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1930s All American History Trivia Quiz

Thanks to my grandmother for her stories of survival during the Great Depression that piqued my interest in this decade in the American experience. This quiz requires general knowledge of the US from 1930-39.

A multiple-choice quiz by brewster76. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
brewster76

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
281,118

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
5 / 10

Plays
3678

Awards
Top 10% Quiz

Last 3 plays: Guest 136 (4/10), Guest 169 (2/10), Guest 136 (10/10).

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. During the 1930s who wrote a syndicated newspaper column titled "My Day"? Hint

Eleanor Roosevelt

Winston Churchill

Helen Keller

Hedda Hopper

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. Which award(s) was/were given for the first time in the 1930s? Hint

Academy Award for Cinematography

Heisman Trophy

Nobel Peace Prize

The Tony Awards

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Question 3 of 10

3. Construction of the Grand Coulee Dam began in 1933. It would provide irrigation to then desert-like areas for farming and electricity. On what river was the Grand Coulee Dam built? Hint

Colorado River

Columbia River

Missouri River

Mississippi River

NEXT>

Question 4 of 10

4. A popular radio comedy of the 1930s starred two white actors who portrayed African-American men. What was the show's name?
Hint

Amos 'n Andy

The Bickersons

Fibber McGee and Molly

Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy

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Question 5 of 10

5. Who was the only future US president born in the 1930s?
Hint

No US presidents were born in this decade

George HW Bush

Jimmy Carter

Bill Clinton

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Question 6 of 10

6. Which of the following acclaimed horses was the only one to win the Kentucky Derby in the 1930s? Hint

Whirlaway

Sea Biscuit

War Admiral

Citation

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. Which famous movie actress's father was the Speaker of the United States House of Representative from 1936-1940?

Hint

Rosalind Russell

Tallulah Bankhead

Jean Arthur

Gene Tierney

NEXT>

Question 8 of 10

8. In 1936 MGM Studio boss Louis B. Mayer became the first American business executive to do what?

Hint

Fly in his own corporate plane

Dump his wife for his secretary

Be indicted for raiding the employee pension fund

Earn a $1 million salary

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. One of President Roosevelt's "alphabet soup" programs, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), brought what to the rural south?
Hint

Labor rights

Electricity

Federally insured banks

School integration

10. During the Great Depression the photographs of one particular Farm Security Administration (FMA) photojournalist emerged as the most recognizable pictures of migrant workers in California. One photo entitled "Migrant Mother", which depicts a destitute pea picker with her children, is instantly recognizable for its depiction of the human toll this economic catastrophe exacted. Who was the photographer? Hint

Julia Jenkins Powell

Ansel Adams

Dorothea Lange

Gordon Parks

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Most Recent Scores

Apr 24 2025 : Guest 136: 4/10
Apr 16 2025 : Guest 169: 2/10
Apr 02 2025 : Guest 136: 10/10
Mar 28 2025 : Guest 162: 6/10
Mar 17 2025 : Guest 71: 10/10
Mar 12 2025 : Guest 216: 0/10

Score Distribution

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. During the 1930s who wrote a syndicated newspaper column titled "My Day"?

Answer: Eleanor Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt also was the first First Lady to hold weekly press conferences.

2. Which award(s) was/were given for the first time in the 1930s?

Answer: Heisman Trophy

Jay Berwanger of Chicago won the first Heisman Trophy in 1935. The Nobel Peace Prize was one of the original Nobel prizes given in 1901. The Academy Award for Cinematography was first handed out in 1928. The Tonys began in 1947.

3. Construction of the Grand Coulee Dam began in 1933. It would provide irrigation to then desert-like areas for farming and electricity. On what river was the Grand Coulee Dam built?

Answer: Columbia River

The electricity generated by Grand Coulee Dam was also used to power plutonium production reactors and reprocessing facilities at the Hanford Site, which was part of the then-top secret Manhattan Project during WWII.

4. A popular radio comedy of the 1930s starred two white actors who portrayed African-American men. What was the show's name?

Answer: Amos 'n Andy

The Amos 'n Andy television series was produced from 1951 to 1953 and used African American actors in the main roles.

5. Who was the only future US president born in the 1930s?

Answer: No US presidents were born in this decade

Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush were both born in 1924. Bill Clinton was born in 1946.

6. Which of the following acclaimed horses was the only one to win the Kentucky Derby in the 1930s?

Answer: War Admiral

Though very well-known in the 1930s, Sea Biscuit never ran in the Derby. Whirlaway won in 1941 and Citation in 1948.

7. Which famous movie actress's father was the Speaker of the United States House of Representative from 1936-1940?

Answer: Tallulah Bankhead

William Brockman Bankhead of Alabama served in the United States House of Representatives from 1917 until his death in 1940. Tallulah Bankhead starred in Hitchcock's 1944 classic film "Lifeboat".

8. In 1936 MGM Studio boss Louis B. Mayer became the first American business executive to do what?

Answer: Earn a $1 million salary

In 1932 Mayer ousted then production chief Irving Thalberg who was recovering from a heart attack. Four years later Mayer became the head of production as well as studio chief which led to his salary bump.

9. One of President Roosevelt's "alphabet soup" programs, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), brought what to the rural south?

Answer: Electricity

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned corporation created by congressional charter in 1933 to provide navigation, flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing, and economic development in the Tennessee Valley, a region particularly impacted by the Great Depression.

Answer: Dorothea Lange

Ms. Lange's work for the RA (Resettlement Administration) and the FSA from 1935-39 brought the plight of the poor and forgotten (particularly sharecroppers, displaced farm families, and migrant workers) to public attention. Her phtographs were distributed for free to newspapers across the country and became iconic images of the era.

In the case of this image Dorothy Lange ingeniously showed the woman with one only visible child, thus forestalling retorts like, 'The woman needs birth control'.

Source: Author brewster76

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