U.S. History ©2014

Unit 4 Study Guide—Through Civil War and Reconstruction (1850-1877)

  1. Describe how the Compromise of 1850 demonstrated the growing sectionalism in the United States.
  2. How did social differences result in increased sectionalism during the 1850s?
  3. How was the policy of “popular sovereignty” used to deal with the question of slavery?
  4. Describe the rise of the Republican Party (est. 1854).
  5. What did the Supreme Court decide in the Dred Scott case?
  6. What were the Lincoln-Douglas debates about?
  7. What effect did abolitionism have on the nation during the 1850s?
  8. What was the result of Abraham Lincoln’s election in 1860?
  9. Describe the long-term causes of the Civil War.
  10. What happened at Ft. Sumter, SC (April 12, 1861)?
  11. What was the Lincoln administration’s primary goal in the Civil War?
  12. How did the political actions of President Lincoln impact the Civil War?
  13. Identify the key military turning points in the Civil War.
  14. Compare the Reconstruction plans proposed by President Lincoln with the Reconstruction plans proposed by Congress.
  15. What effect did conflict between President Johnson and the Congress have during Reconstruction?
  16. What changes made during Reconstruction had a lasting effect?
  17. Describe the new labor system developed in the South after the Civil War.
  18. In what way did Southern society and politics change during Reconstruction?
  19. What was the Compromise of 1877?

Flashcards:

Words to know:

1. compromise2. sectionalism3. popular sovereignty

4. abolitionism5. secession6. Confederacy

7. emancipation8. Reconstruction9. Radical Republicans

10. impeachment11. suffrage12. martial law

13. sharecropping14. conservative15. home rule

U.S. History©2014

Unit 4 Facts to Know

1. Which part of the Compromise of 1850 made it a federal crime to aid runaway slaves?

2. In 1852, which novel further divided the nation on the issue of slavery?

3. What method did the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 use to settle the slavery question?

4. What was the primary issue in the platform of the Republican Party founded in 1854?

5. Which 1857 Supreme Court decision declared that Congress had no power to ban slavery

in the territories?

6. What issue was the primary subject of the Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858?

7. Senator Stephen Douglas’s “Freeport Doctrine” was associated with which policy?

8. Which historical event was an example of radical abolitionism before the Civil War?

9. Which event resulted in the secession of South Carolina from the Union in 1860?

10. The first shots of the Civil War were fired at what location on April 12, 1861?

11. Where was the first major battle of the Civil War?

12. What was Lincoln’s primary goal in the Civil War?

13. What was the military strategy of the Union during the Civil War?

14. Lee’s last major offensive was stopped when he was defeated at which battle?

15. In which Civil War battle did the Union take control of the Mississippi River?

16. Which Union military campaign damaged the South’s ability to support the war?

17. What proclamation was issued by President Abraham Lincoln to make ending slavery a

war-time goal?

18. Which general was most responsible for winning the Civil War?

19. Which Reconstruction plan was the most lenient?

20. After the Civil War ended in 1865, what amendment freed the slaves?

21. What were the Republican Congressmen who supported equal rights for African-Americans

called?

22. What government agency was created to provide for the education and welfare of former

slaves?

23. Which act did Congress pass after the Civil War to provide citizenship rights to the

freedmen?

24. What happened to President Andrew Johnson after he violated the Tenure of Office Act?

25. What amendment was passed after the Civil War to grant citizenship and “equal

protection under the law” for African-Americans?

26. Which acts put the South under military occupation and forced them to grant equality

and suffrage rights to African-Americans?

27. Which constitutional amendment guaranteed black male suffrage?

28. What labor system developed in Southern agriculture after the Civil War?

29. Which groups in the South supported the Republican Party during Reconstruction?

30. Who was opposed to the reforms passed by Congress during Reconstruction?

31. What was the agreement between Republicans and Democrats that ended Reconstruction?

32. In the Compromise of 1877, who was declared the winner of the 1876 presidential

election?

33. What action did President Rutherford B. Hayes take to end reconstruction?

34. Which political party became dominant in the South after Reconstruction ended?

35. After Reconstruction ended, how did Southern states discriminate against blacks?