AMSCO APUSH Period 5 UPDATED
ACTUAL Questions and CORRECT
Answers
manifest destiny - CORRECT ANSWER- The belief that the United States had a divine
mission to extend its power and civilization across the breadth of North America. (p. 230)
industrial technology - CORRECT ANSWER- After 1840, industrialization spread rapidly
throughout most of the Northeast. New factories produced shoes, sewing machines, ready-to-
wear clothing, firearms, precision tools, and iron products for railroads and other new products.
(p. 238)
railroads - CORRECT ANSWER- In the 1840s and the 1850s this industry expanded very
quickly and would become America's largest industry. It required immense amounts of capital
and labor and gave rise to complex business organizations. Local and state governments gave the
industry tax breaks and special loans to finance growth. (p. 238)
Panic of 1857 - CORRECT ANSWER- Financial crash which sharply lowered Midwest
farmers prices and caused unemployment in the Northern cities. The South was not affected as
much because cotton prices remained high. (p. 239)
Great American Desert - CORRECT ANSWER- In the 1850s and 1860s, the arid area
between the Mississippi River and the Pacific Coast, was known by this name. (p. 236)
mountain men - CORRECT ANSWER- The first non-native people to open the Far West.
These fur trappers and explorers included James Beckwourth, Jim Bridger, Kit Carson, and
Jedediah Smith. (p. 237)
Far West - CORRECT ANSWER- In the 1820s the Rocky Mountains would be known by
this name. (p. 237)
,overland trails - CORRECT ANSWER- The wagon train trails that led from Missouri or
Iowa to the west coast. They traveled only 15 miles per day and followed the river valleys
through the Great Plains. Months later, the wagon trains would finally reach the foothills of the
Rockies or face the hardships of the southwestern deserts. The final challenge was to reach the
mountain passes before the first heavy snows. Disease was even a greater threat than Indian
attack. (p. 237)
mining frontier - CORRECT ANSWER- The discovery of gold in California in 1848 caused
the first flood of newcomers to the West. A series of gold strikes and silver strikes in what
became the states of Colorado, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Arizona, and South Dakota kept a
steady flow of hopeful young prospectors pushing into the West. (p. 237)
gold rush - CORRECT ANSWER- California's population soared from 14,000 in 1848 to
380,000 in 1860, primarily because of this event. (p. 237)
silver rush - CORRECT ANSWER- The discovery of silver in Colorado, Nevada, the Black
Hills of the Dakotas, and other western territories, created a mining boom. (p 237)
farming frontier - CORRECT ANSWER- In the 1830s and 1840s pioneer families moved
west to start homesteads and begin farming. Government programs allowed settlers to purchase
inexpensive parcels of land. (p. 237)
urban frontier - CORRECT ANSWER- Western cities that arose as a result of railroads,
mineral wealth, and farming. They included San Francisco, Denver, and Salt Lake City. (p. 238)
federal land grants - CORRECT ANSWER- In 1850, the U.S. government gave 2.6 million
acres of federal land to build the Illinois Central railroad from Lake Michigan to Gulf of Mexico.
(p. 238)
John Tyler - CORRECT ANSWER- He was elected Vice President, then he became the
tenth president (1841-1845) when Benjamin Harrison died. He was responsible for the
annexation of Mexico after receiving a mandate from Polk. He opposed many parts of the Whig
program for economic recovery. (p. 231)
, Oregon territory - CORRECT ANSWER- This was a vast territory on the Pacific coast that
stretched as far north as the Alaskan border. Originally the United States was interested in all the
territory, but in 1846 Britain and the U.S. agreed to divide the territory at the 49th Parallel,
today's border between Canada and the United States. (p. 232)
Fifty-four Forty or Fight - CORRECT ANSWER- The slogan of James K. Polk's plan for the
Oregon Territory. They wanted the border of the territory to be on 54' 40° latitude (near present-
day Alaska) and were willing to fight Britain over it. Eventually, 49 degrees latitude was adopted
as the northern border of the United States, and there was no violence. (p. 232)
James K. Polk - CORRECT ANSWER- The eleventh U.S. president (1845-1849). Polk was
a slave owning southerner dedicated to Democratic party. In 1844, he was a "dark horse"
candidate for president, and a protege of Andrew Jackson. He favored American expansion,
especially advocating the annexation of Texas, California, and Oregon. (p. 232)
Wilmot Proviso - CORRECT ANSWER- In 1846, the first year of the Mexican War, this bill
would forbid slavery in any of the new territories acquired from Mexico. the bill passed the
House twice, but was defeated in the Senate. (p. 234)
Franklin Pierce - CORRECT ANSWER- In 1852, he was elected the fourteenth president of
the United States. (p. 236)
Ostend Manifesto - CORRECT ANSWER- The United States offer to purchase Cuba from
Spain. When the plan leaked to the press in the United States, it provoked an angry reaction from
antislavery members of Congress, forcing President Franklin Pierce to drop the plan. (p. 235)
Texas - CORRECT ANSWER- In 1823, Texas won its national independence from Spain.
The annexation of this state was by a joint resolution of Congress, supported by President-elect
James Polk. This annexation contributed to the Mexican War because the border with Mexico
was in dispute. Land from the Republic of Texas later became parts of New Mexico, Colorado,
Oklahoma, Kansas, and Wyoming. (p. 233)
Stephen Austin - CORRECT ANSWER- In the 1820s, his father had obtained and large land
grant in Texas. He brought 300 families from Missouri to settle in Texas. (p. 231)
