GED U.S. History Practice

1.“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal.” (Declaration of Sentiments, Seneca Falls Convention, 1848) Why did the authors model this document on the Declaration of Independence?

1. A.To argue that women should not own property
2. B.To support the annexation of Texas as a state
3. C.To oppose the movement to abolish slavery
4. D.To claim the nation’s founding ideals for women

2.“With malice toward none, with charity for all... let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds.” (Abraham Lincoln, Second Inaugural Address, 1865) What message was Lincoln sending?

1. A.The South should be punished harshly for leaving the Union
2. B.The reunited nation should heal without seeking revenge
3. C.The war should be ended with an immediate truce
4. D.The Southern states should be allowed to leave

3.Upton Sinclair’s 1906 novel The Jungle described filthy conditions in Chicago meatpacking plants. Public outrage followed, and Congress passed the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act that same year. This sequence of events best shows how

1. A.Congress ended all meatpacking in the city of Chicago
2. B.the courts struck down food safety laws as unconstitutional
3. C.journalism and public pressure led to federal regulation
4. D.factory owners asked Congress to inspect their plants

4.“So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” (Franklin D. Roosevelt, First Inaugural Address, March 1933) Roosevelt spoke as banks were failing across the country. What was his main purpose?

1. A.To announce American entry into World War II
2. B.To warn citizens about a coming foreign military invasion
3. C.To restore public confidence during a banking crisis
4. D.To defend the policies of the prior president

5.On December 8, 1941, President Roosevelt told Congress that the attack on Pearl Harbor was “a date which will live in infamy” and asked it to declare that a state of war existed with Japan. Why did Roosevelt go to Congress?

1. A.The Constitution gives Congress the power to declare war
2. B.The Constitution requires the Senate to approve all speeches
3. C.The president needs Congress to command the armed forces
4. D.The Supreme Court had ruled that he must ask Congress

6.“It must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures.” (Truman Doctrine, 1947) Which Cold War policy does this statement express?

1. A.Containment of communism
2. B.Isolationism
3. C.Manifest Destiny
4. D.Dollar diplomacy in Latin America

7.In 1955 and 1956, Black residents of Montgomery, Alabama, refused to ride city buses for more than a year after Rosa Parks was arrested. The bus system lost much of its income, and segregated seating on the buses ended in late 1956. Which strategy does the boycott best illustrate?

1. A.Nonviolent economic pressure
2. B.Armed resistance to the police
3. C.Lobbying for a constitutional amendment
4. D.Running candidates for city office

8.In United States v. Nixon (1974), the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that President Nixon had to turn over tape recordings sought as evidence in the Watergate investigation. Nixon resigned weeks later. What principle does this case best illustrate?

1. A.The president controls the federal court system
2. B.Congress may remove justices who rule against it
3. C.Presidential records may never be made public
4. D.No one, not even the president, is above the law

9.Under the economic system of mercantilism in the 1600s and 1700s, Britain passed laws such as the Navigation Acts that controlled colonial trade. What role did Britain expect its American colonies to play?

1. A.Build factories that would compete with British industry
2. B.Trade freely with any nation that offered the best prices
3. C.Pay no taxes in exchange for defending the British coast
4. D.Supply raw materials and buy British manufactured goods

10.In 1838 and 1839, the U.S. Army forced thousands of Cherokee people to leave their homes in Georgia and nearby states and march to Indian Territory in present-day Oklahoma. Thousands died along the way from disease, hunger and cold. Which federal policy led directly to this event?

1. A.The Homestead Act of 1862
2. B.The Indian Removal Act of 1830
3. C.The Northwest Ordinance of 1787
4. D.The Missouri Compromise of 1820

11.In 1865, Congress created the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, known as the Freedmen’s Bureau. It handed out food, set up schools, and helped negotiate labor contracts. Whom was the Freedmen’s Bureau mainly created to help?

1. A.Immigrants arriving at ports in the North after the war
2. B.Union soldiers who needed land in the western territories
3. C.Formerly enslaved people in the South after the Civil War
4. D.Factory workers who were organizing the first labor unions

12.In the late 1800s, Andrew Carnegie’s steel company bought iron ore mines, coal fields, railroads and ships so that it controlled every stage of making and moving steel. What is this business strategy called?

1. A.Vertical integration
2. B.Horizontal integration
3. C.Collective bargaining
4. D.Laissez-faire policy

13.In 1904, journalist Ida Tarbell published The History of the Standard Oil Company, which described how John D. Rockefeller’s company used secret deals and price cutting to drive competitors out of business. Writers like Tarbell who exposed abuses in business and government were known as

1. A.abolitionists
2. B.isolationists
3. C.carpetbaggers
4. D.muckrakers

14.After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Congress created the Department of Homeland Security in 2002. It combined 22 federal agencies, including the Coast Guard and the Secret Service, into one department. What was the main purpose of this change?

1. A.To take over the local police forces of large cities in each state
2. B.To coordinate the federal effort to prevent and respond to attacks
3. C.To replace the armed forces in military operations in other nations
4. D.To end federal spending on airport and border security programs

15.A restaurant owner is told that the building must have a ramp at its entrance and an accessible restroom so that customers who use wheelchairs can enter and be served. Which federal law most directly requires these changes?

1. A.The Civil Rights Act of 1964
2. B.The Voting Rights Act of 1965
3. C.The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
4. D.The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938

16.In the 1930s, severe drought hit the Great Plains. Years of plowing up native grasses had left the soil loose, and strong winds carried it away in huge dust storms. Many farm families lost their land and moved west to California. What is this period called?

1. A.The Dust Bowl
2. B.The Gold Rush
3. C.The Great Migration
4. D.The Gilded Age

17.“In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.” (Ronald Reagan, First Inaugural Address, 1981) Which policy best fits the view expressed in this speech?

1. A.Cutting income taxes and reducing federal regulation
2. B.Creating large new federal public works programs
3. C.Placing the nation’s major banks under government control
4. D.Raising federal spending on new social welfare programs

18.In the 1610s, Jamestown colonist John Rolfe began growing a sweet variety of tobacco that sold well in England. Tobacco soon became Virginia’s main export, and planters cleared more and more land to grow it. Which effect did the tobacco boom most likely have on the colony?

1. A.It ended the colony’s trade with England and Europe
2. B.It led settlers to abandon farming for factory work
3. C.It reduced the amount of land colonists wanted to own
4. D.It raised demand for labor, first servants, then enslaved Africans

19.As president from 1901 to 1909, Theodore Roosevelt set aside about 230 million acres of public land as national forests, wildlife refuges, and national monuments. He argued that the nation’s forests, water, and soil should be managed so they would last for future generations. What goal did these actions mainly serve?

1. A.Selling public land quickly to railroad companies
2. B.Conserving natural resources for long-term use
3. C.Moving American Indian nations onto reservations
4. D.Opening federal land to unlimited private mining

20.The Social Security Act of 1935 was one of the most lasting New Deal laws. It set up a system funded by payroll taxes on workers and employers. Which benefits did the original law create?

1. A.Free college tuition for the children of all workers
2. B.Federal ownership of the nation’s largest factories
3. C.Retirement pensions and unemployment insurance
4. D.Government health insurance for every citizen

21.In October 1962, U.S. spy planes found Soviet nuclear missile sites in Cuba. President Kennedy ordered a naval “quarantine” to stop more weapons from arriving. After 13 tense days, the Soviet Union agreed to remove the missiles, and the United States pledged not to invade Cuba. Which statement best describes the outcome of the crisis?

1. A.The United States invaded Cuba and replaced its government
2. B.The Soviet Union kept its missiles in Cuba for decades
3. C.Both sides avoided nuclear war through a negotiated deal
4. D.The crisis began a direct war between the two nations

22.The Treaty of Paris of 1783 ended the Revolutionary War. Under its terms, Britain recognized the United States as independent, and the new nation’s western border was set at the Mississippi River. Which result came directly from this treaty?

1. A.Britain accepted U.S. independence and lands to the Mississippi
2. B.The United States bought the Louisiana Territory from France
3. C.The Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation
4. D.Spain handed Florida and California to the United States

23.In early 1917, Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare, sinking ships that included American vessels. Britain then revealed the Zimmermann Telegram, a German message proposing that Mexico join Germany in a war against the United States. In April, Congress declared war on Germany. Which factors best explain the U.S. entry into World War I?

1. A.A German invasion of the U.S. mainland in 1916
2. B.The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii
3. C.A treaty requiring the U.S. to defend Mexico
4. D.German attacks on shipping and the plot with Mexico

24.The Voting Rights Act of 1965 suspended literacy tests and sent federal examiners to register voters in parts of the South. In Mississippi, the share of eligible Black residents registered to vote was about 7% in 1964 and about 60% in 1967. Which conclusion is best supported by this information?

1. A.Black voter registration in Mississippi fell after 1965
2. B.Registration rose sharply after barriers were removed
3. C.Literacy tests were added to Mississippi law in 1965
4. D.Nearly every eligible Black resident was registered by 1964