Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About the Fugitive Slave Act?

Q#1 – Was the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act the first law of its kind in the United States?

Q#2 – What actions did the States identified as “Free States” take regarding what actions to take when runaway slaves were discovered in their State?

Q#3 – Before the passage of the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act, what rulings by the Missouri Supreme Court circumvented Federal laws regarding the return of enslaved people?

Q#4 – Why were the rulings by the Missouri Supreme Court regarding the return of enslaved ruled as being Constitutional?

Q#5 – Why in 1847 and 1849 did planters from Bourbon and Boone counties, Kentucky, lead raids into Cass County in the state of Michigan?

Q#6 – What was the general reaction by Southerners regarding how the “Free States” were dealing with slaves in their states?

Q#7 – What was the name of the politician who drafted the language for Fugitive Slave Act of 1850,?

Q#8 – What penalties were imposed on those found guilty of not arresting a suspected runaway slave?

Q#9 – What were the penalties imposed by the Act on any one who aided a slave in escaping slavery?

Q#10 – In 1850, what legislative action did the State of Vermont implement that rendered the federal 1850 Fugitive Slave Act effectively unenforceable in Vermont?

Q#11 – What is “Jury Nullification” and how was it used regarding criminal cases related to the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act?

Q#12 – What was the first state to declare the Fugitive Slave Act unconstitutional and how did the US Supreme court rule?

Q#13 – In 1855, what law did the Michigan legislature pass that dealt with the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act?

Q#14 – Why did many Northern businessmen support the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act?

Q#15 – When was the Fugitive Slave Act formally repealed?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Florida In the Civil War?

Q#1 – Following the election of Abraham Lincoln in November 1860, a special secession convention was called by Florida Governor Madison S. Perry to discuss secession from the Union. What was the official name of this convention?

Q#2 – When did Florida secede from the Union?

Q#3 – In Florida’s secession document, what reasons were documented justifying the secession from the Union?

Q#4 – Approximately how many soldiers did Florida provide the Confederacy?

Q#5 – What factor was the State’s key importance to the Confederacy?

Q#6 – At the start of the Civil War, Florida seized all but two Union facilities; which ones were these?

Q#7 – Why did the Confederate government in Richmond take the unpopular action in Florida to divide the state into several military districts?

Q#8 – What basic food products were Florida’s major contribution to the Confederate cause?

Q#9 – As Florida was an important supply route for the Confederacy, Union forces operated a blockade around the entire state. Approximately how many miles of coastline had to be blockaded? How many miles of rivers, streams, and waterways that proved a haven for blockade runners and a daunting task for patrols by Federal warships also had to be blockaded?

Q#10 – What reasons did the Confederacy attempt to use the close proximity of Florida with Cuba?

Q#11 – Florida was the first state to take what action regarding utilization of its slaves for military action?

Q#12 – Growing public dissatisfaction across the south with Confederate conscription and impressment had what impact on Florida?

Q#13 – In 1862, what action did the Florida House of Representatives take regarding the large Seminole Native American population in the State?

Q#14 – Where did the majority of Florida’s Confederate troops fight?

Q#15 – What was the name of the largest battle fought in Florida during the Civil War?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Bleeding Kansas?

Q#1 – What original territory was the state of Kansas part of?

Q#2 – When was Kansas admitted to the Union?

Q#3 – As abolitionism became increasingly popular in the United States and tensions between its supporters and detractors grew. What compromise would directly affect the issue of slavery in the Kansas Territory?

Q#4 – The Kansas–Nebraska Act was proposed by Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois. What assumption regarding slavery did Douglas rely on that would appease Southerners in Congress?

Q#5 – What are the origins of the term “Bleeding Kansas”?

Q#6 – Who were the first settlers of the new Kansas Territory?

Q#7 – What action did President Franklin Pierce take that helped plant the early seeds for a “Bleeding Kansas”?
 
Q#8 – Who were the “Border Ruffians”?

Q#9 – In 1855, what did a congressional committee investigating the election of proslavery Democratic candidate John Wilkins Whitfield for a nonvoting delegate to Congress discover?

Q#10 – On March 30, 1855, the Kansas Territory held the election for its first territorial legislature. What were the results and what major action influenced which people were elected?

Q#11 – Stating the March 1855 election as fraudulent, Free-Staters elected delegates to a separate legislature and proclaimed itself the legitimate government and called the proslavery government “bogus”. What action did then President Franklin Pierce take?

Q#12 – What was the Wakarusa War of 1855?

Q#13 – What act of violence was initiated as a result of a speech made in the US Senate entitled “Crimes Against Kansas”?

Q#14 – What act of violence was committed when John Brown led his sons and other followers into Kansas?

Q#15 – What was the Battle of Osawatomie that was fought in August 1856?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Little Known Facts of the Civil War?

Q#1 – What were the nicknames that President Abraham Lincoln used to refer to Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis?

Q#2 – Jefferson Davis served as a member of the US House of Representatives, a US Senator on two separate occasions and as the President of the Confederate States. What was common regarding all three of these?

Q#3 – Regarding the number people who earned the Medal of Honor, which war had the most medals awarded?

Q#4 – What piece of evidence led some people to believe that Confederate President Jefferson Davis ordered the assassination of President Lincon?

Q#5 – John Wilkes Booth’s assassination of Lincoln was part of a broader conspiracy. What other actions were planned to be executed on April 14, 1865?

Q#6 – What foreign city did the Confederate Secret Service take refuge in during the Civil War?

Q#7 – What item on a pair of military pants was invented by the US Army?

Q#8 – During the Civil War era, it was commonly thought that firing a cannon over water would do what?

Q#9 – Approximately how many soldiers died of disease in the Civil War?

Q#10 – True or False: Only white people were slave holders?

Q#11 – What medical unit did Union General George B. McClellan create?

Q#12 – What was the purpose for creating the U.S. Sanitary Commission?

Q#13 – Other than carrier pigeons, what animal did the Confederate Arny use to deliver message??

Q#14 – During the Battle of Gettysburg, a group of gathered intelligence for the Union army. They posed as Confederate sympathizers and used their social networks to gather information about Confederate troop movements and plans. This information was then passed along to Union commanders, who used it to their advantage on the battlefield. What was the name given to this group of women?

Q#15 – During the Civil War, what was the monthly pay for a Black soldier?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About The Spencer Rifle? (Vernon Hayashida)

Q#1 – The carbine was handier than the rifle for the cavalry. What made the rifle, Spencer and 1873 Trap Door Springfield, the weapon of choice over the carbine for the infantry?

Q#2 – How many rounds does a Spencer hold and where is the magazine?

Q#3 – Describe the sequence in chambering a round, firing, and ejecting the spent cartridge a Spencer.

Q#4 – What is a Blakeslee Box for the Spencer?

Q#5 – What is a Stabler Cutt Off on a 1865 Spencer Carbine?

Q#6 – Who helped get 10,000+ Spencers for distributed after testing the carbine?

Q#7 – When and where was the tests in Q#-6 performed?

Q#8 – What was the one complaint of the Spencer design by the tester?

Q#9 – When was the Spencer rifle first used in significant numbers?

Q#10 – What was the problem Confederates had in using captured Spencers?

Q#11 – What are the disadvantages of the Spencer rifle over the 1861 Springfield rifle?

Q#12 – In what battle was the Spencer rifle first used after being supplied to Union forces?

Q#13 – Which Union organization purchased 700 Spencer Rifles in 1861?

Q#14 – The Spencer carbine was involved in what historical event in April 26, 1865?

Q#15 – Why was the Spencer design weapon favored by the Union Ordnance Department over the 1860 Henry Rifle?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Union General Daniel E. Sickles?

Q#1 – Daniel E Sickles’ parents were Susan Marsh Sickles and George Garrett Sickles. What was Sickles’ father’s occupation?

Q#2 – Sickles’ official birthdate is October 20, 1819. His year of birth is sometimes given as 1825, and Sickles was known to have claimed as such – why did Sickles give people different dates for his birth?

Q#3 – As a young man, what trade did Sickles learn?

Q#4 – In 1847, what was the first political office that Sickles was elected to?

Q#5 – On September 27, 1852, at the age of 32, Sickles married Teresa Bagioli against the wishes of both families. How old was his bride?

Q#6 – While being a member of the New York State Assembly, why did this governmental organization censor Sickles?

Q#7 – On February 27, 1859, in Lafayette Square, across the street from the White House, Sickles shot and killed Philip Barton Key II, the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia and the son of Francis Scott Key. What was the motive that led Sickles to shot Key?

Q#8 – In the 1850s, Sickles had received a commission in the 12th Regiment of the New York Militia; what rank did Sickles eventually attain with this unit?
 
Q#9 – At the outbreak of the Civil War, Sickles was appointed colonel of one what military unit?

Q#10 – While in command of his military unit, what non-battle related action did Sickles perform that won for him the approval of the influential Committee on the Conduct of the War?

Q#11 – For a variety of reasons, Sickles missed significant actions at the Battle of Williamsburg and the Second Battle of Bull Run. What was the reason Sickles missed the Battle of Antietam because the III Corps, to which he was assigned as a division commander.?

Q#12 – How did Sickles become the only Union corps commander without a West Point military education?

Q#13 – At the Battle of Chancellorsville. What two sets of advice did Sickles provide to Army of the Potomac Commander, Joseph Hooker, that Hooker ignored, that historians of the battle believe could have caused the battle to turn out very differently for the Union if Hooker had heeded Sickles’ advice?

Q#14 – What two factors played into Sickles’ decision to move his Third Corp west off the lower part of Cemetery Ridge?

Q#15 – Despite his one-legged disability after being wounded at the Batlle of Gettysburg, Sickles remained in the army until the end of the war. Who prevented Sickles from returning to a combat command?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About the Gettysburg East Cavalry Battle?

Q#1 – On what date was the East Cavalry Battle fought?

Q#2 – Why was the battle given the name “East Cavalry Battle”?

Q#3 – What was the Confederate forces high level objective in this battle?

Q#4 – What major highway did the Confederate cavalry hope to capture?

Q#5 – Which four Confederate cavalry brigades participated in the battle?

Q#6 – Approximately how many Confederate cavalry troopers were involved in the battle?

Q#7 – From the Union Cavalry Corps commanded by Major General Alfred Pleasonton, which division was involved in the East Cavalry Field battle?

Q#8 – Who were the two original Union brigade commanders assigned to the area given the name East Cavalry Field?

Q#9 – How did Brigadier General George Armstrong Custer become involved in the East Cavalry Field battle?

Q#10 – What tactical error did JEB Stuart make before the battle began that assisted the Union in their preparation for the battle?

Q#11 – What major Confederate battle action began at the same time that JEB Stuart ordered an assault by the 1st Virginia Cavalry?

Q#12 – What was the rallying cry Custer is credited with using when he was ordered to attack the Confederate cavalry?

Q#13 – After Custer’s charge initially caused the Confederate Virginian cavalry to retreat, what happened next?

Q#14 – How long in time did the East Cavalry Field Battle last?

Q#15 – What were the casualties incurred in the East Calvary Field battle?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Civil War Prisons?

Q#1 – At the start of the Civil War, what system was in place between the Union and Confederate forces regarding prisoners?

Q#2 – What event in 1863 caused a momentous change in the way prisoners were treated?

Q#3 – Approximately how many Union soldiers became prisoners?

Q#4 – Approximately how many Confederate soldiers became prisoners?

Q#5 – Approximately how many Union soldiers died in captivity?

Q#6 – Approximately how many Confederate soldiers died in captivity?

Q#7 – What were the major causes of deaths in Confederate prisons?

Q#8 – During a period of 14 months at Camp Sumter (aka Andersonville) how many Union prisoners were confined there?
 
Q#9 – During the winter month of January 1865, at Camp Douglas in Chicago, Illinois, what percentage of the Confederate prisoners confined there died?

Q#10 – At the Elmira Prison in New York state, what percentage of the Confederate prisoners confined there died?

Q#11 – What did prisoners eat during the Civil War?

Q#12 – Where was Libby Prison located?

Q#13 – What prisoners were incarcerated at Libby Prison?

Q#14 – What was Castle Morgan?

Q#15 – Who was executed because of Andersonville?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About the Underground Railroad?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About the Underground Railroad?

Q#1 – What is the origin of the term “Underground Railroad?

Q#2 – The Underground Railroad was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and from there to Canada. What other destinations were there?

Q#3 – Approximately when did the Underground Railroad begin?

Q#4 – For the fugitive slaves who took the Underground Railroad, many of them considered Canada their final destination. Approximately how many of them settled in Canada?

Q#5 – What was the Fugitive Slave Clause of the U.S. Constitution (Article IV, Section 2, Clause 3)?

Q#6 – What did non-slave states do to circumvent the requirements in The Fugitive Slave Act that compelled officials of free states to assist slave catchers, granting them immunity to operate in free states??

Q#7 – How did escaped slaves learn how to use The Underground Railroad?

Q#8 – What was the main route for freedom seekers from the South?

Q#9 – There was a western route, used by John Brown among others, as part of the Underground Railroad. Where was it located?

Underground Railroad Terminology

Q#10 – What term was used to describe people who helped fugitive slaves find the Underground Railroad?

Q#11 – What term was used to describe those individuals who acted as Guides?

Q#12 – What term was used to describe the various hiding places along the Underground Railroad?

Q#13 – What term was used to describe those people who hid escaping slaves in their homes?

Q#14 – What term was used to describe people escaping slavery?

Q#15 – What term was used to describe financial benefactors of the Underground Railroad?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Canada and the American Civil War?

Q#1 – At the time of the American Civil War what was Canada’s political status?

Q#2 – What was Canada’s position on slavery?

Q#3 – Approximately how many Canadians participated in the Civil War?

Q#4 – What was one of the main reasons that influenced England not to recognize the Confederacy as a legitimate government?

Q#5 – The rent Affair began when an American warship stopped the British mail ship RMS Trent on the high seas and seized two Confederate diplomats, James Mason and John Slidell. What action did England take that involved Canada?

Q#6 – What was the Grand Trunk Railway Brigade?

Q#7 – Who was Benjamin Wier and what was his involvement in the Civil War?

Q#8 – What incident occurred on December 1863, involving the new Union tug Chesapeake that was preparing for service in the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron?

Q#9 – Why did a large number of Canadians have a negative view of US President Abraham Lincoln?
 
Q#10 – The CSS Tallahassee was involved in what incident in Canada?

Q#11 – What was the City of Montreal, Canada’s role in the Civil War?

Q#12 – The St. Albans Raid was the northernmost land action of the American Civil War. Taking place in St. Albans, Vermont, on October 19, 1864. From where was a raid conducted?

Q#13 – Who conducted the St. Albans Raid?

Q#14 – What was the objective of the St. Albans Raid?

Q#15 – What happened to the men who conducted the St. Albans Raid?