6.1 Guided Reading

What was a significant factor that contributed to the growth of American industry in the late 19th century?

• Decline in natural resources

• Technological developments

• Decrease in market demand

• Reduction in workforce

Who was the experienced prospector that supported Patillo Higgins' belief in the existence of oil at Spindletop, despite skepticism from others?

• Edwin L. Drake

• Thomas Alva Edison

• Captain Anthony F. Lucas

• Alexander Graham Bell

What marked the beginning of the Texas oil boom?

• The discovery of oil in 1899

• The drilling of a well by Higgins and Lucas

• The gushing of oil from a well on January 10, 1901

• The establishment of an oil refinery in Beaumont

Which of the following was not a factor in the United States becoming a leading industrial power after the Civil War?

• A wealth of natural resources

• Government support for business

• A large, stable agricultural sector

• A growing urban population

What year did Edwin L. Drake successfully use a steam engine to drill for oil near Titusville, Pennsylvania, making the extraction of oil from beneath the earth's surface practical?

• 1859

• 1870

• 1887

• 1840

What was a byproduct of the refining process that transformed oil into kerosene, which later became essential for the automobile industry?

• Gasoline

• Natural gas

• Coal

• Biomass

Which natural resource was discovered in deposits more than 100 miles long and up to 3 miles wide in the Mesabi Range of Minnesota around 1887?

• Coal

• Iron ore

• Copper

• Silver

What technological advancement in the 1850s allowed for the efficient manufacturing of steel, leading to a boom in steel production in the United States?

• Electric arc furnace

• Bessemer process

• Open hearth furnace

• Puddling process

By 1880, what percentage of the nation's steel was produced using the new method developed by injecting air into molten iron to remove carbon and other impurities?

• 90%

• 75%

• 50%

• 100%

What was one of the most remarkable innovative constructions mentioned in the text that was completed in 1883?

• The Eiffel Tower

• The Brooklyn Bridge

• The Statue of Liberty

• The London Bridge