Texas History Test Texas Economic & Social Development 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The cattle drives of the post-Civil War era primarily moved Texas longhorn cattle along which famous trail to Kansas railheads?
- Oregon Trail
- Santa Fe Trail
- Chisholm Trail (Correct answer)
- Goodnight-Loving Trail
Correct answer: Chisholm Trail
The Chisholm Trail ran from south Texas through Oklahoma to Abilene, Kansas, and was the primary route for massive cattle drives from the 1860s to 1880s.
Question 2: Which Texas city became the 'Space City' after NASA established the Manned Spacecraft Center there in 1961?
- Dallas
- San Antonio
- Austin
- Houston (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Houston
NASA's Manned Spacecraft Center, later renamed Johnson Space Center, was established in Houston in 1961, earning the city the nickname 'Space City.'
Question 3: What 19th-century phenomenon brought large numbers of German immigrants to settle in the Texas Hill Country?
- The California Gold Rush
- The failed German Revolutions of 1848 (Correct answer)
- The Texas Land Grant Program
- The construction of the transcontinental railroad
Correct answer: The failed German Revolutions of 1848
The failed liberal revolutions in German states in 1848 prompted thousands of Germans, known as 'Forty-Eighters,' to emigrate to Texas, settling heavily in the Hill Country.
Question 4: The Texas cotton economy in the 19th century was heavily dependent on what labor system that was central to the state's antebellum history?
- Indentured servitude
- Contract labor
- Chattel slavery (Correct answer)
- Sharecropping
Correct answer: Chattel slavery
Chattel slavery was the foundation of Texas's antebellum cotton economy, with enslaved African Americans making up nearly 30% of the Texas population by 1860.
Question 5: Which industry transformed the Texas economy in the early 20th century, shifting it from primarily agricultural to industrial?
- Steel manufacturing
- Automobile production
- Petroleum (oil and gas) (Correct answer)
- Textile manufacturing
Correct answer: Petroleum (oil and gas)
The petroleum industry, ignited by the Spindletop discovery in 1901, transformed Texas into an industrial powerhouse and one of the wealthiest states in the nation.
Question 6: The 'King Ranch' in South Texas, established in the 1850s, became famous as one of the largest ranches in the world and pioneered what industry?
- Horse breeding for racing
- Commercial cattle ranching and breeding (Correct answer)
- Large-scale cotton farming
- Sheep and wool production
Correct answer: Commercial cattle ranching and breeding
The King Ranch, founded by Richard King in 1853, pioneered commercial cattle ranching, developed the Santa Gertrudis breed, and grew to over 825,000 acres.
Texas History Test Texas Economic & Social Development 1
The cattle drives of the post-Civil War era primarily moved Texas longhorn cattle along which famous trail to Kansas railheads?