NeSA Nebraska History and Geography 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Nebraska became the 37th state in the United States in which year?
- 1854
- 1867 (Correct answer)
- 1878
- 1860
Correct answer: 1867
Nebraska was admitted to the Union on March 1, 1867, following the end of the Civil War.
Question 2: The Homestead Act of 1862 greatly impacted Nebraska by:
- Establishing Nebraska as a military territory
- Encouraging settlers to move to Nebraska by offering free land (Correct answer)
- Creating the first railroad through Nebraska
- Granting Native Americans ownership of the Great Plains
Correct answer: Encouraging settlers to move to Nebraska by offering free land
The Homestead Act offered 160 acres of public land to settlers who lived on and improved the land for five years, driving massive migration into Nebraska.
Question 3: Which natural feature in Nebraska is known for its unique sand dunes and is one of the largest in the Western Hemisphere?
- Chimney Rock
- Sandhills (Correct answer)
- Scotts Bluff
- Agate Fossil Beds
Correct answer: Sandhills
The Nebraska Sandhills is a region of grass-stabilized sand dunes covering about one-quarter of Nebraska and is one of the largest sand dune formations in the Western Hemisphere.
Question 4: Chimney Rock, a famous Nebraska landmark visible on the Oregon Trail, is located in which part of the state?
- Eastern Nebraska
- Central Nebraska
- Western Nebraska (Correct answer)
- Northern Nebraska
Correct answer: Western Nebraska
Chimney Rock is located in the western panhandle of Nebraska near Bayard and was an important landmark for Oregon Trail travelers.
Question 5: Which transcontinental railroad, completed in 1869, passed through Nebraska and connected the country coast to coast?
- Southern Pacific Railroad
- Union Pacific Railroad (Correct answer)
- Burlington Northern Railroad
- Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe
Correct answer: Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad was built westward from Omaha, Nebraska, meeting the Central Pacific at Promontory Summit, Utah, in 1869 to complete the first transcontinental railroad.
Question 6: Nebraska has a unique feature among U.S. states in that its legislature is:
- The largest in the United States
- Unicameral, with only one chamber (Correct answer)
- Bicameral, with three chambers
- Appointed rather than elected
Correct answer: Unicameral, with only one chamber
Nebraska has the only unicameral (one-chamber) state legislature in the United States, adopted in 1937, called the Nebraska Legislature.
NeSA Nebraska History and Geography 2
Nebraska became the 37th state in the United States in which year?