Part 1: People

Question 1

Samuel Adams

Answer 1

Born in 1722, Samuel Adams was the second cousin of John Adams and was from Massachusetts. He helped to inspire the revolution with his speaking and was one of signing of the Declaration of Independence and for serving in Congress. He died in 1803.

Question 2

Abigail Adams

Answer 2

Abigail Adams, the wife of the famous revolutionary leader and President, potential it held for improving women’s rights.

Question 3

Gilbert du Motier & Marquis de Lafayette

Answer 3

Gilbert du Motier & Marquis de Lafayette was a wealthy young nobleman. He is most famous for becoming a general in the colonial army at the age of nineteen. He gained his prestigious position in part because of his family’s wealth and political power, but he was also a very useful asset to the American Revolution. He gave $200,000 to the military funds. After the American Revolution, he returned to France, where he would aid in the French Revolution.

Question 4

Paul Revere

Answer 4

Paul Revere was a silversmith and a horseman. He is most famous for his cry of “The British are coming!” on April 1775, just as 700 British redcoats were sent secretly to Lexington & Concord to seize gunpowder and arrest Sam Adams & John Hancock.

Question 5

Thomas Paine

Answer 5

Thomas Paine was the author of Common Sense, one of the most influential pamphlets ever written. He was a corset-maker’s apprentice prior to writing the book. He believed that it was only logical that America should be independent because it was so much larger than Britain. He spoke in favor of a republican form of government and believed that the colonies should reject monarchy and the empire in favor of an independent republic, which was a somewhat radical view for the time.

Question 6

Richard Henry Lee

Answer 6

Richard Henry Lee was a member of the Philadelphia Congress. He is most famous for his statement that “these United Colonies are, and of right out to be, free and independent states.” The parliament debated this resolution for a long time, but soon a formal declaration of independence was written.

Question 7

John Paul Jones

Answer 7

John Paul Jones was a young Scotsman who fought bravely in the American Navy. He is regarded as the “Father of the American Navy.” He is the most famous of the early officers of the US Navy.

Question 8

George Rogers Clark

Answer 8

George Rogers Clark was a frontiersman who decided to seize forts by surprise. In 1778 he floated down the Ohio River with his men and quickly captured Cahokia, Vincennes, and Kaskaskia. Many believe that his victories forced the British to cede the region north of the Ohio River to America.

Question 9

Jonathan Edwards

Answer 9

Jonathan Edwards was a very tall, very smart pastor from Northampton Massachusetts. He taught that it was foolish to believe in salvation through good works and that it is vitally important to depend on God’s grace to save us instead. He spoke passionately about the horrors of Hell and believed that the unbaptized went there after death. Edwards used strong reasoning in his bold sermons, which inspired many other preachers. He is probably the most famous for his sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” and for his bold and logical style of teaching.

Question 10

Benjamin Franklin

Answer 10

Benjamin Franklin was one of the first reputable scientists of America. He tried many experiments that he is now quite famous for, including flying a kite with a conductor. The kite was struck by lightning to show that lightning was a form of electricity. Franklin also wrote many books that he is also famous for such as his autobiography and Poor Richard’s Almanack, which earned him the title of “the first civilized American.” His books and experiments gave him a great amount of influence on the development of the character of many Americans.

Question 11

Charles W Peale

Answer 11

arles W. Peale is most famous for his portraits of George Washington. He lived from 1741 to 1827. In addition to his painting, Charles ran a museum, was a dentist, and stuffed birds. He developed a love for painting at a young age when he traded a saddle for art lessons from John Hesslieus.

Question 12

Phillis Wheatley

Answer 12

Born in 1753, Phillis Wheatley was a slave girl who was brought to Boston when she was only 8 years old, and never had a proper education. She was later moved to England where she published a book of poems which were influenced b Alexander Pope. She is famous for her poetry, which is some of the best lyrical writing of the time. She died in 1784.

Question 13

Samuel de Champlain

Answer 13

Samuel de Champlain, the “Father of France” was a brave soldier and explorer. He had a friendly policy towards the Huron Indians, to the point where he even fought on their side in battle against the Iroquois. His use of muskets against them led to a strong hatred of the French, which led them to aid the British in their efforts on the continent.

Question 14

Robert La Salle

Answer 14

Robert La Salle is most famous for floating down the Mississippi in 1682 all the way to where it meets the Gulf of Mexico. He named Louisiana in honor of Louis XIV, the king of France. Salle returned a few years later with four ships in the hope of colonizing the area, but instead landed in Texas, where he was killed in 1687 by his men. Salle set the stage for French efforts to reach the Gulf of Mexico.

Question 15

George Washington

Answer 15

George Washington (pre-presidency) was a Virginian surveyor who was sent to Ohio as a lieutenant colonel in 1754. He commanded 150 troops and fought against the French. He said that he found the sound of bullets flying to be charming. The French came back with more soldiers, and they surrounded Washington, who had no choice but to surrender his command. Washington’s battle with the French was the beginning of the Seven Years’ War. George Washington is most famous for being the first president of the United States. He was also an aide to General Braddock, who was killed during a clash of the French and Indian War.

Question 16

John Winthrop

Answer 16

John Winthrop was a fairly wealthy man and was an upstanding member of English society. He was well educated and prosperous. Winthrop was among many to migrate to the Bay Colony of Massachusetts. He became its first governor after enthusiastically accepting the position. He was a lawman for 19 years, sometimes acting as deputy governor, sometimes acting as governor. He was a gifted man with many resources who helped the Bay colony to truly blossom. He was a Christian who believed becoming governor was his calling from God. Winthrop quoted Matthew 5: 14 when he announced his plans for the colony, “We shall be as a city upon a hill.” This shows just how strong and deep rooted his faith was.

Question 17

Anne Hutchinson

Answer 17

Anne Hutchinson was a member of the Massachusetts Bay Colony who challenged the beliefs of the Puritan leaders. She took the theology and reasoning of predestination to a new extreme that the Puritans considered to be heresy. She was smart, logical and gifted in speech. The Puritans argued that a holy life was the sign you were saved, but Anne disagreed. She said that the elect need not obey God’s word because they were already chosen. Hutchinson claimed that God gave her this revelation, which further angered the Puritans. They banished her while she was pregnant because they were afraid that her ideas would spread and contaminate their colony. She went to New York and took her family with her only to be killed by Native Americans.

Question 18

William Penn

Answer 18

William Penn was an Englishman who became a Quaker in 1660, at the age of 16. He was athletic with a well-to-do family, who did not approve of his conversion. He joined the army and was persecuted for his faith, as many Quakers were during that time. He wanted to create a refuge for suffering Quakers like himself, so he gained a land grant from the king in 1681. He is most famous for founding a colony on this land, now Pennsylvania. He sent out pamphlets to advertise the land which brought in many immigrants. He bought land from the Indians and treated them fairly. Penn created a very liberal colony and had a representative assembly along with freedom of religion. He stayed in the colony 4 years and became good friends with King James II, who was a Catholic.

Question 19

Nathaniel Bacon

Answer 19

Nathaniel Bacon was a planter who strongly disagreed with Governor William Berkeley’s kind Indian policies. He led a group of about a thousand Virginian men in revolt against Berkeley. When the Indians raided frontier settlements, Berkeley refused to respond violently, so Bacon took what he felt was a necessary action. He and his followers murdered many Native Americans and pushed Berkeley out of Jamestown. Bacon’s revolt however, ended when he died abruptly of disease.

Question 20

Cotton Mather

Answer 20

Cotton Mather is probably most famous for his involvement in the Salem witch trials. He attended Harvard and was a Christian. He was an ordained minister and a self-proclaimed researcher. He wrote books about witchcraft and demon possession. He was so obsessed with the works of Satan and the witch trials, he took the oldest into his home to study her. Many historians believe that his sermons on the subject of witchcraft may have been the trigger that initiated the Salem witch trials. Mather was not directly involved in the trials, but he did send a letter of approval to those in charge of them.

Question 21

Rachel Clinton

Answer 21

Rachel Clinton had a difficult childhood that involved a mentally ill mother and a father who died. At age 36 she married a man who was 14 years younger than her. This marriage led to many difficulties. When Clinton accused her husband of not providing for her and of having an affair, he went to prison, but soon she was accused of having one herself. The allegations continued to increase until, soon, she was accused of practicing witchcraft. She was eventually released, but she died stripped of her possessions.

Question 22

Christopher Columbus

Answer 22

Christopher Columbus was an Italian seafarer who managed to convince Isabella and Ferdinand, the Spanish monarchs of that time, to fund his voyage westward in search of the Indies. He became famous as a result of his discovery of the Americas and claim of that land for Spain. His original intention was to find a new trade route to the Indies by going in a different direction, but he failed in that pursuit and instead found a continent in. He returned in 1493, a year later, to introduce cattle, pigs, and horses to the Americas.

Question 23

Moctezuma II

Answer 23

Moctezuma II was the chief of the Aztecs at the time of the discovery of the New World. He is famous for his defeat at the hands of Hernando Cortes. His religious beliefs were based on Aztec legends. One legend in particular determined his fate and that of the many Aztecs he presided over. This legend predicted the return of the god Quetzalcoatl, and when Cortes arrived, Moctezuma believed he was the fulfillment of this legend. He welcomed Cortes and the conquistadors, which, coupled with other factors, allowed them to easily conquer his people.

Question 24

Hernando Cortes

Answer 24

Hernando Cortes was a Spanish conquistador who conquered the Aztec empire. He lusted for gold, of which the Aztecs had plenty. He even admitted this when he said “We Spanish suffer from a strange disease of the heart for which the only known remedy is gold.” He hired a native translator and then took advantage of the hospitality of the Aztecs until their patience grew thin and they attacked. He retaliated and defeated them with superior weapons and the spread of disease. He was a Christian Spaniard, and this led him and the other conquistadors to impose their religion on the natives they conquered.

Question 25

John Smith

Answer 25

John Smith was resourceful English captain who helped the early settlers of Jamestown to survive. When the colonists began dying from starvation, Smith stepped up as leader. He made them work harder for food, and even said, “He who will not work shall not eat.” Captain Smith managed to keep the colony alive until the arrival of the new governor.
Smith is famous for his shared story with Pocahontas, daughter of the Powhatan’s chief. He was kidnapped in 1607 by the Powhatans and subjected to a ritual in which he was supposedly about to be executed when Pocahontas “saved” him. He was also thought to have saved Pocahontas’s life when she was only 12.

Question 26

Pocahontas

Answer 26

Pocahontas was a Native American and a member of the Powhatan tribe. She was the daughter of the chief Powhatan and is famous for her interaction with Captain John Smith. (A ritual in which he was seemingly about to be executed and she stepped in to save him) She married John Rolfe in an agreement between the Powhatans and Virginians to cease fighting and later went to England, where she was treated as royalty. She died at age 22 of smallpox before she could return to the Americas, but her son who, was an infant at the time, eventually returned. Pocahontas taught her husband the Indian method of processing tobacco, which ultimately saved the economy of Jamestown.

Question 27

John Rolfe

Answer 27

John Rolfe was husband to Pocahontas and was regarded as father of the tobacco industry. It was his wife who taught him the Indian way to cure tobacco. He saved the economy of Jamestown through his tobacco farming. Rolfe’s marriage to Pocahontas was the first multiethnic marriage in Virginia and settled the war between the colonists and the Indians for a brief interval.
He died in a series of Indian attacks on Jamestown.