Siar-Akbayin/sat-history-multiple-choice huggingface dataset:
Question: The novel It Can’t Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis
(A) warned Americans in the 1920s that excessive buying on credit could lead to an economic crisis.
(B) described what the United States would look like if communists led a successful revolution in the 1950s.
(C) imagined a fascist takeover in the United States in the 1930s.
(D) addressed the danger of nuclear war in the 1960s.
(E) woke Californians up in the 1970s to the dangers of a devastating earthquake.
Answer: C
Question: In public, Truman justified his decision to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 by arguing that
(A) these cities were industrial centers that helped the Japanese war effort.
(B) these cities were relatively sparsely populated.
(C) it would prevent the Soviet Union from attempting to seize land in Asia.
(D) American strength would increase in Asia.
(E) the American people were war-weary.
Answer: A
Question: Which of the following was least likely to provoke a direct military confrontation between the United States and the USSR?
(A) The Berlin Airlift of 1948
(B) The Cuban missile crisis of 1962
(C) The Soviet suppression of the Hungarian revolt in 1956
(D) The construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961
(E) The Korean War of 1950 to 1953
Answer: E
Question: The Kerner Commission published a report concerning violence in America which stated that
(A) immigrants were the source of conflict and should be barred from entry into the United States.
(B) unions should be made illegal because they had been infiltrated by the Communist Party.
(C) violence is caused by young people, and when the population got older after the baby boom, the level of violence would go down.
(D) the death penalty would deter the high levels of violence against police officers.
(E) the main cause of the urban riots of the 1960s was the economic and social gulf between races.
Answer: E
Question: Slavery and indentured servitude in colonial America differed in that most indentured servants
(A) were promised great financial compensation for their service.
(B) were coerced into service.
(C) received land after completion of their terms of indenture.
(D) came voluntarily.
(E) were considered members of their master’s family.
Answer: D
Question: In addition to improving the credit of the United States, Alexander Hamilton’s financial program, approved by Congress in 1791,
(A) increased the power of the states.
(B) strengthened the political power of the common people.
(C) increased the power of the presidency.
(D) created support for the success and growth of the United States.
(E) decreased the political differences between the Federalist Party and the Democratic-Republican Party.
Answer: D
Question: Jefferson acted more like a Federalist than a Democratic-Republican when he
(A) voted to establish the Bank of the United States.
(B) purchased the Louisiana Territory.
(C) commissioned Lewis and Clark to explore the Louisiana Territory.
(D) wrote the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions along with James Madison.
(E) supported the idea of nullification.
Answer: B
Question: At the beginning of the Mexican War in 1846, when “American blood was spilled on American soil,” General Zachary Taylor and his troops were
(A) in California waiting for the Mexicans to sell the Texas Territory.
(B) north of the Rio Grande River in territory claimed by both Mexico and the United States.
(C) in New Mexico marching toward Texas, attempting to resolve the border dispute between Texas and New Mexico.
(D) on a ship sailing toward Texas.
(E) in the Utah Territory at President Polk’s request.
Answer: B
Question: In the Platt Amendment, incorporated into Cuba’s 1901 constitution, Cuba promised to do all of the following EXCEPT
(A) allow the United States to intervene militarily in Cuba.
(B) set aside revenue to pay off debts to the United States.
(C) refrain from signing treaties detrimental to U.S. interests.
(D) provide land for American bases.
(E) grant the United States exclusive trading privileges in Cuba.
Answer: E
Question: The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor resulted in all of the following EXCEPT
(A) U.S. entry into World War II.
(B) hostility toward Japanese people in the United States.
(C) women entering the workforce in large numbers in the United States.
(D) an end to segregation in the armed forces.
(E) an end to the Great Depression.
Answer: D
Question: Although Congress had not declared war, President Truman sent U.S. armed forces to aid South Korea—an action he believed the he was empowered to take based on
(A) powers granted presidents in the United Nations Charter.
(B) a joint resolution of Congress.
(C) a constitutional power of the presidency.
(D) a special U.S. treaty with South Korea.
(E) the U.S. commitment under the NATO agreement.
Answer: C
Question: What major consequence occurred as a result of the break-in at the Watergate Hotel?
(A) The New York Times began publishing the Pentagon Papers.
(B) President Reagan had to discuss the diversion of money to the Contras.
(C) President Nixon resigned.
(D) The truth about the Gulf of Tonkin Incident was revealed.
(E) The October Surprise was revealed, and Carter’s efforts to free the hostages in Iran were given new respect.
Answer: C
Question: The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was defeated because
(A) Congress would not pass it.
(B) it was held to be unconstitutional.
(C) not enough state legislatures passed it.
(D) Betty Friedan opposed it.
(E) Richard Nixon vetoed it.
Answer: C
Question: President Clinton’s position on gun control and law enforcement was reflected in his
(A) support for the Contract with America.
(B) appointment of Sandra Day O’Connor to the Supreme Court.
(C) approval of the Dayton Accords.
(D) signing of the Brady Bill.
(E) support from the National Rifle Association.
Answer: D
Question: All of the following statements represent ideas expressed in the Declaration of Independence EXCEPT
(A) governments derive their power to rule from the consent of the governed.
(B) people have the right to overthrow a government that does not fulfill the will of the people.
(C) people have the unalienable right to own property.
(D) all men are created equal.
(E) George III has committed egregious acts against the colonies.
Answer: C
Question: To gain Thomas Jefferson’s support for the assumption of state debts by the national government, Alexander Hamilton agreed to
(A) modify his financial program.
(B) the placement of the capital of the United States on the Potomac River.
(C) support Jefferson’s election in 1800.
(D) help negotiate a peace treaty with England.
(E) withdraw his support for excise taxes on goods made in the United States.
Answer: B
Question: The concept of “redemption” in the politics of the post–Civil War period refers to
(A) a religious awakening among Northerners in regard to the evils of racism.
(B) washing away the sins of the South’s illegal rebellion.
(C) the physical rebuilding of the infrastructure of the South following the Civil War.
(D) atoning for the fraternal violence of the Civil War.
(E) white Southerners retaking power in the South following Reconstruction.
Answer: E
Question: President McKinley publicly justified U.S. annexation of the Philippines on the grounds that
(A) the United States had a responsibility to uplift the Filipinos.
(B) a plebiscite indicated Filipino preference for U.S. rule.
(C) a failure to do so would open the way for a Marxist regime.
(D) the Philippines were spoils of the Spanish-American War.
(E) America needed raw materials from the Philippines.
Answer: A
Question: The Hepburn Act, pushed through Congress by President Theodore Roosevelt, was significant in that it
(A) strengthened the Interstate Commerce Commission.
(B) created the U.S. Forest Service.
(C) empowered the Department of Agriculture to inspect meat.
(D) strengthened the Sherman Antitrust Act.
(E) made child labor illegal.
Answer: A
Question: An important effect of the increase of open shops and “company unions” in the 1920s was
(A) a weakening of the agricultural sector of the economy.
(B) an increase in the purchasing power of workers.
(C) a strengthening of the Democratic Party.
(D) a weakening of the labor movement.
(E) improved working conditions.
Answer: D
Question: To make America “the Great Society” was a pronouncement concerning
(A) Richard Nixon’s ideas on federalism.
(B) John F. Kennedy’s initiatives on civil rights.
(C) Gerald Ford’s fight against inflation.
(D) Lyndon B. Johnson’s plan to fight poverty.
(E) Jimmy Carter’s goals concerning education.
Answer: D
Question: The presidency of Lyndon Johnson was dominated by issues involving Vietnam after he
(A) coined the phrase domino theory and sent advisers to South Vietnam.
(B) pledged to support French forces in Vietnam.
(C) signed the Geneva Accords.
(D) “Vietnamized” the war.
(E) proposed the Tonkin Gulf Resolution.
Answer: E
Question: The economic condition of “stagflation” of the early 1970s can best be described as
(A) deflation and low productivity.
(B) high productivity and high prices.
(C) high inflation and high unemployment.
(D) high prices and low productivity.
(E) low prices and high productivity.
Answer: C
Question: The Iran Hostage Crisis of 1979–1981
(A) reflected resentment of the U.S. support of the shah of Iran.
(B) aided Jimmy Carter’s bid for re-election in 1980.
(C) increased American prestige.
(D) heightened Cold War tensions.
(E) caused a global oil crisis.
Answer: A
Question: A provision of the charter issued by the British government for the establishment of the colony of Virginia was that
(A) full rights of English citizenship would be extended to English settlers.
(B) Virginia would enjoy complete autonomy under the policy of salutary neglect.
(C) Virginia would choose the location of its seat of government, not England.
(D) Virginia would be under the strict control of the royal governor.
(E) Virginia would establish its own form of government, independent of the British crown.
Answer: A
Question: In response to colonial actions to protest British policies after the French and Indian War, the British government did all of the following EXCEPT
(A) repeal the Stamp Act.
(B) reaffirm its right to legislate for the colonies.
(C) sign a nonimportation agreement.
(D) order the quartering of troops in the colonies.
(E) pass the Intolerable Acts.
Answer: C
Question: Who most strongly opposed colonization of free blacks in Liberia in the 19th century?
(A) Henry Clay
(B) Daniel Webster
(C) James Monroe
(D) Marcus Garvey
(E) David Walker
Answer: D
Question: In the years between the Civil War and 1900, the South
(A) developed an extensive railroad network.
(B) remained primarily agricultural with a few pockets of industry.
(C) became economically independent from the rest of the United States.
(D) encouraged higher tariffs to prevent foreign cotton from coming into the country.
(E) experienced the same economic progress as did the North.
Answer: B
Question: In the early 20th century, the Progressive movement advocated reform in all of the following areas EXCEPT
(A) the power of trusts.
(B) conditions for factory workers.
(C) political corruption.
(D) segregation of the races in public facilities.
(E) problems of democratic participation.
Answer: D
Question: To protect citizens from bank failures, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Congress established the
(A) National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA).
(B) Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
(C) Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
(D) Social Security Administration.
(E) Federal Reserve System.
Answer: C
Question: Which of the following statements is true of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution of 1964?
(A) It passed both the Senate and the House without any dissenting votes.
(B) It contributed to President Johnson’s slim margin of victory in the 1964 election.
(C) It was a declaration of war that Congress passed after much debate.
(D) In retrospect, it is clear that the resolution was justified by clear evidence of North Vietnamese aggression.
(E) It gave President Johnson a “blank check” to retaliate against the North Vietnamese.
Answer: E
Question: The Weathermen, who were in the news in the 1960s and early 1970s, were
(A) radical black nationalists who believed in power to the black people.
(B) radical terrorists who opposed the Vietnam War.
(C) environmental activists who opposed the pollution caused by automobiles.
(D) a rock-and-roll group who were precursors to punk rock and heavy metal groups.
(E) a commune that called for love and peace and living in the outdoors.
Answer: B
Question: Key components of Henry Clay’s American System included
(A) a strict interpretation of the Constitution and rapid western expansion.
(B) a high protective tariff and internal improvements.
(C) the development of Southern industry and Northern agriculture.
(D) the elimination of export taxes and of the international slave trade.
(E) exclusive government ownership of canals and the national bank.
Answer: B
Question: Which of the following is NOT true of John Quincy Adams?
(A) He was the only president to serve in the House of Representatives after he left the presidency.
(B) He was an ardent opponent of the Gag Rule.
(C) He supported scientific research.
(D) He was the only son of a president to attain the presidency himself.
(E) He argued for the freedom of the slaves on the ship Amistad.
Answer: D
Question: In his debates against Senator Stephen Douglas in 1858, Abraham Lincoln held the position that slavery
(A) should be abolished in the whole United States.
(B) should be abolished immediately in the South.
(C) should be abolished in California.
(D) should not spread to the western territories.
(E) was not an important question.
Answer: D
Question: President Lincoln’s ideas about Reconstruction were based on the theory that the Confederate states
(A) should be treated as conquered territories.
(B) could be admitted to the Union only by Congress.
(C) had never actually left the Union.
(D) must grant full equality to all people.
(E) should be barred indefinitely from being part of the United States.
Answer: C
Question: In his futuristic novel, Looking Backward 2000–1887, published in 1888, Edward Bellamy
(A) described a world in which the United States exercised unrivaled naval power.
(B) scolded the South for enacting Jim Crow laws and tolerating the lynching of African Americans.
(C) imagined a world in which socialism and harmony replaced the antagonisms of the Gilded Age.
(D) discussed the potential benefits of having a single tax on unimproved lands.
(E) warned readers about the dangers of totalitarian regimes.
Answer: C
Question: The “Turner Thesis,” put forward by historian Frederick Jackson Turner in the 1890s, held that
(A) Darwin’s ideas about the natural world could be applied to human communities.
(B) America, if it hoped to compete with European powers, must build up its navy and acquire overseas colonies.
(C) it was the “manifest destiny” of the United States to expand from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.
(D) the frontier experience had produced a practical, self-reliant people who valued individualism and freedom.
(E) slavery had developed an excessively negative reputation and that African Americans had been better off under slavery than living in the Jim Crow South.
Answer: D
Question: What was the main goal of the Truman Doctrine?
(A) Elimination of communism
(B) Implementation of the “Domino Theory”
(C) Containment of communism
(D) Reconstruction of Western Europe after World War II
(E) Assistance to British colonies in Africa
Answer: C
Question: The Sarbanes-Oxley Act
(A) allowed law enforcement authorities to check personal records without a search warrant.
(B) forbade U.S. military personnel from torturing prisoners at Abu Ghraib.
(C) allowed for the construction of a fence along the U.S.-Mexico border.
(D) created the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
(E) established strict procedures to prevent accounting fraud.
Answer: E
Question: All of the following influenced the hippies of the 1960s EXCEPT
(A) Gregory Corso’s poetry.
(B) Rachel Carson’s warning about the environment.
(C) Timothy Leary’s ideas on drugs.
(D) Allen Ginsberg’s poetry and ideas.
(E) Phyllis Schlafly’s ideas on women.
Answer: E
Question: Which of the following was a result of George H. W. Bush’s reversal of his pledge not to raise taxes?
(A) The country went into severe recession.
(B) He said the country had finally “kicked the Vietnam syndrome.”
(C) Inflation became the main problem of the 1990s.
(D) He lost the support of the core of Republican loyalists.
(E) He was able to finance the invasion of Panama without endangering the economy.
Answer: D
Question: Which of the following statements about the Louisiana Purchase is correct?
(A) It expelled the British from North America.
(B) It contributed to peace with the Native Americans of the Ohio Valley.
(C) It demonstrated President Jefferson’s willingness to negotiate with the King of Spain.
(D) It doubled the size of the United States.
(E) It was an unconstitutional act committed by President Jefferson and Congress.
Answer: D
Question: The term manifest destiny, used in 1846 by newspaper editor John L. O’Sullivan, could best be described as a policy that would
(A) bring democracy to the West and expand the territory of the United States.
(B) remove the French from Oregon.
(C) increase immigration from Europe.
(D) push the Spanish out of Texas.
(E) protect Indian culture.
Answer: A
Question: All of the following statements about African American troops in the Civil War are true EXCEPT
(A) they fought on the front lines in battles.
(B) they received pay equal to that of the white troops throughout the war.
(C) they were always under the command of white officers.
(D) many of them were runaway slaves, who were called “contraband” by Lincoln.
(E) they often served as workers in the rear of battles.
Answer: B
Question: The event that brought the issue of civil service reform to the fore during the Gilded Age was
(A) the Credit Mobilier scandal.
(B) a report in McClure’s magazine chronicling the extent of the patronage system.
(C) a series of pointed cartoons by Thomas Nast.
(D) the assassination of President Garfield.
(E) the large number of civil servants fired by Democratic President Cleveland when he assumed office.
Answer: D
Question: Willa Cather’s My Ántonia and Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer are similar in that both
(A) showed the effects of slavery and racism on American society.
(B) focused on the difficulties of immigrants in adjusting to American life.
(C) presented the culture and customs of particular regions of the United States.
(D) failed to gain popular acclaim in their authors’ lifetimes.
(E) alerted Americans to the wretched conditions in the factories.
Answer: C
Question: The event that immediately precipitated the Spanish-American War was
(A) the nationalization of U.S. sugar plantations by Spain.
(B) the murder of Cuban nationalist leader José Marti.
(C) the sinking of the U.S. battleship Maine in the Havana harbor.
(D) a dispute involving the border between Mexico and the United States.
(E) Spain’s refusal to allow the United States to build a canal through Panama.
Answer: C
Question: The Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1933 was an attempt to increase farm prices by
(A) restricting farm production through voluntary cooperation by farmers.
(B) increasing farm production to meet growing demand.
(C) reducing farm production by paying farmers to plant fewer crops.
(D) lowering the tariffs to increase the sale of agricultural products abroad.
(E) teaching farmers industrial skills so that they could leave the land.
Answer: C
Question: Which of the following is TRUE about both the American Revolution and the Vietnam War?
(A) The United States was victorious in both wars.
(B) Both were essentially wars against domination by an overseas power.
(C) Both were civil wars between North and South.
(D) Both the United States in 1779 and South Vietnam in 1972 received military support from France.
(E) Both were traditional wars fought by traditional armies.
Answer: B
Question: Which statement explains why gay rights organizations opposed the policy adopted during the Clinton administration regarding gays in the military?
(A) It prohibited gays from serving in the military.
(B) It prohibited gays from serving in combat.
(C) It provided for segregation of gay troops.
(D) Its frank acceptance of gay soldiers endangered public support.
(E) It did not protect openly gay soldiers from discrimination.
Answer: E
Question: Bacon’s Rebellion of 1676 was significant in that it
(A) led the colonies to recruit a greater number of indentured servants.
(B) caused the death of Governor Berkeley of Virginia.
(C) contributed to an increase in Indian uprisings in Virginia.
(D) created fear of additional rebellions by former indentured servants.
(E) was the largest slave rebellion in U.S. history.
Answer: D
Question: Peter Zenger’s trial in 1734 was significant in that it
(A) laid the groundwork for freedom of the press in the future United States.
(B) exposed corruption in the Church of England.
(C) led to reforms within the British government concerning rule of the colonies.
(D) involved a jury composed of British officials.
(E) resulted in the execution of Peter Zenger.
Answer: A
Question: In which of the following pairs of events did the first cause the second?
(A) John Quincy Adams signed the Specie Circular—the United States entered a depression.
(B) John C. Calhoun wrote the Nullification Proclamation—Virginia joined with Kentucky against the Sedition Act.
(C) Daniel Webster opposed the Bank of the United States—Andrew Jackson issued the Specie Circular.
(D) Tariff of 1828 passed—Martin Van Buren elected president.
(E) Andrew Jackson vetoed the Bank Re-charter Bill—the Whig Party formed.
Answer: E
Question: Sherman’s March to the Sea during the Civil War is significant because
(A) it was the first major victory by Union forces.
(B) it was a major victory for African American troops.
(C) it was the turning point of the war.
(D) it was the final battle of the war.
(E) it was the first example of total war.
Answer: E
Question: During Presidential Reconstruction, congressional Republicans opposed Andrew Johnson’s policy of
(A) letting former members of the Confederacy run the new postwar state governments.
(B) guaranteeing suffrage to African Americans.
(C) requiring each former Confederate state to ratify the 14th Amendment.
(D) banning former members of the Confederacy from voting and holding office.
(E) granting each freedman 40 acres and a mule.
Answer: A
Question: The Dawes Severalty Act of 1887 was passed by Congress in response to pressure from
(A) large mining interests, which wanted to exploit Native American reservation lands.
(B) Native Americans, who thought the plan for gradual assimilation offered their best hope for survival.
(C) the U.S. military, which was seeking revenge for “Custer’s Last Stand.”
(D) reform-minded whites trying to solve the “Indian problem” by promoting Native Americans’s assimilation.
(E) buffalo hunters, who wanted unlimited access to buffalo herds.
Answer: D
Question: The 1919 Treaty of Versailles ending World War I
(A) did not create a lasting peace as envisioned by Woodrow Wilson in his Fourteen Points.
(B) gave the United States temporary control of a portion of Germany.
(C) was endorsed by the United States because it attempted to contain communism.
(D) led to the immediate emergence of the United States as a world power.
(E) did not include any ideas put forward by Woodrow Wilson in his Fourteen Points.
Answer: A
Question: The Red Scare of 1919–1920 was, in part, a response to the
(A) labor unrest that produced a nationwide strike wave.
(B) rise of fascism in Europe.
(C) teaching of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution.
(D) rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan.
(E) temperance movement and its success in establishing Prohibition.
Answer: A