CFIF History &
Civics Quiz
Question of the week
CFIF History & Civics Weekly Quiz Archive
In testing your knowledge of U.S. history and civics, click on the buttons
(a,b,c or d)* below each question for the correct answers.
(Last Updated August 27,
2009)
Which of the following is the longest-serving U.S. Senator in history?
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The first recorded town meeting in America was held in which of the following?
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Who is the longest-serving Supreme Court Justice to date?
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How many times in U.S. history has a President served a full term in office without a Vice President?
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The first man to set foot on the moon was American astronaut Neil Armstrong. Who was the first American in space?
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Which President’s Supreme Court nominee was the first to fail Senate confirmation?
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Which U.S. President had the most Supreme Court nominations fail to receive Senate confirmation?
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“First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen” refers to which of the following men?
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How many women have been nominated to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court? *If your browser is not compatible with the quiz links, click here. |
Flag Day is celebrated annually on June 14th. What words follow “you’re the emblem of …,” in George M. Cohan’s You’re A Grand Old Flag?
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How many casualties were suffered by the Allied Forces on D-Day, June 6, 1944? *If your browser is not compatible with the quiz links, click here. |
Who was the first President to nominate a woman to the U.S. Supreme Court?
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Armed Forces Day is celebrated annually on which of the following days?
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Which of the following military medals is considered the oldest military decoration in the world in present use?
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What is the oldest continuously occupied military post in the U.S.?
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The Castro-sanctioned April, 1980 exodus from Cuba to the U.S. became known as which of the following?
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The group of American patriots who carried out the 1773 Boston Tea Party disguised themselves as which of the following?
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How many Holocaust survivors have served in the U.S. Congress?
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What is a Bill of Attainder?
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The “father of the U.S. Constitution”, James Madison, was how old during the Constitutional Convention of 1787?
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How many U.S. residents consider themselves to be of Irish ancestry?
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What percent of the U.S. workforce belonged to a union in 2008?
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During which of the following centuries was Mardi Gras first celebrated in Louisiana?
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In flag terminology, the white stars representing each of the 50 states on a U.S. flag lie on a blue:
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Which of the following do Presidents Jimmy Carter, William Henry Harrison and Zachary Taylor all have in common?
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Which one of the following explorers once served as private secretary and assistant to President Thomas Jefferson?
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Which of the following U.S. Presidents won the greatest number of electoral college votes in a single election?
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Who was the first U.S. President to be inaugurated on January 20th?
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Which state was represented by the first African-American in the U.S. Senate?
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Which of the following U.S. Presidents granted the fewest number of pardons during their terms in office?
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The 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which provides for the election of U.S. Senators by direct popular vote, came about in large part due to a 1900s election scandal in which of the following states?
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Who was the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury? |
On December 2, 2008, the Capitol Visitors Center in Washington, D.C., opened to the public at a cost to the American taxpayers of how many millions of dollars? |
Thanksgiving was established as an annual event by presidential proclamation in which of the following years? |
How many U.S. Presidents did not have any military experience before becoming Commander in Chief? |
How many times in the history of the United States has the Electoral College voted unanimously?
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Absentee voting was first used in the U.S. during which of the following periods? |
Which of the following elections marked the first time in U.S. history when Americans in every state voted for president on the same day? |
What is the largest denomination of paper currency ever printed by the U.S. Treasury Department?
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Which of the following was the first debate held between candidates for the office of Vice President of the United States?
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How many viewers watched the first-ever televised presidential debate?
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Constitution Day is observed annually on September 17th because on that date in 1787:
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By Joint Resolution, the 107th Congress approved the designation of September 11th as which of the following?
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Since the inception of the Presidential Election Campaign Fund in 1973, what has been the highest percentage of taxpayer participation?
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What was the most recent major party convention during which more than one ballot was necessary to determine the party’s Presidential candidate?
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Which was the first U.S. city to host the Olympic Games?
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In what year did the United States first compete in the Olympic Games?
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Approximately how many barrels of crude oil does the U.S. import per day?
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Which was the first state to elect a woman governor and concurrently be represented by women in both U.S. Senate seats?
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Prior to 2008, when was the last presidential election when a candidate relied solely on private donations to finance the general election campaign?
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The U.S. Census Bureau estimated that in October 2006 the U.S. population reached 300 million. What was the estimated population of the United States on July 4, 1776?
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Which American patriot is credited with having said: “Give me liberty or give me death”?
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How many U.S. Presidents to date have also served in the U.S. Senate?
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Which U.S. President signed legislation designating “The Star-Spangled Banner” as our national anthem?
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Which of the following pairs of incumbent Presidents faced serious primary challenges which had not been resolved prior to their party’s national convention?
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In whose administration was the first White House Press Secretary appointed?
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Now known as Memorial Day, what was the day set aside to honor “comrades who died in defense of their country” originally called?
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The third Saturday in May is an annual holiday known as:
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How many U.S. Presidents were sitting Senators when they ran for and won the presidency?
*If your browser is not compatible with the quiz links, click here. |
How many Amendments to the Constitution specifically address “the right of citizens of the United States to vote…”?
*If your browser is not compatible with the quiz links, click here. |
Including the 2008 election, how many times in U.S. history have 2 sitting U.S. Senators run against each other for President?
*If your browser is not compatible with the quiz links, click here. |
Where in the U.S. Constitution is Congress first granted the power to tax?
*If your browser is not compatible with the quiz links, click here. |
At the beginning of the Civil War, field command of the Union Army was first offered to which of the following men?
*If your browser is not compatible with the quiz links, click here. |
What was the average time for mail delivered by Pony Express?
*If your browser is not compatible with the quiz links, click here. |
What is considered to be the 4th most commonly used language in the U.S.?
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Which one of the following states was the first to have an African-American Governor?
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U.S. Daylight Saving Time begins on which of the following days each year?
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The daughter of which of the following generals was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a segregated Virginia streetcar in 1902?
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When did Congress first pass the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)?
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Who was the only U.S. President to never marry?
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What was George Washington's salary as President of the United States?
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Who was the first African-American to launch a serious bid for President of the United States?
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Who was the first woman to run for U.S. President?
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Who was the first Catholic nominated by a major political party to run for President of the United States?
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Which was the first state to establish a presidential primary?
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Which First Lady started the tradition of “themed” White House Christmas trees?
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Which one of the following U.S. Presidents will have two White House Christmas ornaments issued to commemorate his terms of office?
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Where is the USS Arizona Memorial located?
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Which state recently banned the use of lead-based bullets by hunters in order to protect endangered wildlife?
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Which Founding Father famously opposed naming the American Bald Eagle as the national bird, preferring instead the wild turkey?
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Which U.S. President signed legislation to establish the Department of Veterans Affairs as a cabinet agency?
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When Washington, D.C. was burned in 1814, which of the following Founding Fathers sold his personal library to re-establish the Library of Congress?
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Which of the following significant historical events occurred on the 24th of October?
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Which U.S. Vice President both won a Nobel Peace Prize and wrote the melody to a hit song?
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Which of the following U.S. states currently has a single-house system of governance?
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According to the U.S. Constitution, how many Justices comprise the Supreme Court?
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The August 3, 1981 strike called by PATCO, then the government union of professional air traffic controllers, was resolved by President Ronald Reagan when he:
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Who was the first sitting U.S. President to have his photograph taken?
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Independence Day is celebrated annually on July 4th, the date on which the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776. What day is observed annually as Constitution Day?
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Who is the only U.S. President to hold a doctoral degree?
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Labor Day Weekend traditionally signals the end of summer vacation and Americans take to the roads by the millions. How many state capitals are not directly served by the Interstate system?
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| The U.S. Congress is on recess during the month of August. The August Congressional Recess is observed:
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| The national highway system serves a critical role in our freedom of movement, our economy and our nation's defense. When was federal funding first authorized for construction of a nationwide highway system?
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Who was the only U.S. Supreme Court Justice to be a Phi Beta Kappa, a Rhodes Scholar, an All-American halfback and a professional football player?
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Who was the first U.S. President to have been born in the United States?
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The U.S. Office of Government Ethics has launched a new program "providing guidance on how to interpret and comply with modifications or new issuances of conflict of interest regulations, standards of conduct regulations, or financial disclosure policies and procedures." This new program is:
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Which Presidential spouse is credited with starting the tradition of playing "Hail to the Chief" to announce the President of the United States?
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Who are the only two U.S. Presidents to date who did not grant any pardons during their terms of office?
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Who is the only U.S. President to have been born on the Fourth of July?
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The first federal gasoline tax was enacted by Congress in what year?
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The Emancipation Proclamation was issued on January 1, 1863. When did formal word of the abolition of slavery reach Texas, the western-most slave state in the Confederacy?
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The Star Spangled Banner contains how many stripes?
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| When the federal government moved from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C. in 1800, how long was the allotted "transition" time for the cabinet agencies and Congress to be fully functional in the new capital city?
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| Memorial Day was begun to honor "comrades who died indefense of their country" following which of the following wars?
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| Every year during the month of May, Americans mark Memorial Day, Law Day and Loyalty Day. Which of the following observances also occurs annually, always on the third Saturday in May?
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On May, 14, 1607, Virginia Company explorers made landfall in what is now the Commonwealth of Virginia and established Jamestown, the first permanent English colony in the New World. The ships which brought the settlers from England to the east coast of North America were:
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The first day of May (May Day) is also known as:
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The last time an American was convicted of treason against the U.S. was during which of the following conflicts?
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What is the procedure for filling a vacancy in the Office of Vice President if the vacancy occurs prior to the end of a full term in office?
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Who is the only woman thus far in American history to have served in both chambers of a state legislature and both houses of Congress?
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Our nation's capital, Washington, the District of Columbia, with approximately 580,000 residents, has its own Department of Motor Vehicles and its own license plate. What logo is inscribed on all plates issued to new registrants by the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles?
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Which U.S. Vice President is credited with having cast the most tie-breaking votes as President of the Senate?
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Prior to 1988, which was the last Presidential election in which the incumbent Vice President was elected President?
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The origin of U.S. Daylight Saving Time can be traced to a temporary measure first implemented during which of the following wars?
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The U.S. Census Bureau estimated in October 2006 that the U.S. population reached 300 million. How many years did it take for our population to grow from 200 to 300 million?
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What is the official name of the federal holiday which falls on the third Monday in February?
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What motto is inscribed on the base of the Statue of Freedom which sits atop the Capitol dome in Washington, D.C.?
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Current Members of Congress stand to lose their pensions and other retirement benefits only if found guilty of which of the following?
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Who was the last U.S. President to fulfill his Constitutional mandate by submitting a written State of the Union to the Congress rather than delivering it in person?
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During what war was the Congressional Medal of Honor created?
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Including President George W. Bush, our nation has had 43 Presidents. How many Vice Presidents have there been in the history of our nation?
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Who is the only U.S. President to be buried in Washington, D.C.?
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The first National Christmas Tree was lit by the President of the United States on December 24 of what year?
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