 of 25

15. At field hospitals the wounded were divided into three groups. Which of the following was not one of these groups? Hint

Slightly wounded

Badly wounded

Mortally wounded

Surgical cases

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Question 16 of 25

16. In field hospitals most surgeries of the wounded were amputations, true or false?

True

False

17. If you watch many Civil War movies you usually see someone screaming in pain as they are held down to have a limb cut off. In reality what percent of operations were done under some form of anesthetic? Hint

75%

40%

60%

95%

NEXT>

Question 18 of 25

18. Amputations were usually the result of which of the following? Hint

Poor condition of the patients

Severe nature of the wound

All of these

The number of patients needing immediate attention

NEXT>

Question 19 of 25

19. Once general hospitals were put into use, what did the survival rate of the wounded reach? Hint

92%

45%

70%

NEXT>

Question 20 of 25

20. As large battles with lots of casualties raged on, the stretcher business became big business. Two companies, Satterlee and Holstead, were some of the first to supply this equipment. Surprisingly, what did these first stretchers weigh in approximate terms? Hint

5 pounds

24 pounds

12 pounds

35 pounds

NEXT>

Question 21 of 25

21. Medicines and tonics had to be taken to where the wounded were. What packaging was most often used for these during the Civil War? Hint

Tin containers

Paper wrappers

Glass containers

Paper board boxes

NEXT>

Question 22 of 25

22. Hospital department bottles were produced in many colors. They came in clear, aqua, cobalt blue, apricot, purple, and shades of green. Did the colors of the bottles show any clear signs as to the medicine contained in the bottles?

Yes

NEXT>

Question 23 of 25

23. What year did Hospital Department bottle production end? Hint

1880

1920

1900

1865

NEXT>

Question 24 of 25

24. What was a "Squibb Pannier"? Hint

A compact medical chest

A hospital wagon

A revolutionary surgical device

A surgical procedure that reduced amputations

NEXT>

Question 25 of 25

25. For those families who could afford to have their loved one's remains shipped home for burial, what was the most favored means of preparing the bodies? Hint

Just send the remains as quick as possible

Packing the remains in ice

Embalming the remains

Wrap the remains in tar covered cloth

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. The foundations of the development of modern medicine in the U.S. started during the Civil War.

Answer: True

Many of today's practices and procedures were started during the Civil War as doctors and surgeons were pushed to come up with new ideas and practices due to the large number of men that needed treatment.

2. Roughly, how many people died during the Civil War?

Answer: 620,000

Without the new techniques of medicine developed and used at the time, it is estimated that twice that number would have died.

3. Did Civil War surgeons and medical teams know about germ theory and antiseptics?

Answer: No

Sadly, they did not. These discoveries didn't come till years later. This was one of the primary reasons that many died during the early stages of treatment.

4. About how many medical schools were there in America prior to the Civil War?

Answer: Over 40

This was not a lot of doctors for the upcoming numbers of casualties that were soon to occur.

5. Besides medical school what other method of becoming a doctor was there?

Answer: Apprenticeships with established doctors

Although one could probably put on a bandage, an apprenticeship was the only proper and legal way.

6. What was the usual course of studies in medical schools prior to the Civil War?

Answer: Two 6 month terms of lectures

Often the second six months was a repeat of the first. The new challenges that awaited them would soon put them to the test, especially the young doctors with limited experience.

7. Were new recruits allowed to enter service with chronic diseases or physical defects?

Answer: Yes

Surprisingly they were, recruits were required to take a physical prior to service but with the massive numbers of men to be checked the examining doctors did a somewhat less than full check of the recruit's condition.

8. Why did many new recruits become victims of illnesses?

Answer: All of these

Huge training camps were set up to ready the new soldiers for war. Many didn't have a large enough water supply for the number of men there which made diarrhea and dysentery deadly problems. Many rural men had never been exposed to what were normal childhood sicknesses of urban dwellers, and getting proper food to so many was a problem.

9. What percentage of deaths were due to disease rather than wounds?

Answer: 67%

With two-thirds of the deaths coming from disease both sides had problems that were hard to handle where the troops themselves were.

10. In August of 1862 what did Jonathan Letterman, the medical director of The Army of the Potomac, develop to help in the care of wounded soldiers?

Answer: An organized system of ambulances

The new ambulance service greatly reduced the time that it took to get the wounded to areas of care. He also introduced training of stretcher bearers to assist in this effort. To this day these ideas remain the basis for present military evacuation plans.

11. Were horses and mules an important part of medical evacuation plans during the Civil War?

Answer: Yes

It took great numbers of these animals to pull the wagons and do other heavy duty work. A person with good animals for sale to the army could make a good deal of money for his efforts.

12. How many horses are estimated to have died during the Civil War?

Answer: 1,000,000

Large infirmaries were developed to treat sick and exhausted animals. You do not hear much about it, but veterinary medicine was a critical issue during the war along with human medical treatment.

13. Where did wounded soldiers typically receive their first care after being picked up from the battlefield?

Answer: Field dress station

At the dress stations the attendants tried to keep men from going into shock, usually with whisky. They tried to ease the pain, usually with morphine. They tried to dress and bandage wounds as best as they could before sending the wounded on to better facilities.

14. Jonathan Letterman was quoted as saying what about the wounded?

Answer: "Humanity teaches us that a wounded and prostrate foe is not then our enemy"

Mr. Letterman showed compassion for the wounded, enemy troops as well as his own.

15. At field hospitals the wounded were divided into three groups. Which of the following was not one of these groups?

Answer: Badly wounded

Interestingly, the groups lead me to believe that if you weren't going to die or didn't need something cut off, they thought there was no problem.

16. In field hospitals most surgeries of the wounded were amputations, true or false?

Answer: True

The surgeon's primary jobs were to save lives at the field hospitals. A bullet in the arm could come out later. Amputations were done because gangrene and blood poisoning could develop if the mangled limb didn't come off.

Answer: 95%

Typical Hollywood hype to dramatize the action. Usually either chloroform or ether was used to sedate the wounded man.

18. Amputations were usually the result of which of the following?

Answer: All of these

The ammunition of the time period traveled at a much slower velocity than present day bullets causing much more damage to the body. The bullets had a tendency when hitting bone to shatter them rather than deflecting off and doing less damage.

19. Once general hospitals were put into use, what did the survival rate of the wounded reach?

Answer: 92%

Some of the reasons for this included better medicines, cleaner conditions, and the hospital staff. The staff included surgeons, hospital stewards, nurses, matrons, laundry personnel and various volunteers.

Answer: 24 pounds

Taking a wounded man from the field of battle, as you can see, probably wasn't an easy task. Besides manufactured stretchers, improvised ones were used as well. These included using battle jackets with poles ran through the sleeves, some type of heavy cloth bound to poles, and even stretchers dragged behind horses and whatever else that could be used.

21. Medicines and tonics had to be taken to where the wounded were. What packaging was most often used for these during the Civil War?

Answer: Tin containers

All of these were used during the war but the tin containers were much better at getting the drugs to the field in good condition as well as for the storage of these same drugs. Paper containers wouldn't hold up to the wet conditions very well and glass containers were just starting to become popular.

Answer: No

According to researchers and historians the bottles, after being manufactured in many sizes, were filled with drugs from both government and private labs and then sent to their destinations.

23. What year did Hospital Department bottle production end?

Answer: 1865

These multicolored Hospital Department bottles continued to be used until the 1870's by the army. They were replaced by better quality brown and amber bottles at that time. These new improved bottles were used up to the start of World War II.

24. What was a "Squibb Pannier"?

Answer: A compact medical chest

The army needed a way to get medical equipment, in a usable order, to the wounded. This compact medical chest, invented by Edward R. Squibb of Brooklyn NY, provided one of the more popular ways to do so. It was made out of wood with an iron frame and had the medicines packed in an orderly fashion.

There was a chart glued to the inside lid which showed where each of the numbered medicines was located in the box.

25. For those families who could afford to have their loved one's remains shipped home for burial, what was the most favored means of preparing the bodies?

Answer: Embalming the remains

The charge to prepare bodies typically ranged from 25 to 100 dollars, usually depending on the rank of the soldier that was being embalmed. The most popular way to prepare these bodies was arterial injection to slow down decomposition. Many of these chemicals were poisonous and dangerous to handle. Embalmers usually were surgeons or pharmacists due to the handling of these dangerous chemicals. I want to thank civilwarmed.org website for the information and facts I used for this quiz. I hope you enjoyed and learned something from taking it.

Source: Author foxgap

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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