Answer Key
Date:
Core:
U.S. History
U.S. History Unit One Test:
Review Sheet #1
Directions: Do your best to answer the following questions without the use of your notes/handouts.
Circle any of the questions that you find difficult or confusing. Then focus your studies on those
questions that you found to be the most challenging.
1. From which country did the United States gain its independence in the late 1700s? Great
Britain
(The Road to the American Revolutionary War handout)
2. Name the war that took place between the American Colonists and the British that resulted in
America’s Independence. American Revolutionary War
(A Very Brief Overview of the American Revolutionary War
handout)
3. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence in 1776? Thomas Jefferson
(The Most Famous Break-Up Letter of all Time: Declaration of
Independence handout)
4. Why was the Declaration of Independence written? It was the colonists method of informing
Great Britain that they were no longer a colony (that they were free and independent)
(The Most Famous Break-Up Letter of all Time: Declaration of
Independence handout)
5. Who were the Sons of Liberty? A group of wealthy colonists who believed that the colonists
should rebel against the British and form an independent country. They were responsible for
carrying out the Boston Tea Party and publicizing the Boston Massacre
(A Very Brief Overview of the American Revolutionary War
handout)
6. In what year did the United States truly gain its independence? Explain. Answers will vary
(1776 because that is when the Declaration of Independence was issued and this is when the
colonists no longer obeyed British laws, 1783 when the Treaty of Paris was issued because this
is when the British officially recognized the colonies as independent.
(When Did the U.S. Truly Become Independent? Handout)
7. What was the name given to the first (failed) government used by the United States? Articles
of Confederation
(American Government Take One! A Look at the Articles of
Confederation handout)
8. Define the term “ttyranny” An abuse/misuse of power (i.e. King of England from colonists
POV)
(The Road to the American Revolutionary War handout)
9. Which level of government had the most power under this new government – the towns,
states or national government? states
(American Government Take One! A Look at the Articles of
Confederation handout)
10. Describe Shay’s Rebellion and explain how it signaled to the Founding Fathers that they
needed to revise/change the government they adopted at the end of the Revolutionary War.
Shay’s Rebellion took place when a group of farmers in Massachusetts rebelled against the
state because they thought the state taxes were too high. This group of farmers almost took
over the state’s arsenal of weapons. It was a sign to the founding fathers that the AOC was
too weak because the states had too much power and the national government did not have
enough.
(Successes and Failures of the Articles of Confederation
handout)
11. Why did America’s first government fail? The states had too much power and the national
government did not have enough.
(Successes and Failures of the Articles of Confederation
handout)
12. Which four documents guided our founding fathers as they wrote the Constitution and set
up our new government in 1787?
a. Magna Carta, English Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence, Articles of
Confederation
b. Magna Carta, Treaty of Paris, Treaty of Ghent, Declaration of Independence
c. Magna Carta, English Bill of Rights, War Powers Act, Treaty of Paris
d. Articles of Confederation, Missouri Slave Code, Amendment 14, Magna Carta
(Mr. Higgins has not gone over this with you…ooops )
13. What was the purpose of the Constitutional Convention in 1787? To revise the Articles of
Confederation and create a new government that would last longer and help the country to
g r o w.
(Who’s Representin’ Who? Examining the Constitutional
Convention handout)
14. Describe three characteristics shared by all 55 delegates at the Constitutional Convention.
a. Wealthy
b. White
c. Males
(Who’s Representin’ Who? Examining the Constitutional
Convention handout)