All The Presidents' Pens Trivia Quiz

Answer: George Washington

The Federal Judiciary Act of 1789, signed into law on 24 September 1789 by George Washington, stated that the Judicial Branch of the American government should consist of three levels. Broadly speaking, the top level would consist of a Supreme Court, headed by a Chief Justice and five associated justices. The second level would be the circuit courts. These had jurisdiction over civil suits and major federal crimes. The third and lower level would be the individual state federal courts, each headed by a separate judge. This piece of legislation is doubly famous for being the first law adopted in the first Congress of the new and official United States government. What a momentous time in history.

It hadn't come about easily though, and was met with bitter resistance all the way along the line by those in the Anti-Federalists factions, who feared the law could allow for national tyranny and persecution of the people. They wanted one Supreme Court only, backed up by individual local admiralty judges throughout the nation. Washington and his supporters favoured broader and firmer jurisdiction, with the ability to have any national laws applicable to the states able to be enforced when necessary.

Answer: Four

The Alien and Sedition Act of 1798, signed into place by President John Adams, added a shocking nine years onto the five year period required for citizenship in the new nation. It also gave the ruling President the authority to either deport aliens (particularly those from hostile nations), to imprison them (or both) - and it made it a criminal offence to criticise the sitting government, especially in the form of literature making false statements. This Act has caused controversy ever since.

One example, from the latter part of the summary above that shows the impact of the Act, follows: Benjamin Franklin Bache, the editor of the "Philadelphia Aurora" was arrested under the Act in 1798 for accusing George Washington of "incompetence and financial irregularities", and, while accusing John Adams of "nepotism and having monarchical ambitions", described him as "the blind, bald, crippled, toothless, querulous Adams". His continued heated attacks on both Washington and Adams are thought to have contributed greatly to the formation of this Act. Bache, incidentally, was a grandson of Benjamin Franklin, and his fiery editorials earned him the nickname of "Lighting Rod Junior".

Answer: Missouri Compromise

Signed by President James Monroe on 6 April, 1820, the Missouri Compromise also stated that slavery would be prohibited over the 36.30 degrees North parallel. It was fiery and controversial, but at the time, little other choice was in the hands of the legislators, the two main ones being Senator Jesse Thomas of Illinois and Henry Clay of Kentucky. It was one of the first pieces of legislation that marked a distinct separation between North and South, both geographically and emotionally, and proved to be a major spark that lit the fire of the future American Civil War.

The Missouri Compromise would also see the birth of the Democratic and Whig political parties in the United States, both of which were determined to preserve the Union - and to suppress the for-and-against slavery groups because of the fiery arguments threatening to tear the country apart. Members of the Whigs eventually split off to join other parties and were defunct by the mid 1850s, but the Democratic party continued on in the USA and was still going strong in 2017. When the Missouri Compromise was repealed in 1854, it in turn hastened the growth of the anti-slavery Republican party, which would become the other major political party in the United States.

Answer: Kansas Nebraska Act

The brainchild of Democrat Senator Stephen Douglas and President Franklin Pierce, the official reasons behind the creation of the Kansas Nebraska Act of 1854 were to officially establish new territory for thousands of new farms in the mid-west; and to set in motion the foundation for the construction of a transcontinental railway. The availability of millions of acres of prime unsettled land in the mid-west was the irresistible lure behind this, but the proposal had already been rejected by Congress four times previously. Would it succeed this time? The two bones of contention for those continual rejections were the railroad proposal - and the ongoing issue of slavery. The arguments surrounding the railroad proposal were how it was to be financed, and whether it should take a northern or southerly route. A railroad through any territory was a guarantee of that territory's prosperity at that time in history, so this was a hot topic under discussion. But then there was the hotter issue of slavery.

It had been proposed for some years that a vast new territory to be known as Nebraska be established in the mid-west. One of the major reasons this was continually blocked by Congress was the question of slavery, for, under the terms of the Missouri Compromise, this could not be permitted in any territory above the 36.30 degrees parallel. Various politicians however stated they would not support the establishment of the new territory unless slave-holders were allowed to settle there. In addition to the other increasingly violent arguments taking place, this eventually led to calls for the abandonment of the Missouri Compromise altogether - and another new proposal that the new territory be split in two, with the issue of slave-holders being allowed there to be decided by residents of the territories themselves. To cut a very long and bitter story short, the Act, creating the two new territories of Nebraska and Kansas, was passed in 1854 and signed by Franklin Pierce, but the issue of slavery remained unsolved. The moral, legal and economic issues of this indecision provided a curtain raiser for the tragedy of the American Civil War which was to follow within a few short years.

Answer: Five Years

The first of several Homestead Acts was passed in 1862, and signed off by President Abraham Lincoln. In order to develop the millions of acres of land in the west of the United States, more than 270 million acres of it was given away free to new settlers - 1.6 million new settlers in total. Amazing, isn't it? In return for opening up the new frontiers in this mighty nation, these hopeful new settlers were each given 160 acres, free of any charge, but with a few stipulations only. These were that they had never taken up arms against the States - and that they had to agree to remain on their land for at least five years, while continuing to develop it.

In a huge slap in the face to large and greedy landholders who wanted to buy up huge tracts of land and have them worked on by slaves, almost ten per cent of the total area of the United States was instead handed over by the Homestead Acts to individual farmers who wanted to own and run their own small farms. Women and immigrants were also eligible to apply, as were freed black Americans. Sadly though, although the latter of these three groups were openly encouraged to become part of this great expansion, so many met with open discrimination, that their progress was very slow. Additionally, many of the new settlers, whatever their gender or colour, did not last the five years of their new lives as farmers. This was due to a combination of droughts, blizzards, disease, and more than anything else perhaps, the loneliness and isolation of those faraway lands.

Just as a bit of interest, one who did make a success of his new life, however, was the very first person to sign up and claim 160 acres of land. That was one Daniel Freeman (1826-1908), a war veteran and physician. During his years in Nebraska, he married twice, had eleven children, also worked as a coroner and a sheriff in addition to developing his land, and built various outbuildings on his newly acquired acres. These included a log cabin, several farm buildings, and a later brick house. Daniel also was involved in a long running legal dispute with the local teacher, which went as high as the Nebraska Supreme Court. Backed by the school board, this determined teacher insisted on teaching religion in her classes, while an equally stubborn Daniel insisted church and state should be kept separate. Daniel won, but it all seems rather sad somehow to drag such a centuries old argument into this land of new beginnings.

In 1976, and now known as The Federal Land Policy and Management Act, homesteading ceased in the United States, with the government now holding fast to any public lands instead. Except for Alaska, that is. Homesteading continued there until 1986 before ceasing, with Ken Deardorff becoming the last person to claim free land under the Acts. So ended a fascinating period in America history.

Answer: Creation of land grant colleges

In several Morrill Land-Grant Acts, the first of which was signed into existence in 1862 by President Abraham Lincoln, the creation of future agricultural colleges was established throughout the United States, with the granting of 30,000 acres of federal land to every eligible state. This Act had first been proposed in 1857, and passed by Congress in 1859, but was then vetoed by President Buchanan. Morrill submitted the Act again in 1861 with the amendment that the colleges would instruct in military tactics in addition to engineering and agricultural, and, bearing in mind, the ominous clouds of Civil War gathering on the horizon, the Act was passed on July 2, 1862. By then, several of the southern states had already left the Union, so provision six of the Act stated that "No State while in a condition of rebellion or insurrection against the government of the United States shall be entitled to the benefit of this act". These of course were allocated their college land grants at the conclusion of the Civil War, after the dust had settled.

Justin Smith Morrill (1810-1898), the far-sighted senator behind the creation of this Act, began his career as a merchant's clerk, worked hard, and invested wisely over the years in banks, railroads and real estate. In his late thirties he was financially well off enough to retire, became a gentleman farmer, and began to develop his interest in politics. From his initial election in 1854, he spent the rest of his life in congressional service to the United States. A founder of the Republican Party, dedicated to the progress of his country, and the value of education and hard work, Morrill's own wording in the 1862 Morrill Land-Grant Act reads "...This bill proposes to establish at least one college in every State upon a sure and perpetual foundation, accessible to all, but especially to the sons of toil, where all of needful science for the practical avocations of life shall be taught, where neither the higher graces of classical studies nor that military drill our country now so greatly appreciates will be entirely ignored, and where agriculture, the foundation of all present and future prosperity, may look for troops of earnest friends, studying its familiar and recondite economies, and at last elevating it to that higher level where it may fearlessly invoke comparison with the most advanced standards of the world...". The Morrill Land-Grant Act eventually saw the creation of 106 colleges throughout the nation.

Answer: African Americans

The Civil Rights Act of 1866, signed by a very reluctant President Andrew Johnson, was designed to protect all citizens of the United States by law, but in particular all citizens of African American descent. Considered one of the most important Acts in the history of the United States, this remarkable piece of legislation followed closely on the heels of the American Civil War (1861-1865) and its causi belli. Rather sadly, its most vehement opposition was found in the shape of the American President himself, Andrew Johnson, who had assumed that position on the assassination of the great Abraham Lincoln. This was the second time Johnson has vetoed the Act, but on April 5, 1866, his second veto was overridden by the Senate, and he had no other choice but to submit. This, incidentally, was the first time that a President's veto on a major piece of legislation was itself vetoed by the American Congress.

Quotes from this remarkable legislation state that "...all people born in the United States who are not subject to any foreign power are entitled to be citizens, without regard to race, color, or previous condition of slavery or involuntary servitude... (and) ... any citizen has the same right that a white citizen has to make and enforce contracts, sue and be sued, give evidence in court, and inherit, purchase, lease, sell, hold, and convey real and personal property". It additionally provided "...reasonable protection to all persons in their constitutional rights of equality before the law, without distinction of race or color, or previous condition of slavery or involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted...". It took a civil war to achieve this, but it was inspirational nonetheless.

Answer: All of the above

The Reconstruction Acts were an amazing and rather controversial drive to re-admit the Confederate States back into the Union; to bring them into line with the rest of the nation; and, as a result of the 14th Amendment, to grant voting rights to all black men. This unfolded in the following manner. It began by initially allowed for the creation of five military areas in the south, with each under the leadership of a "governor" army general. Each state was then required to create a new constitution that was subject to approval by Congress (that must have stung). These individual drafts constitutions would not be approved by Congress, however, until those states gave their formal consent to Amendment fourteen of the US Constitution. The 14th Amendment was a follow on from the Civil Rights Act of 1866 (see question seven above), dealing with citizen rights and protection of ALL citizens of the United States "...without regard to race, color, or previous condition of slavery or involuntary servitude...". It also granted voting rights to all black men. These were remarkable times in the history of the United States.

Sadly, this heroic attempt at full equality for all American citizens didn't last terribly long though, for, in the 1890s, the Democratic Party tried to remove voting rights from African Americans and to usher in segregation instead. This would then lead to the formation of the 15th amendment to the US Constitution which prohibited any state or federal government "...denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's "race, color, or previous condition of servitude". Alas though, this was a paper tiger, for, because of poll taxes and literary tests, most black voters, particularly in the south, were disenfranchised anyway. Ultimately then, although the Reconstructions Acts - signed by the longing to veto President Andrew Johnson - weren't successful as far as civil rights were concerned, they did set about the reconstruction of the south and its reunification back into the fold of the one United States of America.

Until I started researching the questions for this quiz, I truly never realised the enormous effect that the issue of slavery had on Americans, its colossal financial significance, its overwhelming emotional impact, the rage it evoked one way or the other in individuals, and how it affected the history of that nation right up to its highest levels of government. It was HUGE. Half the Acts in this quiz were largely influenced by it - and its shadow has been cast right down through several centuries. It has been very thought provoking indeed.

Answer: Chester Arthur

Signed by Chester Arthur on 6 May, 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act banned the immigration into the country of all Chinese labourers. Originally, with the Californian gold rushes of the 1840s-1850s, Chinese adult men in particular had flocked to the country to try to make their fortune, but these had not been looked upon as any particular threat during those early days because surface gold was plentiful. As the United States began to expand and develop, particularly with the railroads in the 1860s, others had been welcomed with open arms because they had proved to be hard workers who accepted low wages without complaint. All this would change, however, when the railroad boom diminished and gold became harder to find. Driven from the goldfield and mines, and with no work available on the railroads, many of these workers subsequently moved to the larger cities to find work there instead, where, once again, they were content to work for lower wages. It wasn't too long though before they were blamed for lowering wage standards and putting other men out of work. Animosity towards them began to grow more and more from this period, along with demands for their future exclusion from the country - and violence soon began to follow.

By 1878, the situation had deteriorated to such a level that Congress actually passed legislation to ban Chinese immigration altogether into the country, but this was vetoed by the more humanitarian President Rutherford Hayes. The situation was particularly bad in California at this time, where that State adopted a new constitution explicitly banning all "Chinese from employment by corporations and state, county or municipal governments". After the follow up Chinese Exclusion Act was subsequently signed into law by President Chester Arthur in 1882, California would pass even more degrading laws regarding the Chinese, which would only later be declared unconstitutional. After 1882, it subsequently became increasingly more difficult for any Chinese person to enter the United States, and those who had already settled there permanently were denied citizenship and made permanent aliens. As the vast majority of Chinese already resident in the country were adult men who had come out to work and earn enough money to bring out their wives and families to join them, the Chinese Exclusion Act effectively banned them from ever reuniting with their families at all, for, if they returned to China to visit them, they were then not allowed back into the United States. For most, their choice then was to stay alone in the country and never see their families again, or to return to China permanently. A third and much darker option was to become part of the human smuggling trade that was now beginning to make its presence felt in the States. Does all this sound familiar to you?

There was no solution, no half way point. Initially only to last for ten years, the Chinese Exclusion Act was renewed in 1892 and then made permanent in 1902. It would remain that way until repealed, under the terms of the Magnuson Act of December 17, 1943, by President Franklin Roosevelt.

Answer: Civil Service

The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883 was signed into law by President Chester Arthur, and, with that pen, he wiped out the long time tradition of employment in the federal government of the United States being based on political affiliation, and replaced it instead with employment based on merit. The Act also put in place a Civil Service Commission to "... regulate the employment and working conditions of civil servants, oversee hiring and promotions, and promote the values of the public service". This at least was an attempt to put an end to an elected government giving employment to its supporters, friends and family - a process known as the spoils system - but whether or not it would be successful was another matter.

One of the big motivators for the enactment of this legislation was the assassination of President James Garfield in 1881 by Charles Guiteau. Guiteau, in spite of being unqualified for the position he sought, firmly believed that President Garfield owed him a position in government because of his support of the President when he was running for office the previous year, a belief that was based on years of precedent by other office holders. When this was not forthcoming, he set his murderous plan in action. This assassination was to awaken in the public the necessity for reform in the manner in which civil servants were given their appointments.