Quiz for Sources for America’s History, Chapter 14

Question

1. The letter Mary Berkeley Minor Blackford wrote to her cousin John in January of 1861 (Document 14-1) provides evidence to support which of the following conclusions?

A.
B.
C.
D.

Correct. The answer is c. Mary Blackford’s letter indicates that she opposed secession and was very upset at the thought that a Civil War would divide the Union, which she loved. Her intimation that she had no one to talk to about the issue and her warning that her cousin “not speak of getting this letter” indicate that opposition to secession in Virginia in 1861 was atypical and potentially dangerous.
Incorrect. The answer is c. Mary Blackford’s letter indicates that she opposed secession and was very upset at the thought that a Civil War would divide the Union, which she loved. Her intimation that she had no one to talk to about the issue and her warning that her cousin “not speak of getting this letter” indicate that opposition to secession in Virginia in 1861 was atypical and potentially dangerous.

Question

2. The Staunton Spectator’s plea for frugality among Virginia’s citizens in 1862 (Document 14-2) suggests that the South might have been at a considerable disadvantage to the North at that time for which reason?

A.
B.
C.
D.

Correct. The answer is d. This newspaper article urged Virginians to practice thrift and to live as minimally as possible. Much of the article focused on the impact of the Union blockade of Virginia, but it also alluded to the “embarrassments that the agricultural portion of our citizens have suffered, in consequence of the presence of the enemy,” implying that the slave labor force was not producing as much as it had in the past.
Incorrect. The answer is d. This newspaper article urged Virginians to practice thrift and to live as minimally as possible. Much of the article focused on the impact of the Union blockade of Virginia, but it also alluded to the “embarrassments that the agricultural portion of our citizens have suffered, in consequence of the presence of the enemy,” implying that the slave labor force was not producing as much as it had in the past.

Question

3. The letters that U.S. Army nurse Cornelia Hancock wrote to her family in 1863 (Document 14-3) indicate which of the following was true during the Civil War?

A.
B.
C.
D.

Correct. The answer is c. Hancock wrote of her experience with great enthusiasm, despite her sympathies for the men who were injured and killed in battle. She wrote, “I am better than I am at home. I feel so good when I wake up in the morning,” and “I feel like a new person . . . walk as straight as a soldier, feel life and vigor which you well know I never felt at home,” suggesting that she found a vitality and sense of purpose in her work that she had never experienced in the domestic context.
Incorrect. The answer is c. Hancock wrote of her experience with great enthusiasm, despite her sympathies for the men who were injured and killed in battle. She wrote, “I am better than I am at home. I feel so good when I wake up in the morning,” and “I feel like a new person . . . walk as straight as a soldier, feel life and vigor which you well know I never felt at home,” suggesting that she found a vitality and sense of purpose in her work that she had never experienced in the domestic context.

Question

4. Why did Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation (Document 14-4) specifically delineate which states were in rebellion against the United States and which were not?

A.
B.
C.
D.

Correct. The answer is a. Lincoln specified clearly which states were subject to the Emancipation Proclamation because he was politically astute. He had conciliated slave owners in the border states by preserving slavery there. He defined emancipation as an act of war, necessary to put down the rebellion, and did not want to ruffle the feathers of loyal slave owners.
Incorrect. The answer is a. Lincoln specified clearly which states were subject to the Emancipation Proclamation because he was politically astute. He had conciliated slave owners in the border states by preserving slavery there. He defined emancipation as an act of war, necessary to put down the rebellion, and did not want to ruffle the feathers of loyal slave owners.

Question

5. In his response to the Emancipation Proclamation (Document 14-4), Jefferson Davis wrote, “So far as regards the action of this Government on such criminals as may attempt its execution I confine myself to informing you that I shall unless in your wisdom you deem some other course more expedient deliver to the several State authorities all commissioned officers of the United States that may hereafter be captured by our forces in any of the States embraced in the proclamation that they may be dealt with in accordance with the laws of those States providing for the punishment of criminals engaged in exciting servile insurrection.” With these words, Davis was threatening that he would

A.
B.
C.
D.

Correct. The answer is c. Davis’s response to Lincoln threatened to punish any U.S. officer accused of enforcing the Emancipation Proclamation as if he were inciting a slave rebellion. The typical punishment for those accused of inciting slave rebellions was death, so Davis was essentially threatening to execute any Union officer who enforced the Emancipation Proclamation.
Incorrect. The answer is c. Davis’s response to Lincoln threatened to punish any U.S. officer accused of enforcing the Emancipation Proclamation as if he were inciting a slave rebellion. The typical punishment for those accused of inciting slave rebellions was death, so Davis was essentially threatening to execute any Union officer who enforced the Emancipation Proclamation.

Question

6. Harry Smith’s recollections about how the various residents of his plantation responded to the news of the Emancipation Proclamation (Document 14-5) confirm which of the following statements?

A.
B.
C.
D.

Correct. The answer is a. Harry Smith’s recollections of his experience confirm the notion that advancing Union troops became the agents of slavery’s destruction. He wrote, “Some days had elapsed after the freedom of the slaves, when a number of Union men were passing, enquired of the slaves if their master had set them free. Massa Hays began to be alarmed for fear of being arrested, in case he did not inform them of their freedom,” at which point Hays told Smith and his other slaves that “you are free to go where you please.”
Incorrect. The answer is a. Harry Smith’s recollections of his experience confirm the notion that advancing Union troops became the agents of slavery’s destruction. He wrote, “Some days had elapsed after the freedom of the slaves, when a number of Union men were passing, enquired of the slaves if their master had set them free. Massa Hays began to be alarmed for fear of being arrested, in case he did not inform them of their freedom,” at which point Hays told Smith and his other slaves that “you are free to go where you please.”

Question

7. What was William T. Sherman’s primary aim when he issued Special Field Order No. 15 in January 1865 (Document 14-6)?

A.
B.
C.
D.

Correct. The answer is d. Sherman’s primary aim with Special Field Order No. 15 was to provide land and other supplies to freed slaves so that they could begin to support themselves economically.
Incorrect. The answer is d. Sherman’s primary aim with Special Field Order No. 15 was to provide land and other supplies to freed slaves so that they could begin to support themselves economically.