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Quiz about Famous Americans  2
Quiz about Famous Americans  2

Famous Americans [ 2 ] Trivia Quiz


This is my second quiz regarding famous Americans. Put on your history thinking caps and have a go at it...

A multiple-choice quiz by blaxlaw. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
blaxlaw
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
322,284
Updated
Jul 23 22
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
5 / 10
Plays
660
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. He lived with his grandparents in the U.S. state of Arkansas while his mother worked as a nurse in New Orleans, Louisiana. He later attended Georgetown University, and was a Rhodes scholar at Oxford University. Who was this famous American eventually elected President of the U.S.? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. He was born in Reading, Pennsylvania, in 1879, and was educated at Harvard. He worked in the insurance industry for most of his career, but his real love was poetry. Who was this famous American that won the National Book Award for poetry in both 1951 and 1955? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. He was one of America's greatest inventors and statesmen, and one of only a handful of Founding Fathers to serve as a delegate to both the Constitutional Convention and the Continental Congress. Together with these accomplishments, which famous American also served as the American minister to France? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Although the right to privacy is not explicitly mentioned in the U.S. Constitution, which American was the U.S. Supreme Court justice known primarily for his defense of individual liberty and the right to privacy?
Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Which well-known American writer won a Pulitzer Prize in 1992 for her column entitled, "Public and Private"? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Who was the American songwriter and Shaker Elder who wrote what became an internationally beloved tune entitled, "Simple Gifts", in 1848? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Which American playwright, famous for writing the play, "The Little Foxes", among others, appeared before the U.S. House Committee on Un-American Activities in 1950, and refused to name names? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. He was the chief of the Seneca Nation. He supported England during the American Revolution, but supported the U.S. against Britain in the War of 1812. Which American in 1805 wrote an impassioned speech against missionaries' efforts to baptize members of the Seneca tribe? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. Which famous American writer was known as the "poet of the people"?
Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Which American served as a federal judge from 1909 until 1951, and was nicknamed the "Tenth Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court" because of the many influential decisions he made? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. He lived with his grandparents in the U.S. state of Arkansas while his mother worked as a nurse in New Orleans, Louisiana. He later attended Georgetown University, and was a Rhodes scholar at Oxford University. Who was this famous American eventually elected President of the U.S.?

Answer: William Jefferson Clinton

Clinton went on to earn his law degree from Yale. He was born in 1946. In 1978 and 1982, President Clinton served as the governor of Arkansas. The hallmarks of his presidency were affirmative action, and strong support for civil rights.
2. He was born in Reading, Pennsylvania, in 1879, and was educated at Harvard. He worked in the insurance industry for most of his career, but his real love was poetry. Who was this famous American that won the National Book Award for poetry in both 1951 and 1955?

Answer: Wallace Stevens

Stevens' first book of poetry, "Harmonium" was published in 1923. He used nature-themed imagery to create a unique writing style. Stevens was also interested in the law; graduating with a degree from New York Law School, passing the bar, and practicing law in New York City.
3. He was one of America's greatest inventors and statesmen, and one of only a handful of Founding Fathers to serve as a delegate to both the Constitutional Convention and the Continental Congress. Together with these accomplishments, which famous American also served as the American minister to France?

Answer: Benjamin Franklin

Franklin was on the Declaration of Independence's drafting committee. He was a master of the written word, and began in journalism as an apprentice printer when he was only 10 years old. Among Franklin's inventions are the lightning rod, bifocals, and the Franklin stove.

He was quite a ladies' man, and greatly enjoyed his time in France. Ben Franklin helped to broker the peace treaty with England that ended the American Revolutionary War.
4. Although the right to privacy is not explicitly mentioned in the U.S. Constitution, which American was the U.S. Supreme Court justice known primarily for his defense of individual liberty and the right to privacy?

Answer: Louis Brandeis

Justice Brandeis was born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1856, and died in 1941. While serving as a supreme court justice, he wrote one of his most stirring privacy defense dissents in "Olmstead v. U.S.", 1928. Brandeis called the right to privacy the "right to be let alone---the right most valued by civilized man." That case was eventually overturned.

He graduated at the age of 20 from Harvard Law School with the highest grade average in the college's history (at that time).
5. Which well-known American writer won a Pulitzer Prize in 1992 for her column entitled, "Public and Private"?

Answer: Anna Quindlen

Quindlen is a novelist, journalist, and mother who was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is the author of the best-sellers, "Black and Blue", "Object Lessons", and "One True Thing".
6. Who was the American songwriter and Shaker Elder who wrote what became an internationally beloved tune entitled, "Simple Gifts", in 1848?

Answer: Joseph Brackett

Brackett was born in 1797 in Maine, and died in 1882. He was an Elder of The United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing (aka the Shakers), so called because their members were known for the dancing, singing, and trembling produced by their religious fervor.
7. Which American playwright, famous for writing the play, "The Little Foxes", among others, appeared before the U.S. House Committee on Un-American Activities in 1950, and refused to name names?

Answer: Lillian Hellman

Lillian Florence Hellman was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1905. Hellman was a champion of many left-wing causes. Due to her brave stance in not "naming names", she was blacklisted by Hollywood movie studios. Hellman died in 1984 on Martha's Vineyard.
8. He was the chief of the Seneca Nation. He supported England during the American Revolution, but supported the U.S. against Britain in the War of 1812. Which American in 1805 wrote an impassioned speech against missionaries' efforts to baptize members of the Seneca tribe?

Answer: Chief Red Jacket

Red Jacket's Senecan name was "Otetiani", which he later changed to "Sagoyewatha". He was one of the Seneca Nation's most illustrious orators. Red Jacket was called such because of his support of Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War. He fought hard to preserve Native American customs, and resisted European values and missionary efforts. Toward the end of his life, Red Jacket was deposed as chief, defended himself before a tribunal council, and was reinstated.
9. Which famous American writer was known as the "poet of the people"?

Answer: Carl Sandburg

Sandburg was born in Galesburg, Illinois, in 1878, and died in 1967. In 1916 he published, "Chicago Poems". He worked as a bricklayer, journalist, shoe shiner, and prairie field hand, traveled west in train boxcars, served in the Spanish-American War, and was a Social Democrat. Sandburg authored a 6-volume biography of Lincoln; the second part of which won a Pulitzer Prize in history in 1940.
10. Which American served as a federal judge from 1909 until 1951, and was nicknamed the "Tenth Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court" because of the many influential decisions he made?

Answer: Learned Hand

Judge Learned Hand was a fierce defender of free speech and liberty, and penned more than 2,000 opinions. He served on the federal bench for so long that he is one of the most frequently cited judges in American legal history. Hand gave a famous speech on May 21, 1944, that is often referred to as "The Spirit of Liberty" address.
Source: Author blaxlaw

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Snowman before going online.
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