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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Agassiz helps people understand how ______________ created natural phenomena in Europe.

2. What is Harriet's nickname?

3. Two of Roebling's successful projects were in ______________ and Niagara Falls.

4. Who does Harriet consider guilty of slavery?

5. What position is created for Agassiz in America?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Frederic Remington's background?

2. When is the idea for the Panama Railroad born and who are its creators?

3. What is the nature of Harriet Beecher's childhood?

4. What is the purpose of Brave Companions?

5. What is notable about Humboldt and Bonpland's work relating vegetation to elevations?

6. What is the focus of "Glory Days in Medora?

7. What is the human cost of building the Panama Railroad?

8. What was the impetus for the Brooklyn Bridge?

9. How is Agassiz' American lecture tour described?

10. Why does Agassiz decide to make America his permanent home?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

McCullough has respect for all of the people in the book but do you think he likes any one of them more than the others? Who would you choose to be your new friend among the people McCullough has chosen to portray? Explain.

Essay Topic 2

Frederic Remington was born in a town in New York but made a career out of creating art about the Wild West. Explain how a person can create things that are foreign to their background or heritage. Why was Remington so drawn to the West? How did he feel when the West began to be civilized?

Essay Topic 3

As an historian, David McCullough uses the theme of the passing of time and capturing moments before they are gone. How is this theme best exemplified by the people and events covered in this book?

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