American Folklore - Quiz
  • 1. What legendary frontiersman and folk hero is often associated with a coonskin cap?
A) Paul Bunyan
B) Davy Crockett
C) Johnny Appleseed
D) John Henry
  • 2. Which famous folklore figure is known for outwitting Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear in African American folklore?
A) John Henry
B) Br'er Rabbit
C) Pecos Bill
D) Casey Jones
  • 3. In American folklore, who is said to have led the African American slaves to freedom along the Underground Railroad?
A) Calamity Jane
B) Betsy Ross
C) Harriet Tubman
D) Anne Oakley
  • 4. Which supernatural being in American folklore is known for granting wishes to those who free it from a lamp or bottle?
A) Banshee
B) Kraken
C) Genie
D) Leprechaun
  • 5. What mythical creature is said to inhabit the forests of the Pacific Northwest in Native American folklore?
A) Mothman
B) Wendigo
C) Sasquatch
D) Chupacabra
  • 6. Which famous folk song tells the story of a steel-drivin' man who raced against a steam drill?
A) John Henry
B) This Land Is Your Land
C) Home on the Range
D) Oh, Susanna
  • 7. What mythical bird is said to burst into flames and be reborn from its ashes in American folklore?
A) Phoenix
B) Dragon
C) Griffin
D) Kraken
  • 8. In Native American folklore, what powerful figure is often depicted as a trickster and transformer?
A) Wendigo
B) Thunderbird
C) Skin-walker
D) Coyote
  • 9. What is a common theme found in Native American creation myths?
A) Detailing the discovery of fire
B) Describing the invention of agriculture
C) Explaining how the earth was formed and where humans came from
D) Outlining the development of writing systems
  • 10. Which figure is often used symbolically in Native American myths?
A) Phoenix
B) Unicorn
C) Bear
D) Dragon
  • 11. What do many Plains tribes' flood myths usually end with?
A) The beginning of a new era
B) The disappearance of all humans
C) The restoration of the submerged earth
D) The creation of new animals
  • 12. What role do stories play in Native American cultures according to Barre Toelken?
A) They replace religious practices
B) They serve as entertainment only
C) They embody behavioral and ethical values
D) They are used for historical records
  • 13. Which of the following is NOT a common element in Native American myths?
A) Creation myths
B) Myths about the invention of technology
C) Hero stories
D) Animal tales
  • 14. What do feathers, beadwork, and dance steps represent in Native American cultures?
A) Icons of cultural meaning
B) Tools for hunting
C) Items used in trade
D) Symbols of wealth
  • 15. Which animal is NOT frequently referred to as a supernatural being in Native American myths?
A) Unicorn
B) Snake
C) Eagle
D) Bear
  • 16. What do hero stories in Native American folklore typically feature?
A) Historical figures recounting their lives
B) Heroes with supernatural powers who defeat evils
C) Animals teaching moral lessons
D) Ordinary people solving everyday problems
  • 17. What is a common purpose of animal tales in Native American folklore?
A) Describing the migration patterns of animals
B) Illustrating hunting techniques
C) Providing recipes for traditional dishes
D) Explaining how features of certain animals occurred
  • 18. What role did Christopher Columbus play in American myth?
A) His role was limited to being an explorer of the Atlantic.
B) He is seen as a heroic figure representing America's self-perception.
C) He was primarily known for his writings on exploration.
D) He is credited with discovering the United States.
  • 19. Who popularized Columbus' life as a romantic figure?
A) Washington Irving
B) Jeremy Belknap
C) Christopher Columbus himself
D) George Bancroft
  • 20. Did Christopher Columbus ever set foot in what is now the United States?
A) He visited briefly during his second voyage.
B) Only after establishing settlements in the Caribbean.
C) No, he never did.
D) Yes, he founded several colonies.
  • 21. How was Columbus portrayed by early American historians like Irving and Bancroft?
A) As an ordinary navigator with no significant impact.
B) As a noble explorer guided by God to reach the New World.
C) As someone who misunderstood his discoveries.
D) Primarily as a failed adventurer.
  • 22. How did the view of Columbus as a genius dependent on monarchical goodwill affect his image?
A) His reputation was diminished among American settlers.
B) He became a lauded revolutionary figure.
C) Columbus was viewed as a failed leader.
D) He was seen as irrelevant to America's founding myths.
  • 23. What was Jamestown's first winter known as?
A) The 'Harsh Winter of 1609-1610'
B) The 'Great Drought'
C) The 'Starving Time'
D) The 'Famine Winter'
  • 24. In what year did William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims found Plymouth Colony?
A) 1620
B) 1607
C) 1619
D) 1630
  • 25. How many years after the Pilgrims' landing was the first written reference to Plymouth Rock?
A) 50 years
B) 75 years
C) 200 years
D) 121 years
  • 26. Who helped the Pilgrims survive through their first winter in America?
A) Spanish explorers
B) The Powhatan tribe
C) Captain John Smith
D) Friendly Native Americans, including Squanto
  • 27. What is the holiday of Thanksgiving said to have begun with?
A) Colonial governors' celebrations
B) British settlers in Jamestown
C) The Pilgrims in 1621
D) Native American harvest festivals
  • 28. What is George Washington often referred to as in American folklore?
A) "The First Patriot"
B) "The Father of Democracy"
C) "Pater Patriae"
D) "The Great Liberator"
  • 29. Who is credited with spreading the cherry tree story in a personalized form?
A) Benjamin Franklin
B) Mark Twain
C) Abraham Lincoln
D) Thomas Jefferson
  • 30. What famous phrase did Patrick Henry end his speech with?
A) "Give me Liberty, or give me Death!"
B) "I have a dream."
C) "We shall fight on the beaches."
D) "Ask not what your country can do for you."
  • 31. Who was responsible for reconstructing Patrick Henry's speech using oral histories?
A) William Wirt
B) James Madison
C) John Adams
D) Thomas Jefferson
  • 32. Which other Revolutionary War figure is known for a famous ride to warn of British troops?
A) Benjamin Franklin
B) John Hancock
C) Nathan Hale
D) Paul Revere
  • 33. Which setting is commonly associated with American tall tales?
A) Ancient Greece
B) Medieval Europe
C) The Industrial Revolution
D) The American Old West
  • 34. Which U.S. House did Davy Crockett represent?
A) Kentucky
B) Texas
C) Mississippi
D) Tennessee
  • 35. Who did Calamity Jane claim to be an acquaintance of?
A) Buffalo Bill Cody
B) Davy Crockett
C) Daniel Boone
D) Wild Bill Hickok
  • 36. Who was the first child born in the Americas to English parents?
A) Ananias White Dare
B) Virginia Dare
C) Eleanor White Dare
D) Ann Lee
  • 37. In which film does King Kong climb to the top of the Empire State Building?
A) Sleepless in Seattle
B) King Kong (1933)
C) Appalachian Spring
D) An Affair to Remember
  • 38. What is the name of the area in Vermont where a number of people went missing between 1945 and 1950?
A) Bridgewater Triangle
B) Bennington Triangle
C) Hoover Dam
D) Monument Valley
  • 39. What was Calamity Jane's real name?
A) Mary Ellen Smith
B) Elizabeth Brown
C) Martha Jane Canary
D) Sarah Johnson
  • 40. What is the name of Paul Bunyan's younger brother?
A) Babe the Blue Ox
B) Pecos Bill
C) Cordwood Pete
D) Johnny Kaw
  • 41. What nickname was given to women who carried water to men on the battlefield?
A) Frontline Florence
B) Molly Pitcher
C) Battle Belle
D) Water Wagon Woman
  • 42. Who founded the Shaker religious sect?
A) Loren Coleman
B) John White
C) Joseph Brackett
D) Ann Lee
  • 43. What is the Nain Rouge associated with?
A) Northern Wisconsin.
B) Detroit, Michigan folklore.
C) The Great Lakes region.
D) Southern New Jersey.
  • 44. Which creature is described as having glowing red eyes and bird-like wings?
A) The Jersey Devil
B) Bigfoot
C) Mothman
D) Champ
  • 45. What did slaves develop from the hymns they learned?
A) Recreational songs
B) Blues and jazz
C) Work songs
D) Negro spirituals
  • 46. What is unique about the authors of 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game'?
A) It was written during a World Series
B) Both were professional baseball players
C) Neither had attended a baseball game before writing it
D) The song was originally for a football match
  • 47. Which creature is said to inhabit the forests of Northern Wisconsin?
A) The Hodag
B) Mothman
C) Bigfoot
D) Champ
  • 48. What did John Henry race against according to legend?
A) A steam-powered hammer
B) A locomotive
C) Another steel-driver
D) A horse-drawn carriage
  • 49. Which cultural icon is associated with the American workforce during World War II?
A) Columbia
B) Uncle Sam
C) Rosie the Riveter
D) The Statue of Liberty
  • 50. What is the name of the main character in 'Rip Van Winkle'?
A) Katrina Van Tassel
B) Ichabod Crane
C) Rip Van Winkle
D) Brom Bones
  • 51. What is a popular song that was often sung as a sea chanty?
A) "The Star-Spangled Banner"
B) "Amazing Grace"
C) "Row, Row, Row Your Boat"
D) "Poor Paddy Works on the Railway"
  • 52. When did the New York Times move to its new headquarters, prompting the renaming of Longacre Square?
A) 1933
B) 1957
C) April 1904
D) 1993
  • 53. Which legendary figure is known for predicting the arrival of spring?
A) Captain Stormalong
B) Paul Bunyan
C) Punxsutawney Phil
D) Johnny Kaw
  • 54. Which century did immigrants from the UK, Ireland, Spain, Germany, and France begin arriving in large numbers?
A) 16th century
B) 19th century
C) 17th century
D) 18th century
  • 55. What was John Henry's job as a railroad worker?
A) Railroad engineer
B) Steel-driving man
C) Station master
D) Train conductor
  • 56. What is the Bridgewater Triangle known for?
A) Folk dances
B) Historical landmarks
C) Cultural festivals
D) Alleged paranormal phenomena
  • 57. What did African slaves bring with them to the United States?
A) Musical traditions
B) Religious texts
C) Native American artifacts
D) European instruments
  • 58. What are some of the names Santa Claus is known by?
A) Babbo Natale, Joulupukki
B) Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas
C) Ded Moroz, Grandfather Frost
D) Krampus, Père Noël
  • 59. Where is the Liberty Bell located?
A) Boston, Massachusetts
B) New York City, New York
C) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
D) Washington D.C.
  • 60. Where was Washington Irving living when he wrote 'Rip Van Winkle'?
A) Birmingham, England
B) Boston
C) New York City
D) Philadelphia
  • 61. 'Oh My Darling, Clementine' is about a tragedy during which historical event?
A) Civil War
B) World War II
C) American Revolutionary War
D) 1849 California Gold Rush
  • 62. Who was Casey Jones?
A) A Civil War general
B) A famous inventor
C) An engineer for the Illinois Central Railroad
D) A gold miner
  • 63. Which of these is not a subject matter classification for American folk songs?
A) War songs
B) Classical compositions
C) Train songs
D) Drinking songs
  • 64. Which group of workers was prominently involved in the construction of the Empire State Building?
A) Roanoke colonists
B) Bridgewater Triangle residents
C) Mohawk ironworkers
D) Shakers
  • 65. What is the name of the fictional character in 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow'?
A) Brom Bones
B) Ichabod Crane
C) The Headless Horseman
D) Katrina Van Tassel
  • 66. What type of dance is the square dance descended from?
A) Tango
B) Quadrille
C) Waltz
D) Foxtrot
  • 67. What is the most famous account of Bigfoot known as?
A) The Rhinelander Report.
B) The Silver Bridge Incident.
C) The Champlain Chronicle.
D) The Patterson-Gimlin film.
  • 68. Who is generally believed to have been Molly Pitcher?
A) Mary Hays
B) Margaret Corbin
C) Phyllis Wheatley
D) Sybil Ludington
  • 69. Which song shares melodic material with the Irish anti-war song 'Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye'?
A) 'Oh My Darling, Clementine'
B) 'When Johnny Comes Marching Home'
C) 'The Star-Spangled Banner'
D) 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game'
  • 70. Which ballet score features the Shaker tune 'Simple Gifts' in its finale?
A) King Kong
B) An Affair to Remember
C) Appalachian Spring
D) Sleepless in Seattle
  • 71. What did masters disapprove of in industrious slaves?
A) Learning European music
B) Attending church services
C) Singing and dancing
D) Crafting items
  • 72. Which mythical creature is said to inhabit Lake Champlain and has over 300 reported sightings?
A) Mothman
B) Bigfoot
C) The Jersey Devil
D) Champ
  • 73. Which type of hymns became a feature at camp meetings in the South?
A) Recreational songs
B) Negro spirituals
C) Protestant hymns
D) Work songs
  • 74. How many stories does the Empire State Building have?
A) 102
B) 40
C) 34
D) 200
  • 75. What kind of creature is Old Black Eyes according to legend?
A) A giant bird with fiery eyes.
B) A water spirit haunting lakes and rivers.
C) A spectral hound that frequents the Baker Rocks.
D) A mischievous forest sprite.
  • 76. What did Negro spirituals primarily express?
A) European music styles
B) Work coordination
C) Religious faith
D) Joyful celebrations
  • 77. Which original Thirteen Colony's culture heavily influenced American folk music?
A) English
B) French
C) Spanish
D) Dutch
  • 78. In which year was 'Simple Gifts' composed by Elder Joseph Brackett?
A) 1944
B) 1848
C) 1587
D) 1933
  • 79. What is the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress known for?
A) A fighter aircraft used in World War II
B) Being a long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber
C) A passenger airliner developed in the 1950s
D) An experimental spacecraft
  • 80. Who was the first prominent scholar to study distinctly American folk music?
A) Robert Winslow Gordon
B) Woody Guthrie
C) Alan Lomax
D) Burl Ives
  • 81. When did the American folk music revival begin?
A) 1930s
B) 1960s
C) 1940s
D) 1950s
  • 82. What is the Colt Single Action Army known as?
A) The 'Peacemaker'
B) The 'Smokey Bear'
C) The 'Flying Tiger'
D) The 'Liberty Bell'
  • 83. Which event is associated with the Boston Tea Party?
A) A protest against British taxation without representation
B) The Battle of Bunker Hill
C) The signing of the Declaration of Independence
D) Paul Revere's Ride
  • 84. What was Times Square formerly known as?
A) Empire State Building
B) Pearl Harbor
C) Hoover Dam
D) Longacre Square
  • 85. Who is generally attributed with writing "A Visit from St. Nicholas"?
A) Washington Irving
B) Charles Dickens
C) Mark Twain
D) Clement Clarke Moore
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