Practice Test 9 - AP U.S. History

20 questions. Answer them in any order, then submit to see your score and every explanation.

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1. Secondary source excerpt (1945–1980): "American leaders pursued 'containment' through permanent peacetime commitments: collective security treaties, forward-deployed forces, and economic programs meant to bind allies to U.S. leadership. This architecture signaled a departure from earlier patterns of limited entanglement, and it treated Europe and East Asia as central theaters where U.S. credibility and Soviet power would be measured." Which policy most directly reflects the creation of this postwar alliance architecture?
2. Secondary-source excerpt (Civil War policies, 1861–1865): Historians point out that the Union government raised revenue by increasing import duties and passing new protective tariffs, a longstanding Whig/Republican goal. This approach also aimed to encourage northern manufacturing during the war. Which wartime measure best matches this description?
3. Secondary source excerpt (1968–1980): The creation of OSHA and the EPA in the early 1970s reflected a broader belief that federal agencies should protect citizens from harms that individuals could not easily avoid. Historians connect this to the era's emphasis on rights to health and safety. Which development best fits that broader belief?
4. A secondary source notes that while Reconstruction amendments promised equality, many African Americans faced segregation and discrimination in public spaces. The author explains that Congress attempted to address this with federal civil rights legislation in the mid-1870s, but enforcement was weak. Which law aimed to prohibit racial discrimination in public accommodations during Reconstruction?
5. Secondary source excerpt (1491–1607): Spanish colonists introduced cattle ranching to parts of the Americas, and herds often wandered into Native fields, destroying crops and provoking conflict. Some Native leaders sought compensation through negotiation or legal petitions, while others retaliated with raids. Ranching estates also relied on coerced labor, including enslaved Africans and Indigenous workers, who shared techniques for herding and healing animals. Disease continued to reduce Native populations, increasing pressures to import African labor. Which option best reflects the excerpt's focus on economic and social interactions?
6. Both the Navigation Acts and the Dominion of New England reflected England's attempt to tighten control over colonies after 1660. Which option best compares their primary purpose in 1607–1754?
7. Secondary-source excerpt (Civil War policies, 1861–1865): Historians note that the Union's wartime legislation often combined practical war needs with long-term partisan goals. For example, higher tariffs and banking reform both raised revenue and promoted a national market aligned with Republican priorities. Which pairing best illustrates this blend of war finance and economic nationalism?
8. A historian argues that Reconstruction's failure was reinforced by racial attitudes in the North as well as the South, limiting willingness to protect freedpeople. Which evidence best supports this claim?
9. Secondary source excerpt (1829–1837): Historians link Jackson's Indian policy to the broader transformation of federal power in the 1830s. Removal was justified as orderly and benevolent, yet federal officials and allied state governments applied sustained pressure to obtain land cessions. Even when Native nations sought protection through the courts, executive enforcement favored expansion. The episode revealed how national authority could be mobilized to reshape sovereignty on the frontier. Which piece of evidence would best support the excerpt's argument about federal power?
10. Secondary-source excerpt (1800–1848): Improved transportation allowed manufacturers to source inputs from farther away, reducing dependence on local supplies. A factory might buy southern cotton, Pennsylvania coal, and imported dyes, then sell cloth across multiple states. Which choice best identifies an economic development described in the excerpt?
11. A historian argues that the Articles of Confederation (1781–1789) were shaped by Revolutionary-era ideology emphasizing republicanism and fear of tyranny. Which design choice most clearly reflects that ideology?
12. Secondary-source excerpt (c. 95 words): Historians of empire argue that mercantilism assumed a finite amount of global wealth, so states sought to accumulate power by controlling trade and shipping. Colonies were expected to provide raw materials and serve as protected markets, while the mother country developed manufacturing capacity. In British North America, this logic shaped laws governing where certain products could be shipped and who could carry them. Which statement best reflects the mercantilist assumption behind colonial trade regulation?
13. Secondary source excerpt (Period 9, 1980–present): As partisan polarization increased in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, elected officials relied more heavily on ideologically aligned media and donor networks. The excerpt argues that this feedback loop rewarded uncompromising rhetoric, making bipartisan compromise rarer and increasing the likelihood of government shutdowns and legislative gridlock. In this interpretation, structural incentives pushed politicians toward strategies that intensified conflict. Which choice best states the central causation argument in the excerpt?
14. A historian argues that the Cold War's end transformed NATO from a purely anti-Soviet alliance into an organization that also addressed new security challenges. Which post–Cold War action best demonstrates this transformation?
15. Across Period 2, English colonization drew on joint-stock investment, religious migration, and the promise of land. Over time, successful cash-crop exports and expanding settlement increased Britain's stake in colonial regulation, while enslaved labor and Native displacement became central to growth. Colonists also developed local institutions and identities shaped by regional economies and imperial ties. Which broader context best explains why English colonization became more stable and expansive after the fragile early years at Jamestown?
16. In a 90-word secondary-source excerpt on 1865–1898, an author contends that middle-class culture increasingly centered on consumption and domestic comfort: department stores, mail-order catalogs, and branded goods helped define status, while "scientific" housekeeping and child-rearing advice circulated in magazines. The author adds that these trends shaped politics indirectly, as middle-class reformers promoted temperance, public education, and municipal "good government." Which piece of evidence would best support the author's claim about consumer culture?
17. In a secondary account, the Compromise of 1850 is described as shifting the slavery debate from Congress to communities and courtrooms: Congress avoided a direct ban on slavery in the Mexican Cession by endorsing popular sovereignty in new territories, while the new Fugitive Slave Act expanded federal power to capture alleged fugitives and limited accused individuals' legal protections. Which consequence best fits this description of how the compromise reshaped conflict over slavery?
18. A Reconstruction historian emphasizes that the end of Reconstruction was not a single moment but a process marked by declining northern commitment, Supreme Court decisions narrowing federal power, and political bargains. The author highlights the election dispute of 1876 and the withdrawal of federal troops. Which event is most commonly associated with the formal end of Reconstruction at the national level?
19. A scholar assessing continuity and change from 1945 to 1980 contends that postwar prosperity altered daily life for many Americans, but economic inequality and poverty persisted, prompting repeated federal efforts to address deprivation. Which evidence best supports the claim that change occurred in the federal government's approach to poverty during this period? (Secondary-source excerpt, 75–125 words: After 1945, rising productivity and suburban growth helped create a widely celebrated "affluent society," yet prosperity was unevenly distributed by region, race, and class. By the early 1960s, visible poverty in rural areas and inner cities challenged the assumption that growth alone would solve social problems. Federal policy shifted from limited, targeted assistance toward broader, coordinated initiatives that linked education, job training, and community programs. Even as critics questioned costs and effectiveness in the 1970s, the era marked a significant expansion in the national government's willingness to frame poverty as a public problem requiring sustained intervention.)
20. A secondary-source excerpt about postwar diplomacy (1945–1948) claims that U.S. leaders viewed the Greek civil war and Soviet pressure on Turkey as a test of whether the United States would assume responsibilities formerly held by Britain. The excerpt argues that the U.S. response marked a turning point toward a global policy of containment. Which statement best summarizes that turning point?

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