CSS History of the USA chapter 2: Expansion and sectional conflict MCQs with answers
By Team Megalecture · Updated 4 Nov 2026
64 exam-style questions on Expansion and sectional conflict, each with the answer and a short explanation. Ten of them are below to try. The chapter test draws ten fresh questions each time and is marked the moment you finish, with your score by topic.
Ten Expansion and sectional conflict questions with answers
Try each one, then open the answer. These ten stay the same; the test draws new ones every time.
1. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, sponsored by Stephen Douglas, repealed the Missouri Compromise line by
A
banning slavery in both territories for ever
B
giving the final decision to Congress and the President
C
making Kansas a slave state and Nebraska free
D
letting settlers decide the slavery question by vote
Show answer
Answer: D. The principle was popular sovereignty. Settlers rushed to Kansas to influence the vote, which produced violence.
2. How was the nullification crisis of 1832-33 settled?
A
Jackson accepted that states could ignore federal laws
B
Congress authorised force but also lowered the tariff gradually
C
South Carolina was allowed to leave the Union
D
The tariff was kept at the same rate by the Supreme Court
Show answer
Answer: B. The Force Act backed the President, and Clay's compromise tariff reduced duties gradually. South Carolina then withdrew its ordinance.
3. 'Bleeding Kansas' refers to
A
a slave rebellion led by Nat Turner
B
violent clashes between pro- and anti-slavery settlers
C
the battle that began the Civil War at Fort Sumter
D
John Brown's raid on a federal arsenal in Virginia
Show answer
Answer: B. Armed bands fought in Kansas Territory in the mid-1850s after the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry was in 1859.
4. The Thirteenth Amendment, ratified in December 1865, did what?
A
Ended racial segregation in public schools
B
Gave Black men the right to vote
C
Abolished slavery in the whole country
D
Defined American citizenship for all persons born there
Show answer
Answer: C. It ended slavery except as punishment for crime. The Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments later dealt with citizenship and voting.
5. In 1803 the United States bought the Louisiana Territory from
A
Mexico
B
Britain
C
France
D
Spain
Show answer
Answer: C. Napoleon sold the territory for about 15 million dollars. Spain had held it before secretly returning it to France, and Mexico did not yet exist as an independent state.
6. Which event of April 1861 began the Civil War?
A
The Confederate bombardment of Fort Sumter
B
John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry
C
The Battle of Gettysburg
D
Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation
Show answer
Answer: A. The Confederates fired on the federal fort in Charleston harbour, and Lincoln called for volunteers. Brown's raid was in 1859 and Gettysburg in 1863.
7. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 angered many Northerners because it
A
forced citizens to help recapture people who had escaped slavery
B
freed all enslaved people held in the border states
C
banned the interstate slave trade within the Southern states
D
ended slavery in the District of Columbia and the territories
Show answer
Answer: A. The law forced Northern officials and citizens to take part in returning fugitives. It brought many people into the abolitionist cause.
8. Which amendment, ratified in 1868, defined citizenship for all persons born in the United States and guaranteed 'equal protection of the laws'?
A
The Fourteenth
B
The Nineteenth
C
The Thirteenth
D
The Fifteenth
Show answer
Answer: A. It overturned Dred Scott on citizenship and bound the states to equal protection. The Nineteenth (1920) gave women the vote.
9. The discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in 1848 led to a rapid rush of settlers into
A
Colorado
B
California
C
Oregon
D
Texas
Show answer
Answer: B. The Gold Rush of 1849 made California populous enough to enter the Union in 1850. Colorado's gold rush came about ten years later.
10. Reconstruction ended in 1877 after
A
a Supreme Court ruling abolished the Reconstruction Acts
B
Congress readmitted the last Southern state to the Union
C
the Fifteenth Amendment was repealed by Congress
D
federal troops left the South after the disputed election of 1876
Show answer
Answer: D. Rutherford Hayes won the presidency and the troops were removed from the South. Southern Democrats then regained control.
Expansion and sectional conflict: questions students ask
How many Expansion and sectional conflict MCQs are there?
64, each with the answer and a short explanation, across 4 topics: Expansion and Manifest Destiny, Jacksonian democracy and reform, Slavery and the road to civil war, The Civil War and Reconstruction. Every chapter test draws ten of them, so you can take it many times.
Is the CSS History of the USA chapter 2 test free?
Yes. The test, the answers and the explanations are free and need no sign-up. Sign in only if you want your scores kept across devices.
How is the chapter test marked?
The moment you press Finish: your score, the right answer and an explanation for every question, and the ones you got wrong saved in My mistakes to retry.
