US History: Intermediate (50 Cards)

Cards in this deck

#1

Q:How did mercantilism shape the British colonies?

A:Colonies supplied raw materials and bought British goods; trade rules helped spark colonial resentment.

#2

Q:What was the Albany Plan of Union (1754) and why does it matter?

A:Ben Franklin’s plan for colonial cooperation; failed then, but previewed later unity.

#3

Q:How did the French and Indian War change British colonial policy?

A:Britain gained territory but debt led to new taxes and tighter control in North America.

#4

Q:What was the significance of the Stamp Act crisis (1765)?

A:First major unified colonial protest; raised the representation issue and taught boycott tactics.

#5

Q:Why were the Federalist Papers written?

A:To persuade New Yorkers to ratify the Constitution and to explain constitutional design.

#6

Q:What was the “Great Compromise” at the Constitutional Convention?

A:Bicameral Congress: House by population, Senate with equal state representation.

#7

Q:What is the Elastic Clause and why is it powerful?

A:Congress may pass laws “necessary and proper,” expanding implied powers.

#8

Q:What was Hamilton’s financial plan?

A:Assumption of state debts, a national bank, and support for manufacturing to build credit.

#9

Q:What did Washington’s Farewell Address warn about?

A:Permanent alliances and factional party conflict; early foreign-policy caution.

#10

Q:What was the significance of the Louisiana Purchase constitutional debate?

A:Raised strict vs loose construction: could the president buy territory without explicit power?

#11

Q:How did the Market Revolution change U.S. life?

A:Transportation and factories expanded markets; boosted urbanization and wage labor.

#12

Q:What was the Second Great Awakening’s political impact?

A:Fueled reform movements like abolition, temperance, and women’s rights.

#13

Q:What did the Seneca Falls Convention (1848) demand?

A:Women’s rights, including suffrage; Declaration of Sentiments echoed 1776 language.

#14

Q:What was the Compromise of 1850?

A:A package: California free, harsher Fugitive Slave Law, popular sovereignty in some territories.

#15

Q:Why was the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854) explosive?

A:Used popular sovereignty and repealed the Missouri Compromise line; led to violence and new parties.

#16

Q:What did Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) rule?

A:Black people not citizens and Congress couldn’t ban slavery in territories; intensified sectional conflict.

#17

Q:What were the main goals of Radical Reconstruction?

A:Protect Black civil rights and reshape southern politics, using federal power and amendments.

#18

Q:How did sharecropping shape the postwar South?

A:Debt-based farming system that trapped many Black and poor white farmers in dependency.

#19

Q:What was the Compromise of 1877?

A:Informal deal ending federal Reconstruction enforcement; opened the door to Jim Crow expansion.

#20

Q:How did the Populist movement define key economic grievances?

A:Attacked railroad power and tight money; called for regulation and more democratic reforms.

#21

Q:What was the difference between “old” and “new” immigration (c. 1880–1924)?

A:Older: mostly Northern/Western Europe; Newer: Southern/Eastern Europe and more diverse languages/religions.

#22

Q:What did Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) establish?

A:“Separate but equal” doctrine that legalized segregation for decades.

#23

Q:What was “muckraking”?

A:Investigative journalism exposing corruption and social problems; helped fuel Progressive reforms.

#24

Q:How did the 1912 election reflect reform politics?

A:Split Republicans (Taft vs Roosevelt) let Wilson win; showcased Progressivism’s reach.

#25

Q:Why did the U.S. enter World War I?

A:Unrestricted submarine warfare, economic ties, and the Zimmermann Telegram shifted opinion.

#26

Q:What were Wilson’s Fourteen Points in broad terms?

A:Self-determination, freer trade/seas, and a League of Nations to prevent future wars.

#27

Q:What was the Harlem Renaissance?

A:1920s flowering of Black arts and thought; asserted cultural pride and challenged stereotypes.

#28

Q:How did the “Red Scare” of 1919–1920 affect civil liberties?

A:Raids and deportations targeted radicals; fear narrowed dissent and expanded policing.

#29

Q:What caused the 1929 stock market crash to become a Great Depression?

A:Bank failures, falling demand, global trade decline, and policy mistakes deepened the crisis.

#30

Q:Name two major New Deal “alphabet agencies” and their purpose.

A:CCC: jobs in conservation; TVA: regional development and electrification (others: WPA, SEC, SSA).

#31

Q:What did the Social Security Act (1935) create?

A:Old-age pensions, unemployment insurance, and aid programs; a new federal safety net.

#32

Q:How did WWII transform the U.S. economy and society?

A:Mass mobilization ended depression-level unemployment; migration and women’s industrial work expanded.

#33

Q:What did Executive Order 9066 do?

A:Authorized incarceration of Japanese Americans; later widely condemned as rights violation.

#34

Q:What was the GI Bill’s long-term impact?

A:Expanded college and homeownership; boosted middle class and reshaped postwar inequality.

#35

Q:What did Truman’s doctrine and the Marshall Plan signal?

A:A global U.S. commitment to resist Soviet influence using aid and alliances.

#36

Q:How did the Korean War shape Cold War patterns?

A:Set precedent for limited wars under UN banner; cemented containment in Asia.

#37

Q:What was McCarthyism?

A:Anti-communist accusations and investigations that chilled speech and damaged careers.

#38

Q:Why is the Supreme Court’s decision in Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) important?

A:Required states to provide lawyers to indigent defendants in serious cases; expanded due process.

#39

Q:How did the Freedom Rides (1961) test federal power?

A:Activists challenged segregation in interstate travel; forced federal enforcement against resistance.

#40

Q:What was the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964)?

A:Congressional authorization that expanded U.S. war powers in Vietnam without a formal declaration.

#41

Q:What did the “Southern Strategy” refer to?

A:Republican effort to win white southern voters amid civil-rights era realignment.

#42

Q:How did the 1973 oil crisis affect U.S. politics?

A:Stagflation, energy policy debates, and distrust of dependence on foreign oil rose sharply.

#43

Q:What was détente?

A:A Cold War easing of tensions (arms talks and diplomacy) mainly in the 1970s.

#44

Q:How did the Reagan era change economic policy?

A:Tax cuts, deregulation, and anti-inflation focus; supporters cite growth, critics cite inequality/deficits.

#45

Q:What did the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 change?

A:Ended national-origins quotas, increasing immigration from Asia, Latin America, and Africa.

#46

Q:What was the War Powers Resolution (1973)?

A:Limited presidential military action by requiring notification and time limits without Congress.

#47

Q:Why is NAFTA (1994) historically significant?

A:Deepened North American trade integration; debated for jobs, wages, and supply chains.

#48

Q:What did the USA PATRIOT Act expand after 9/11?

A:Government surveillance and investigative powers; sparked civil-liberties debates.

#49

Q:What was the Great Society?

A:LBJ’s 1960s agenda targeting poverty and inequality, including Medicare/Medicaid and education aid.

#50

Q:How did the Indian Removal Act (1830) reflect U.S. expansion policy?

A:It authorized forced relocation of Native nations east of the Mississippi, prioritizing white settlement and cotton expansion.