Democratic politicians and others attempted to avoid the issue of slavery in the territories by saying ti should be left to "popular sovereignty"?
The doctrine of popular sovereignty, as embraced in the mid-nineteenth century, is best defined as:
placing the power of the federal government above that of the states
giving the people of a territory or state the right to decide the slavery issue for themselves
the notion that government is subject to the will of the people
allowing Congress to decide the issue of slavery prior to admitting a new state
putting the good of the majority ahead of individual desires
The Free Soil party consisted of a small, unified band of radical abolitionists
Who were the Free-Soilers?
A political faction in the South that embraced slavery in the territories
A political group supporting the rights of squatters to keep the land they developed in the West
A northern-based political party that supported the Wilmot Proviso and banning slavery in the territories
An abolitionist political party that sought the immediate end of slavery and the granting of land plots to freedmen
A political coalition of farmers that sought to curb the excesses of industrial development
The California Gold Rush of 1849 diverted the nation's attention from slavery
Which of these statements is NOT true about the California Gold Rush of 1849?
It made many "forty-niners" rich
It fueled lawlessness in the California territory
It led California to seek rapid admission as a state
It sent tens of thousands of people into the territory and overwhelmed state government and resources
It re-ignited the slavery debate
Southerners demanded a more efficient fugitive slave law to stop the "Underground Railroad" from running escaped slaves to Canada
The Underground Railroad is best defined as a:
group of businessmen seeking monopoly control over the burgeoning railroad industry
secret network of slave owners, banding together to recapture runaway slaves
black market for trade goods designed to circumvent protective tariffs
network of safe places that hid runaway slaves on their journey north to freedom
system for illegally smuggling slaves from Africa into the United States after 1808
In the Senate debate of 1850, Calhoun spoke for compromise, while Clay and Webster each defended his own section's interests.
Which of the agreements was NOT part of the Compromise of 1850, which kept the Union together?
California was admitted as a free state
New Mexico and Utah were allowed to decide the slave question independently
A more severe fugitive slave law was enacted
Texas received $10 million from the federal government for ceding some of its land to New Mexico
Slavery was abolished in the District of Columbia
The provision of the Compromise of 1850 that aroused the fiercest northern opposition was the Fugitive Slave Law.
The Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 was hated in the North for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:
it denied slaves the right to testify on their own behalf
northerners who helped slaves escape could receive heavy fines and jail terms
southerners could require compensation from the federal government for runaway slaves that were not found
northerners could be required to help recapture runaway slaves
commissioners would receive more compensation for declaring a runaway slave a "fugitive" than they would receive if they declared them "free"
The Whig Party disappeared because its northern and southern wings were too deeply split over the Fugitive Slave Law and other sectional issues
What was the major significance of the presidential election of 1852?
it proved a triumph for the Compromise of 1850
it marked the beginning of the end for the Whig party
It put America's first "dark horse" candidate in the White House
It launched a new Era of Good Feelings across the nation
It pitted two war heroes against each other as candidates for America's highest office.`
The Pierce administration's expansionist efforts in Central America, Cuba, and the Gadsden Purchase were basically designed to serve southern proslavery interests
The United States and New Grenada (Columbia) signed a vital treaty in 1848 that:
gave the United States the right to travel across the isthmus in exchange for its military neutrality
provided the United States with exclusive use of the isthmus in exchange for military defense of New Grenada
broke ground on what would become the Panama Canal
united the two countries against incursions into Central America by England and other European powers.
welcomed U.S. expansion into Central America in exchange for assistance with new transportation systems.
What made the Ostend Manifesto so controversial?
It represented an attempt at U.S. expansion into Asian territory
It demonstrated northern interest in blocking the further acquisition of slave territories
It was a secret plan by the United States to buy or take Cuba
It had the backing of Spain, France, and England
It was a declaration of war if Spain did not release the captured American ship Black Warrior
The importance of the Treaty of Wanghia (1844) was that it:
gave the United States access to Japanese markets
banned tariffs on U.S. imports to Japan and China
granted the United States coaling rights in Japan
gave China the right to try Americans accused of crimes in China in Chinese courts
was the first formal treaty and trad agreement between China and the United States
Why was the Gadsden Purchase such a contentious issue?
The $5 million purchase price was outrageously high
It furthered southern designs for locating a trans-continental railroad there
It would add a new slave territory and ultimately tip the balance between free and slave states.
It sparked a renewed debate about the process for admitting new territories and staes
It further eroded U.S. and Mexico relations
The main push behind the discussions about building a transcontinental railroad in the mid 1800's was the:
need to boost the southern economy
need to create jobs and pull the nation out of an economic depression
goal of connecting the Pacific Coast territories with the rest of the nation
desire for new markets for northern manufactured goods
goal of stimulating Midwestern development
The Kansas-Nebraska Act heightened sectional tensions between the North and South in all the following ways EXCEPT that it:
repealed the Missouri Compromise
divided Nebraska into two territories that would decide the slavery question independently
heightened antislavery fervor in the North
led northerners to resist further compromise with the South
led to further enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Act in the North
Which of the following is NOT a true statement about the rise of the Republican party in the mid-1850's?
The bulk of its support was below the Mason-Dixon Line
It drew dissatisfied Whigs, Democrats, Free-Soilers, and Know-Nothings
It symbolized the increasing sectionalism that was leading the nation toward civil war
The party first emerged in the Midwest to protest against the Kansas-Nebraska Act
Within two years, the party held the position of Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Douglas's Kansas-Nebraska act was intended to organize western territories so that a transcontinental railroad could be built along a northern route
The Kansas-Nebraska Act wrecked the Compromise of 1850 and created deep divisions within the Democratic Party
The Republican Party was initially organized as a northern protest against Douglas's Kansas-Nebraska Act
