Smithsonian Press--Legacies--Take the Collector Quiz

Legacies: Collecting America's History at the Smithsonian, by Steven Lubar and Kathleen M. Kendrick

1. Which of the following was collected by the Smithsonian to commemorate the gallantry of Col. Elmer Ephraim Ellsworth, who in 1861 cut down the Confederate flag flying over the Marshall House hotel in Alexandria, Virginia?

A fragment of Confederate flag he cut down

The shotgun James Jackson, the proprietor of the hotel, used to kill Ellsworth

The rifle that Francis Brownell used to kill Jackson

The Medal of Honor that Brownell received for his deeds

A piece of the bloody floor from the scene

All of the above

2. In the early 1900s, the Smithsonian Institution collected many locomotive "firsts." Indeed, the curators of the time seem to have been able to establish a first for every locomotive they found. Match up the locomotives listed on the left with the "firsts" on the right (select the number of the locomotive in the drop-down box).

1. "Orukter Amphibilos" a. first "grasshopper" type engine

2. "Puffing Billy" b. first locomotive on the Western Hemisphere to run on a railroad built for traffic

3. "Locomotion" c. first self-propelled vehicle to run on American soil

4. "Stourbridge Lion" d. first American-built locomotive for actual service

5. "Best Friend" e. first locomotive built for the first railway in the world constructed for general traffic

3. The Smithsonian collected a piece of Plymouth Rock in:

1620; a curator was waiting there when the Pilgrims landed on it, and claimed it for the collections right away

1775, as part of the Smithsonian's collecting the ongoing struggles with England

1846, when Charles Wentworth Upham wrote that Plymouth Rock should be recognized as "the point from which the ever-advancing and ever-expanding wave of Anglo-Saxon liberty and light began to flow over America."

1921, when it became part of the Museum's geology collection after it became famous in the "The Pilgrim Spirit," pageant, which claimed, "Of me, the rock in the ooze, they have made a cornerstone of the Republic."

1983, when the Plymouth Historical Society discovered a piece of the rock being used as a doorstop.

4. Which of the following artifacts associated with George Washington is NOT part of the Smithsonian collections?

A lock of his hair
A seminude marble statue of him
His battle sword
An egg poacher used at Mount Vernon
His false teeth

5. In 1832, Congress commissioned the sculptor Horatio Greenough to create a statue for the Capitol Rotunda in honor of the centennial of George Washington's birth. Yet the finished statue, delivered in 1841, sparked controversy because of Greenough's decision to model the statue of Washington after what classical figure?

Julius Caesar
Zeus
Hercules
Pan

6. In 1950, two Yale University medical students constructed a working heart pump using what children's toy?

Tinkertoys
Play-doh
Lincoln Logs
Erector set
Chemistry set

7. The Smithsonian has long found a place for America's most popular heroes, and those heroes have changed over time, reflecting changes in America. Match these heroes with the objects that represent them at the Smithsonian (select the number of the historical figure in the drop-down box):

1. Pres. Theodore Roosevelt a. Buckskin jacket

2. Davy Crockett b. Lifetime pass to Coney Island

3. George Custer c. Printing press

4. Gen. George Pershing d. Hatchet

5. Benjamin Franklin e. Stuffed toy bear

8. In 1896, the Smithsonian celebrated its 50th anniversary by publishing a book describing the treasures of its collections. In 1996, the Institution celebrated its 150th anniversary by creating an exhibition of its treasures that traveled cities nationwide. Which of the objects below was included on the list of Smithsonian treasures in 1896 and in 1996?

Dorothy's ruby slippers
A bronze life mask of Abraham Lincoln
Edison's lightbulb
The U.S. grand prize trophy from the Berlin International Fishery Exhibition
First Lady Lucretia Garfield's inaugural gown

9. George Washington willed his battle sword to his nephew with orders to use it only:

In self-defense or in defense of country
Once a year, on his birthday
Against those d---d British, if they come back again
Enough to keep it from getting rusty
In the state of Virginia

10. Fiestaware, introduced by the Homer Laughlin China Company in 1936, originally came in 5 colors. Which of the following was NOT one of the original 1936 colors?

Light green
Cobalt blue
Orange-red
Turquoise
Ivory

11. The Smithsonian began collecting first ladies' gowns in 1912. Who was first lady in 1912?

Edith Roosevelt
Dolley Madison
Helen Taft
Florence Harding
Lucretia Garfield

12. The Star-Spangled Banner, the flag that flew over Fort McHenry during the War of 1812 and inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem that became our national anthem, was made in Baltimore in 1813. How many stars and stripes did the official U.S. flag have in 1813?

Thirteen stars, thirteen stripes.
Fourteen stars, thirteen stripes.
Fifteen stars, thirteen stripes.
Fifteen stars, fifteen stripes.

13. Who is the only U.S. president ever to receive a patent for an invention?

Thomas Jefferson
Abraham Lincoln
John F. Kennedy
Woodrow Wilson
Gerald Ford

14. What is the largest denomination of U.S. paper money ever produced?

$1,000
$10,000
$100,000
$1,000,000

15. What pop culture celebrity was born Charles Stratton?

Babe Ruth
Tom Thumb
Muhammad Ali
Groucho Marx
Prince

16. True or false: Railroad wheels manufactured by the Allen Paper Car Wheel Company during the 1880s were actually made out of paper.

True
False

17. In 1984, the Smithsonian collected jerseys and other memorabilia from the U.S. Olympic hockey team to commemorate its 1980 "Miracle on Ice" victory over the Soviet Union. Where did this famous sports moment take place?

Lake Placid, N.Y.
Moscow
Sarajevo
Innsbruck
Denver, Co.

18. The Smithsonian's political history collection includes a charm bracelet representing the states that ratified the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), owned by women's rights activist Alice Paul. When did the ERA become law?

1923
1972
1982
None of the above

19. What kind of object in the Smithsonian's collections is named the "Yellow Cloud"?

Electric guitar
Locomotive
First lady's gown
Patent medicine
Airplane

20. One of the most impressive trophies in the Smithsonian's sports history collection was presented to Gertrude Ederle in 1926, naming her "Most Popular Athlete." Who was Gertrude Ederle?

First woman to win an Olympic gold medal
First woman to swim the English Channel
Miniature golf champion
Women's singles champion at Wimbledon
Set the world record for flagpole-sitting

21. Which of the following is NOT a real animal soldier preserved at the Smithsonian?

Cher Ami, a carrier pigeon wounded in action during World War I

Stubby, a gas-detecting dog decorated by General Pershing

Winchester, the horse that carried General Sheridan on his famous Civil War ride

Pollyanna, a parrot trained in intelligence work during World War II

22. Which of the following famous African American women ran for president in 1972 with campaign buttons that proclaimed her "Unbought and Unbossed"?

Shirley Chisholm
Maya Angelou
Angela Davis
Barbara Jordan
Charlene Mitchell

23. Cesar Chavez, founder of the United Farm Workers union, gained national attention in the late 1960s and 1970s for leading boycotts of what California produce?

Carrots
Tomatoes
Strawberries
Grapes

24. Why did Smithsonian curators collect a lunch counter from a Greensboro, N.C., Woolworth's department store in 1993?

It was the first Woolworth's in America
To document the cultural history of lunch counters
It was the site of a famous civil rights sit-in
Franklin D. Roosevelt once ate lunch there

25. One of the more bizarre objects in the Smithsonian collections is a framed display containing locks of hair of the first fourteen presidents. Whose hair is NOT included in this display?

Franklin Pierce
James Buchanan
John Quincy Adams
William Henry Harrison
James K. Polk

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