Short Answer Questions (College Board AP® US History): Exam Questions

Source: Louis Dalrymple, “School begins”, Keppler & Schwarzmann, 1899

2. Using the image, respond to parts a, b, and c.

   a) Briefly describe ONE point of view by the artist expressed in the image.

b) Briefly explain how ONE specific event or development in the period from 1830 to 1860 contributed to the message depicted in the image.

c) Briefly explain ONE specific historical effect in the period from 1890 to 1920 that resulted from the point of view in the image

3. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

   a) Briefly describe ONE historical development that led to the Great Awakening.

b) Briefly describe ONE historical effect of the Great Awakening.

c) Briefly explain how the Great Awakening helped shape American identity prior to the American Revolution.

4. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE United States foreign policy from 1945 to 1960.

b) Briefly explain ONE similarity OR difference in how TWO groups in the United States responded to United States foreign policy from 1945 to 1960.

c) Briefly explain how ONE specific historical development between 1945 to 1960 perpetuated Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union.

“Hoover's approach to the Great Depression was rooted in his faith in individualism and voluntarism. He believed that the government should not directly intervene in the economy and that businesses and local communities should work together to resolve the crisis.”

Source: Historian William E. Leuchtenburg, in The Perils of Prosperity, 1958

“Roosevelt’s response to the Great Depression was far more vigorous and expansive…Roosevelt believed that only through direct, comprehensive government action could the economy be restored.”

Source: Historian David M. Kennedy in his book Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1999

1. Using the excerpts, respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE major difference between Herbert Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt’s approach to the Great Depression.

b) Briefly explain how ONE specific event, development, or circumstance supports Hoover’s strategy to address the Great Depression.

c) Briefly explain how ONE specific event, development, or circumstance supports Roosevelt’s strategy to address the Great Depression.

Source: G. A Crofutt,  American Progress, ca. 1873. Courtesy of Library of Congress LC-USZ62-737

1. Using the image, respond to parts a, b, and c.

   a) Briefly describe ONE historical perspective expressed in the image.

b) Briefly explain how ONE specific event or development in the period from 1800 to 1850 contributed to the belief depicted in the image.

c) Briefly explain ONE specific historical effect in the period from 1844 to 1890 that resulted from the process depicted in the image.

3. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe how ONE of the following events best represents the start of the sectional crisis that ultimately led to the Civil War. 

i. Bleeding Kansas (1854).

ii. Election of 1860.

iii. John Browns’ Raid on Harpers Ferry (1859).

b) Provide an example outside of the events provided that contributed to the increased sectionalism prior to the Civil War.

c) Briefly explain why ONE of the other options is NOT an effective choice for marking the beginning of the sectional crisis.

4. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE historical development that contributed to urbanization in American society from 1870 to 1900.

b) Briefly explain ONE positive impact urbanization had on American society between 1900 to 1930.

c) Briefly explain ONE negative impact urbanization had on American society between 1900 to 1930.

“The heart of progressivism was the ambition of the new middle class to fulfill its destiny through bureaucratic means... with no purpose beyond disclosure and conviction and very little organized support behind them, they captured the headlines, and then disappeared.”

Source: Robert H. Wiebe, historian, The Search for Order, 1877-1920, published in 1967.

“Agrarian movements constituted the most important political force driving the development of the American national state in the half-century before World War I. And by shaping the form of early regulatory legislation and establishing the centrality of the farmer-labor alliance to progressive reform and the Democratic Party, the agrarian influence was felt for years thereafter.”

Source: Elizabeth Sanders, historian, Roots of Reform: Farmers, Workers, and the American State, published in 1999.

1. Using the excerpts, respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE major difference between Robert H. Wiebe’s and Elizabeth Sanders’ historical interpretations of the Progressive Era.

b) Briefly explain how ONE development from 1890 to 1920 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Robert H. Wiebe’s argument.

c) Briefly explain how ONE development from 1890 to 1920 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Elizabeth Sanders’ argument.

"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."

Source: "I Have a Dream" speech delivered by Martin Luther King Jnr at the March on Washington, on August 28, 1963

2. Using the excerpt, respond to parts a, b and c.
a) Briefly describe the historical situation in which Martin Luther King Jr.'s “I Have a Dream” speech was delivered.

b) Briefly explain the role of grassroots activism in the civil rights movement and how it relates to the ideas expressed in King’s speech.

c) Briefly explain the continuities in grassroots activism after the 1960s, particularly in relation to broader social justice issues.

3. Respond to parts a, b, and c
a) Briefly describe ONE major Spanish policy or action that affected Indigenous peoples during the early years of colonization in the Americas from 1491 to 1607.

b) Briefly explain ONE similarity OR difference in how TWO Indigenous groups responded to European colonization from 1491 to 1754.

c) Briefly explain how ONE historical development between 1600 and 1776 contributed to the continued dominance of European powers in the Americas.

4. Respond to parts a, b, and c

a) Briefly describe ONE significant development in the labor force in the United States from 1865 to 1980.

b) Briefly explain ONE similarity OR difference in how TWO groups responded to labor issues in the U.S. from 1865 to 1980.

c) Briefly explain how ONE specific development between 1980 and 2001 influenced labor rights in the United States.

"Many people remembered the War of 1812 as a success... it was an important turning point... in the history of the young republic. It concluded almost a quarter of a century of troubled diplomacy and partisan politics and ushered in the Era of Good Feelings. It marked the end of the Federalist party but the vindication of Federalist politics, many of which were adopted by Republicans during or after the war."

Source: Donald R. Hickey, historian, The War of 1812: A Forgotten Conflict, published in 1989.

"It is the story of how a new and weak republic tried to impose its will on circumstances that were largely beyond its control. It is also the story of how an old empire was able to preserve its position in North America and an account of the fate of those Indian peoples who were caught in between the new republic and the old empire. As far as the United States is concerned, it is a story of how the new institutions of government that had been created after 1787 — particularly the U.S. Army — proved less than adequate for the purposes of waging a successful war."

Source: J.C.A. Stagg, historian, The War of 1812: Conflict for a Continent, published in 2012.

1. Using the excerpts, respond to parts a, b, and c.

   a) Briefly describe ONE major difference between Donald R. Hickey’s and J.C.A. Stagg’s interpretations of the War of 1812’s impact.

b) Briefly explain how ONE historical development from 1812 to 1824 that is not directly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Donald R. Hickey’s interpretation.

c) Briefly explain how ONE historical development from 1812 to 1824 that is not directly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support J.C.A. Stagg’s interpretation.

Source: “Join, or Die”, a political cartoon drawn by Benjamin Franklin, originally published in the Pennsylvania Gazette on May 9, 1754

2. Using the image, respond to parts a, b and c.

a) Briefly describe the purpose of the "Join, or Die" political cartoon.

b) Briefly explain how the image reflected ONE continuity in ideas about unionism from 1754 to 1800.

c) Briefly explain how ONE specific historical event or development between 1844 and 1877 resulted from developments such as that depicted in the image.

3. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

   a) Briefly describe ONE major characteristic of Puritan society in colonial New England from 1607 to 1754.

b) Briefly explain ONE similarity in how Puritans influenced the development of TWO colonies in North America from 1607 to 1754.

c) Briefly explain ONE difference in how Puritans influenced the development of TWO colonies in North America from 1607 to 1754.

4. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE significant environmental issue in the United States between 1968 and 1980.

b) Briefly explain ONE similarity OR difference in how TWO groups responded to environmental challenges in the United States from 1887 to 1980.

c) Briefly explain how ONE specific development in the 1980s resulted from environmental issues in the 1960s and 1970s.

“The economic depression and, even more, the Missouri crisis clipped Adams’s wings. His comparatively limited experience in domestic affairs proved increasingly disadvantageous amid the nation’s economic difficulties. Many thought him a pampered novice in the cut-and-thrust of congressional politics. Although he publicly supported the Missouri Compromise as the only possible solution under the constraints of the Constitution, privately he regretted not having pushed harder for restriction. Adams had friends and admirers outside New England—among them Andrew Jackson—but the debates over Missouri turned southerners against any nonslaveholding candidate, much less the son of the very last Yankee Federalist president.”

Source: Sean Wilentz, historian, The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln, 2005

“Monroe was a unionist and moderate on the slavery question, perhaps even moderately antislavery... His compromise kept the slavery issue at bay for a generation... Through the Missouri crisis, Monroe sought not the best compromise for the Union but the most favorable outcome for Virginia’s planter class. Toward this end he worked extensively with leading southern and Virginia politicians to defeat any congressional compromise that would place restrictions on slavery, even in far-off and unsettled territories.”

Source: John Craig Hammond, historian, President, Planter, Politician: James Monroe, the Missouri Crisis, and the Politics of Slavery, 2019

1. Using the excerpts, respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE major difference between Sean Wilentz’s and John Craig Hammond’s interpretations of the Missouri Compromise.

b) Briefly explain how ONE historical development from 1820 to 1850 that is not directly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Sean Wilentz’s interpretation.

c) Briefly explain how ONE historical development from 1820 to 1850 that is not directly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support John Craig Hammond’s interpretation.

“In place of the United States Government we should have the horror and terrorism of bolsheviki tyranny such as is destroying Russia now. Every scrap of radical literature demands the overthrow of our existing government. All of it demands obedience to the instincts of criminal minds, that is, to the lower appetites, material and moral. The whole purpose of communism appears to be a mass formation of the criminals of the world to overthrow the decencies of private life, to usurp property that they have not earned, to disrupt the present order of life regardless of health, sex or religious rights. By a literature that promises the wildest dreams of such low aspirations, that can occur to only the criminal minds, communism distorts our social law…

It has been impossible in so short a space to review the entire menace of the internal revolution in this country as I know it, but this may serve to arouse the American citizen to its reality, its danger, and the great need of united effort to stamp it out, under our feet, if needs be. It is being done. The Department of Justice will pursue the attack of these “Reds” upon the Government of the United States with vigilance, and no alien, advocating the overthrow of existing law and order in this country, shall escape arrest and prompt deportation.”

Source: A. Mitchell Palmer, "The Case Against the 'Reds'",Forum, 1920

2. Using the excerpt, respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE point of view suggested in the excerpt.

b) Briefly explain how ONE specific historical development between 1917 and 1920 contributed to the development described in the excerpt.

c) Briefly explain how ideas such as those reflected in the excerpt resulted in ONE specific effect between 1947 and 1959.

3. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE historical development that led to the creation of the U.S. Constitution.

b) Briefly describe ONE historical effect of the creation of the U.S. Constitution.

c) Briefly explain how the creation of the U.S. Constitution helped shape American identity prior to the Civil War.

4. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE significant development in youth culture in the 1960s.

b) Briefly explain ONE similarity OR difference in how youth culture in the 1960s influenced TWO groups in the United States.

c) Briefly explain how youth culture in the 1960s contributed to a significant shift in American society by 1980.

“Malcolm did not advocate violence; he advocated self-defense. He believed that the right of self-defense is an essential element in the definition of humanity. Whites have always recognized this principle for themselves but not for blacks. This kind of racist thinking infuriated Malcolm. If whites have the right to defend themselves against their enemies, why not blacks? Malcolm used provocative language to express his rage. "If you want to know what I'll do, figure out what you'll do. I'll do the same thing-only more of it." He contended that blacks should use "any means necessary" to get their freedom and whites should be prepared for "reciprocal bleeding." He did not regard such language as violent. He called it intelligence. "A black man has the right to do whatever is necessary to get his freedom that other human beings have done to get their freedom.”

Source: James H. Cone, historian, Martin and Malcolm on Nonviolence and Violence, 2001

“ … the triumph had shown how valuable mass nonviolent resistance could be. The real goal, however, was not to defeat the white man, but “to awaken a sense of shame within the oppressor and challenge his false sense of superiority.… The end is reconciliation; the end is redemption; the end is the creation of the beloved community” where all men would treat each other as brothers and equals. “There are great resources of goodwill in the southern white man that we must somehow tap,” King asserted, and we must work to “speed up the coming of the inevitable.”

Source: David J. Garrow, historian, Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, 2004

1. Using the excerpts, respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE major difference between Cone’s and Garrow’s historical interpretations on which Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. address their approaches to combating racial oppression.

b) Briefly explain ONE specific event or development from 1945-1980 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts that could be used to support Garrow’s argument about the differing philosophies of Martin Luther King Jr. within the civil rights movement.

c) Briefly explain ONE specific event or development from 1945-1980 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts that could be used to support Cone’s argument about the differing philosophies of Malcolm X within the civil rights movement.

Source: A photograph of Alabama State Troopers Beating Black Marchers on Bloody Sunday (March 7, 1965).

2. Using the image, respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE historical context that would explain this photograph.

b) Briefly explain how the image reflected demonstrates how media coverage advanced the civil rights movement's goals from 1950-1968.

c) Briefly explain ONE way the photograph exemplifies Martin Luther King Jr’s, culture change philosophy during the civil rights movement from 1950-1968.

3. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE way the U.S. government mobilized the economy for World War I.  

b) Briefly explain ONE way women contributed to the war effort on the home front and how this changed their role in society.    

c) Briefly explain ONE way the United States restricted civil liberties during World War I and the reasoning the government used to justify these restrictions.

4. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE way the United States government expanded its role in social welfare policy from 1960 to 2001.

b) Briefly explain ONE difference between the Great Society and the New Deal.

c) Briefly explain ONE similarity between the Great Society and the New Deal.

“... During the decade of the 1840’s, great numbers of Northerners became opponents of slavery, moved either by moral appeals of abolitionists, fear of Southern “Slave Power” or apprehension that the extension of slavery into the newly acquired territories would exclude free Northern settlers. But astute observers recognized that many who held these views had been prevented from embracing anti-slavery because of the Liberty Party’s adaptation of political and social equality for Negroes as one of its major goals. In order for the political anti-slavery movement to attract a wide following it would have to adopt a platform so broad that both the prejudiced and the advocates of equal rights could support it. . . .” 

“... That the Free Soil Party would achieve this divorce was perhaps to be expected.”

Source: Eric Foner, Racial Attitudes of the New York Free Soilers, New York History, 1965

“... John Brown harbored no such compunctions. Brown, who had failed in a number of business ventures such as the wool trade, found his true calling in radical abolitionism. Realizing that violence was no deterrent to Brown's ambitions, other radical abolitionists saw his private mission as a means of achieving the larger cause to which they all aspired. They knowingly yet surreptitiously offered their material aid, which Brown in turn converted into arms and ammunition. With the fate of Kansas hanging fire, Brown conceived of a dramatic plan to realize his antislavery goals more rapidly. He would raid the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, and, with the arms captured there, instigate a slave revolt throughout the South. To accomplish his bold maneuver…” 

Source: William T La Moy and F. B Sanborn, The Secret Six and John Brown’s Raid on Harpers Ferry: Two Letters, The New England Quarterly, 2015

1. Using the excerpts, respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE major difference between Foner’s and La Moy’s historical interpretations on the argument of slavery from 1830 to 1865.

b) Briefly explain how ONE specific event or development from 1840 to 1860  that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support La Moy’s argument about the issue of slavery in the 1800s.  

c) Briefly explain how ONE development from 1830 to 1865 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Foner’s argument about slavery in the 1800s. 

Source: Unknown, An anti-communist comic book entitled The Red Iceberg, St. Paul MN: Impact Publishing, 1960.

2. Using the image, respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE historical situation in which the image was created.

b) Briefly explain how the image reflected a change in the ideas of foreign policy from 1940 to 1980. 

c) Briefly explain how fear guided American foreign policy such as the one reflected in the image from 1940-1980. 

3. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE significant economic difference between two of the three colonial regions from 1700 to 1776. 

b) Briefly explain ONE factor that contributed to the economic differences in the North and South between 1600 to 1785. 

c) Briefly explain ONE way in which the regional differences among the British colonies influence colonial society or politics before 1750.

4. Respond to parts a, b, and c.

a) Briefly describe ONE key policy or action of Ronald Reagan’s presidency that reflected the principles of conservatism from 1981-1989. 

b) Briefly explain ONE way in which Reagan’s conservative policies affected the U.S. economy from 1980 to 2001. 

c) Briefly explain ONE way in which Reagan’s conservatism was either challenged or limited during his presidency from 1981-1989.