Lesson 1

1 Changes in farming, the cattle industry and settlement Quiz: Pearson Edexcel History, Unit 11

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 1, Changes in farming, the cattle industry and settlement: 20 multiple choice questions for the Pearson Edexcel GCSE History (1HI0), Unit 11: The American West, c1835–c1895, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What major factor transformed farming on the Plains in the late 1800s?

    • Slave labour
    • Gold rushes
    • New technology
    • Railway strikes

  2. Which harsh winter devastated the cattle industry on the Plains?

    • 1888 to 1889
    • 1884 to 1885
    • 1886 to 1887
    • 1890 to 1891

  3. Which migration movement led to widespread settlement in Kansas in 1879?

    • California Gold Rush
    • Mormon migration
    • Exoduster movement
    • Oregon Trail

  4. In which year did the Oklahoma Land Rush take place, according to the spec?

    • 1893
    • 1887
    • 1890
    • 1879

  5. What happened to the American 'Indian Frontier' by the end of this period?

    • It was closed
    • It was doubled
    • It became a state
    • It expanded west

  6. Which major change in ranching occurred towards the end of the nineteenth century?

    • End of open range
    • Return of long drives
    • End of barbed wire
    • Rise of wild horses

  7. What key development drove agricultural changes on the Plains in the 1880s?

    • Crop rotation bans
    • New farming methods
    • Manual irrigation
    • Feudal land systems

  8. Which event is a key example of continued land settlement after 1876?

    • Missouri Compromise
    • Oklahoma Land Rush
    • Louisiana Purchase
    • Trail of Tears

  9. In which year did the Exoduster movement lead to settlement in Kansas?

    • 1889
    • 1865
    • 1879
    • 1893

  10. Which disaster caused massive cattle herd losses across the Plains?

    • Severe winter weather
    • Locust swarms
    • Flash flooding
    • Prairie wildfire

  11. What term describes the transformation in cattle ranching during the late 1880s?

    • Subsistence herding
    • Nomadic pastoralism
    • Cooperative farming
    • Closed range ranching

  12. Which act offered 160 acres of free public land to settlers willing to farm it?

    • Dawes Act
    • Homestead Act
    • Timber Culture Act
    • Pacific Railway Act

  13. Which innovation helped farmers overcome tough Plains soil conditions?

    • Bronze sickles
    • Wooden spades
    • Stone hoes
    • Steel ploughs

  14. Which federal act encouraged farming settlement by offering free land?

    • Pacific Railroad Act
    • Indian Removal Act
    • Homestead Act
    • Dawes Act

  15. Which natural event crippled the open range cattle industry?

    • Great Plains Drought
    • Big Die Up
    • Mississippi Flood
    • Great Dust Bowl

  16. Which thematic unit includes the official closure of the Indian Frontier?

    • Continued settlement
    • Railroad expansion
    • Cattle ranching
    • Early migration

  17. What major obstacle did early Plains homesteaders face due to the lack of timber?

    • Log cabins
    • Brick houses
    • Stone houses
    • Sod houses

  18. Which key topic and date range covers the content of this lesson?

    • Key topic 3, c1876 to c1895
    • Key topic 2, c1876 to c1895
    • Key topic 2, c1862 to c1876
    • Key topic 1, c1835 to c1862

  19. Which animal was initially driven north along trails from Texas to railway towns?

    • Bison herds
    • Dairy cows
    • Merino sheep
    • Longhorn cattle

  20. Which destination of the Exoduster movement is named in the spec?

    • Kansas
    • Texas
    • Oregon
    • Montana

All Pearson Edexcel History quizzes