Turning Points
In 1492, which explorer’s voyage led to the European discovery of the Americas?
Christopher Columbus
Who was the first President of the United States?
George Washington
Which city hosted the first modern Olympic Games in 1896?
Athens, Greece
What famous structure did the Romans build to transport water over long distances?
Aqueducts
Which American holiday celebrates the signing of the Declaration of Independence?
Independence Day (Fourth of July)
What event started when the stock market crashed in 1929?
The Great Depression
Which French general crowned himself emperor in 1804?
Napoleon Bonaparte
Which ship carried the Pilgrims to America in 1620?
The Mayflower
Which ancient people are credited with creating the first known system of writing, called cuneiform?
The Sumerians
What famous speech begins with the words, “Four score and seven years ago”?
The Gettysburg Address
Which 18th-century revolution began with the storming of the Bastille?
The French Revolution
Which South African leader spent 27 years in prison before becoming president?
Nelson Mandela
What was the first permanent English settlement in North America?
Jamestown, Virginia
Who was the Egyptian queen known for her relationships with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony?
Cleopatra
What purchase in 1803 doubled the size of the United States?
The Louisiana Purchase
What year did women in the United States win the right to vote?
1920
Who founded the Mongol Empire and created one of the largest empires in history?
Genghis Khan
Who was the first U.S. President to appear on television?
Franklin D. Roosevelt
What was the capital city of the Aztec Empire?
Tenochtitlan
Who wrote the “Star-Spangled Banner”?
Francis Scott Key
In 1955, what event began when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus?
The Montgomery Bus Boycott
Which woman led France’s army to several victories during the Hundred Years’ War?
Joan of Arc
What was the first national park established in the United States?
Yellowstone National Park
What was the name of the ancient Greek marketplace that served as a center of public life?
The Agora
What was the name of the 19th-century route pioneers used to travel westward?
The Oregon Trail
What event in 1962 brought the U.S. and Soviet Union to the brink of nuclear war?
The Cuban Missile Crisis
Which Ottoman ruler conquered Constantinople in 1453?
Sultan Mehmed II (Mehmed the Conqueror)
Who was the first woman in space?
Valentina Tereshkova
Which ancient Mesopotamian epic is considered the world’s oldest known story?
The Epic of Gilgamesh
What U.S. government program helped rebuild Europe after World War II?
The Marshall Plan
What 1947 event led to the creation of two nations, India and Pakistan?
The Partition of India
Which emperor divided the Roman Empire into Eastern and Western halves?
Emperor Diocletian
Who was the first woman elected to the U.S. Congress?
Jeannette Rankin 1919
Which ancient civilization carved massive stone heads that still stand in Mexico today?
The Olmec Civilization
What was the name of the 1848 agreement that ended the Mexican-American War?
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo