Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About John Brown?

Q#1 –When and where was John Brown born?

Q#2 – How did Brown’s parents, Owen Brown and Ruth Mills describe their son, John Bron?

Q#3 – When the Brown family moved to Hudson, Ohio, what was the name of the man who ingrained in a young John Brown the seeds of Abolition?

Q#4 – John Brown’s father became a leading and wealthy citizen of Hudson and operated a tannery. Which future US President’s father was employed at the tannery?

Q#5 – With no school beyond the elementary level in Hudson at that time, how did John Brown acquire additional academic education?

Q#6 – When he was 12 years old and away from home moving cattle, what incident did he witness that John Brown decided to dedicate his life to improving African Americans’ condition?

Q#7 – Where did John Brown plan to get his higher education?

Q#8 – After returning home, what profession did John Brwon teach himself from a book?”

Q#9 – John Brown knew the Bible thoroughly and could catch even small errors in Bible recitation. After the Bible, what were his favorite books read?

Q#10 – In 1836, what incident further reinforced John Brown’s Abolitionist fervor?

Q#11 – In 1850, the United States passed the Fugitive Slave Act, a law mandating that authorities in free states aid in the return of escaped slaves and imposing penalties on those who aid in their escape. What action did John Bron take in response to this new law?

Q#12 – The Pottawatomie massacre occurred in Kansas during the night of May 24 and the morning of May 25, 1856. Under John Brown’s supervision, his sons and other abolitionist settlers did what?

Q#13 – At the start of the raid at Harper’s Ferry, what initial actions did John Brown perform?

Q#14 – After experiencing some initial success, what mistake did Brown make that led to Federal and State forces being alerted to the raid?

Q#15 – Why was John Brown’s trial conducted by the State of Virginia and not by the Federal Government?

What Do You Know About the Civil War Peace Conference?

Q#1 – When was the Civil War Peace Conference held?

Q#2 – What historical name has been traditionally given to the conference?

Q#3 – What unique facility was used to hold the Conference?

Q#4 – Who was the Lead Union Representative?

Q#5 – Who was the Lead Confederate Representative?

Q#6 – What position did the Confederate representative hold in the Confederate government?

Q#7 – Who else besides the Lead Union representative attended the Conference for the Union?

Q#8 – There were two additional individuals other than the Lead Confederate Representative that attended the Conference on behalf of the Confederacy. Who were they?

Q#9 – In response to pressure from some in the Confederate government to seek a peaceful versus military end to the war, Confederate President Jefferson Davis extended what proposal to President Lincoln.

Q#10 – In preparation for the Conference, Jefferson Davis gave his three commissioners instructions to explore all options except one; what was that exception?

Q#11 – What was the main reason that the Union Congress was shaken by the news of possible peace negotiations with the Confederacy?

Q#12 – What was the main reason that the Radical Republicans in Congress were opposed to the Conference?

Q#13 – After the Conference began, the Union representatives put forth several conditions that were mandatory in order to end the war through peace negotiations – what were these conditions?

Q#14 – During the negotiations, the question of slavery was discussed, specifically Emancipation Proclamation. How did the Union representatives describe the scope of the Proclamation?

Q#15 – What was Confederate President Jefferson Davis’s reaction to what the Union representatives had proposed at the Conference?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Union Support in the South During the Civil War?

Q#1 – Not all people living in the Confederacy supported secession. Those opposed were know by five names – can you name at least two?

Q#2 – During the post-Civil War period called “Reconstruction”, what was the different derogatory name given to Southerners who supported the Union?

Q#3 – Which three Confederate states has the largest number of people supporting the Union?

Q#4 – In which Confederate state was the “Free State of Jones” located?

Q#5 – Prior to the attack on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, people living in the South that supported the Union were counting on what action by President Lincoln to avoid an armed conflict?

Q#6 – Virginia is known for providing many of the best Confederate officers such as Robert E Lee, Thomas, “Stonewall” Jackson, AP Hill, JEB Stuart, among others. However, many southern soldiers in the US Army remained loyal when their states seceded. As is the case of Virginia, what percentage Virginian officers in the United States military stayed with the Union?

Q#7 – Approximately how many Southerners served in the Union Army during the Civil War?

Q#8 – Every Southern state except one formally raised military organizations of white troops; which state did not?

Q#9 – Which state provided the most southerners to the Union Army?

Q#10 – In what role were Southerners who joined the Union Army extensively used in areas of the Confederacy that became occupied by the Union?

Q#11 – Other than being opposed to slavery, what was another major reason many Southerners were opposed to secession and sided with the Union?

Q#12 – Among Southerners of German ancestry, what actors played an important role in many of them refusing to serve in the Confederate armed forces ?

Q#13 – He became known as the founding father of West Virginia who described secession as “self-murder” and “an insult to all reasonable living humanity, and a crime against God.” What was this person’s name?

Q#14 – As the Civil War dragged on, one critical factor drove many Southern white women to move to the forefront of another kind of Unionism?

Q#15 – What were the four Southern states that initially voted against secession?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address?

Q#1 – When did President Lincoln give his Second Inaugural Address?

Q#2 – How many words are contained in Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address?

Q#3 – Lincoln makes numerous religious references in his Second Inaugural Address. How many times does Lincoln mention the word “God”?

Q#4 – Lincoln used his second inaugural address to touch on the question of “Divine Providence: Why?

Q#5 – In the speech, what does Lincoln make reference to regarding the causes for the ongoing Civil War?

Q#6 – What is the main point of Lincoln’s second inaugural address?

Q#7 – What was unique about Lincoln’s second inaugural address?

Q#8 – With his speech, what was Lincoln’s main message to people living in the North?

Q#9 – Regarding the people living in the South, what was Lincoln attempting to accomplish with his speech?

Q#10 – What was unique about Lincoln’s second inaugural address?

Q#11 – In the speech, in what context did Lincoln use the phrase “scourge of war”?

Q#12 – In the crowd present in front of the East Portico of the United States Capitol where the speech was given, what two special groups were in attendance?

Q#13 – The closing paragraph contains two additional glosses from scripture “let us strive on to… bind up the nation’s wounds.” It is a reworking of what Psalm from the Old Testament of Bible?

Q#14 – What was Lincoln’s appeal to his audience in the second inaugural address?

Q#15 – What was the general reaction to Lincoln’s second inaugural address in his home state of Illinois?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About The Mason Dixon Line?

Q#1 – Which four states’ borders were defined by the Mason Dixon Line?

Q#2 – Why was the Mason Dixon Survey needed?

Q#3 – What was the timeline of the survey?

Q#4 – Why were the Native Americans opposed to surveyors?

Q#5 – Jeremiah Dixon was the surveyor. What was Charles Mason’s profession and how did he contribute to the survey?

Q#6 – What is the length of a surveyor’s chain?

Q#7 – What other surveying equipment was used by Mason Dixon?

Q#8 – What natural barrier formed part of the Mason Dixon Line?

Q#9 – In addition to the Mason Dixon Line what else defined the borders between the free and slave states?

Q#10 – What states south of the Mason Dixon Line stayed with or joined the Union prior to 1865?

Q#11 – How was the Mason Dixon Line marked?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About the Ironclads Monitor and Merrimac?

Q#1 – While the concept of ships protected by armor existed before the advent of the ironclad Monitor, the need for iron plating on ships arose only after the invention of what new form of armament?

Q#2 – After the Civil War began, what event caused the Union Navy’s attitude towards ironclads to quickly change?

Q#3 – In August 1861 how much money did Congress appropriate to build one or more armored steamships?

Q#4 – The Monitor was designed by Swedish-born engineer and inventor John Ericsson. Where was the Monitor constructed and how many days did it take to build it?

Q#5 –The top of the armored deck of the Monitor was only about 18 inches above the waterline. It was protected by two layers of 1⁄2-inch wrought iron armor. What material was used and what were their dimensions to protect the sides of the Monitor?

Q#6 – What was the size of the Monitor’s crew?

Q#7 – On the morning of the Battle of Hampton Roads, what Union ship was the Monitor protecting that prevented the Merrimack (now named the CSS Virginia) from destroying it?

Q#8 – After the Battle of Hampton Roads, what was the next military engagement the Monitor participated in?

Q#9 – What was the name of the ship that was towing the Monitor to join in a planned attack on Wilmington, North Carolina, when the Monitor sunk in heavy seas off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina in December 1862?
The Merrimack (aka Virginia)
Q#10 – When the Merrimack was first built in 1854, where did the name “Merrimack” come from?

Q#11 – As still part of the Union Navy in September 1857, what role was the Merrimack assigned?

Q#12 – In April 1861, with the attack on Ft Sumter, the Secretary of the US Navy issued orders to have the Merrimack moved to Philadelphia. What action by the Confederates prevented the Merrimack from leaving Norfolk?

Q#13 – When the US Navy realized they could not sail the Merrimack out of Norfolk, what action did they take?

Q#14 – The Confederacy, in desperate need of ships, raised Merrimack and rebuilt her as an ironclad ram. What were the Confederate plans to use the now renamed CSS Virginia?

Q#15 – What led to the Confederate decision to scuttle the CSS Virginia?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About The 54th Massachusetts Regiment?

Q#1 – What Federal government action authorized the general recruitment of African Americans for service in the Union Army?

Q#2 – Who was the Federal government official that instructed the Governor of Massachusetts, John A. Andrew, to begin raising regiments including “persons of African descent” on January 26, 1863?

Q#3 – We all know that Robert Gould Shaw was selected to be the regiment’s colonel. What was the name of the person who was selected to be the regiment’s lieutenant colonel?

Q#4 – Like What was Robert Gould Shaw’s rank in the Union Army before he was appointed to lead the 54th Massachusetts Regiment?

Q#5 – Who were the two prominent black abolitionists that actively recruited African Americans to join the 54th?

Q#6 – Where did the 54th Massachusetts Regiment perform their training?

Q#7 –When news reached the South that the Union was going to recruit African Americans into the Union Amy, what action did Confederate President Jefferson Davis initiate?

Q#8 – The enlisted men of the 54th were recruited on the promise of pay and allowances equal to their white counterparts. This was supposed to amount to subsistence and $13 a month. What happened when the 54th arrived in South Carolina?

Q#9 – When the 54th arrived in Beaufort, South Carolina what military unit were they joined with and who was in charge of that unit?

Q#10 – On July 16, 1863, where did the 54th first real military engagement take place?

Q#11 – What geographic and terrain conditions made the assault on Fort Wagnor so difficult and caused a significant number of 54th casualties before they even reached the fort?

Q#12 – The 54th’s Regimental Commander, Robert Gould Shaw was killed in the attack on Fort Wagner. Who took over command of the regiment?

Q#13 – After Fort Wagner, what was the 54th’s next military action and where did that take place?

Q#14 – At the November 1864 Battle of Honey Hill that the 54th was participated in, what was the outcome of that battle?

Q#15 – In mid-April 1865, the 54th fought in what proved to be one of the last engagements of the war; what was that engagement and were did it occur?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About the Use of Railroads During the Civil War?

Q#1 – After fighting broke out in 1861, the country had a rail network totaling more than 30,000 miles. Approximately how many miles were in the North and how many in the South?

Q#2 – From the beginning of the war, what was the Confederate government’s policy regarding which type of traffic received priority on its railroads?

Q#3 –What was the name of an American civil engineer and railroad construction engineer and executive who, as a Union Army General, played a key role in the Civil War where he revolutionized U.S. military transportation, particularly the use of railroads?

Q#4 – From an overarching policy perspective, how did the South view the use of its railroad and train system?

Q#5 – What basic engineering and design flaw plagued the South in being able to more effectively utilize its railroads that did not exist in the North?

Q#6 – In 1862, why did the Baltimore and Ohio (B&O) Railroad rescind its Southern support severely impacting Confederate military operations in Virginia and Tennessee?

Q#7 – What event occurred a month prior to the war’s first major engagement at the First Battle of Bull Run regarding the use of the railroad that initially caught Southern forces off-guard?

Q#8 – What use of the railroad by Confederate forces was critical to the southern victory at the Battle of Chickamauga in early September of 1863?

Q#9 – There were six railroads serving Richmond, VA. What were these six railroads unable to do that limited their effectiveness?

Q#10 – What was the number of new locomotives produced in the South after the war began?

Q#11 – During the Civil War, the amount of new railroad mileage laid in the North was 4,000 miles. What was the amount for the South?

Q#12 – On January 31, 1862, the U.S. Congress passed legislation authorizing President Lincoln as Commander in Chief to do what regarding the railroads?

Q#13 – What risky venture regarding locomotives did Union commanders sometimes employ to gather information on Confederate forces?

Q#14 – What did the term “railroad monitors” refer to?

Q#15 – What were “Rifle Cars”?

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About American Civil War Army and Navy Connections?

Q#1 — Alonzo Cushing was awarded the Medal of Honor defending the Union position on Cemetery Ridge against Pickett’s Charge during the Battle of Gettysburg. What was his younger brother famous for?

Q#2 — Continuing with Alonzo Cushing, the current US warship, the USS Gettysburg, honored him in a special way in 2014. What was this honor?

Q#3 — What is the connection between the Battle of Gettysburg and the USS Monitor?

Q#4 — What was the first combined operation of the Union Army and Navy in the American Civil War and what was the outcome of the operation?

Q#5 — Ranald Slidell Mackenzie was a career United States Army officer serving in the Union Army during the American Civil War and the following Indian wars. His Uncle John Slidell was involved in a serious naval related diplomatic event. What was it?

Q#6 — Brigadier General Henry Hayes Lockwood was a brigade commander during the Civil War. What was his connection to the Navy?

Q#7 — Union General John Pope built his reputation based on this combined operates victory on the Mississippi River. Name it.

Q#8 — United States Ram Fleet was active in the battle against the Confederate River Defense Fleet for control of the Mississippi River and its tributaries. What was unusual about this fleet?

Q#9 — The United States Ram Fleet was commanded by a well-known civil engineer. Who was he and what happened to him during the Civil War?

Q#10 — Burnside’s North Carolina Expedition was part of Winfield Scott’s Anaconda Plan. The first battle of the expedition was an amphibious operation. Name it.

Q#11 — The Battle of Sayler’s Creek, the last major battle before the surrender of Lee’s Army at Appomattox. What was its significance with respect to the Confederate navy?

Q#12 — This Civil War land battle saw a “boarding party” attack made by 1,600 sailors and 400 marines. Name it and what was the outcome?

Q#13 — On March 14, 1862, the Union undertook an amphibious operation. What battle resulted?

Q#14 — Union Major General John A. McClernand successful led a combined operations assault. What was the name of the battle?

Q#15 — The army unit was initially commanded by navy officers. Name it.

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Women’s Role in the Civil War?

Q#1 – In the years before the Civil War, the lives of American women were shaped by a set of ideals. What was the name that historians call these ideals?

Q#2 – According to the best available records from the Civil War, how many women disguised themselves as men and fought in the Union and Confederate armies during the Civil War?

Q#3 – With the outbreak of war in 1861, thousands of women eagerly volunteered to help with the Union cause forming organized ladies’ aid societies. What did these societies provide?

Q#4 – Many women wanted to take a more active role in the war effort. What was the name of the woman who inspired other women to find a way to work on the front lines, caring for sick and injured soldiers and keeping the rest of the Union troops healthy and safe?

Q#5 – Responding to increasing number of women wanting to support the war effort, in June 1861, what was the name of the agency created by the Federal Government?

Q#6 – What was the name of the female activist that was appointed the Superintendent of Army nurses be the Federal Government?

Q#7 – What was the name of the female American novelist, short story writer, and poet who was also a nurse for the Union Army?

Q#8 – For the Confederate troops, in addition to cooking mending clothing, and performing nursing duties, what personal act did they often perform for wounded soldiers?

Q#9 – In addition to performing nursing duties in hospitals, where else did Southern women volunteer to perform these duties?

Q#10 – What was the name of the woman who worked as a cook and nurse for the Union before she was asked to organize former slaves in South Carolina into a spy network?

Q#11 – This wealthy widow from Virginia, freed all her family’s slaves after her husband’s death. During the Civil War, she brought supplies to Union prisoners at Libby Prison. While visiting the prisoners, she picked up important tactical information about Confederate positions from them and passed that information on to Union leaders using couriers. What was this woman’s name?

Q#12 – On the Confederate side, this wealthy debutante from Martinsburg, Virginia working as a nurse, she wooed Union officers and convinced them to share information with her about troop movements. She then passed this information on to Confederate officers. What was her name?

Q#13 – This woman was also a Civil War nurse. She supplied her own wagon and drove out to the field of battle to tend to wounded soldiers without any permission of the Union War Department. What was her name?

Q#14 – For the Confederate government’s Department of the Treasury, what role was assigned to women?

Q#15 – Allan Pinkerton was made head of the Union Secret Service and one of his first orders was to conduct surveillance of a suspected Confederate female spy. What was the name of this spy?