• 53 questions

Period 2 APUSH Practice Test

Unofficial multiple-choice practice for Period 2 of AP United States History, 1607 to 1754: the colonial era in North America.

Why did the French in North America depend so heavily on alliances with Native nations in the 17th century?

Pick an answer, then press Check answer. Then you see Correct or Not quite, with the reason. Keys: A to D pick, Enter checks.

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Unofficial practice questions, not affiliated with the College Board. Bank checked October 8, 2026.

Next step AP US History practice test: all nine periodsAPUSH Period 1 practice test

All 53 questions

Topic 2.2: European colonization 8

  • Beginning in 1630 as many as 20,000 Puritans left England for America. What were they seeking? Library of Congress, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic, "America as a Religious Refuge: The Seventeenth Century"; course topic 2.2
  • In 1619 the Virginia Company recruited about 90 women and shipped them to Virginia. Why? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "A Short History of Jamestown" and "The First Legislative Assembly"; course topic 2.2
  • Under the headright system used in Carolina, what did a person receive for bringing new settlers to the colony? NCpedia, State Library of North Carolina, "Headrights"; course topic 2.2
  • What created a European market for North American beaver fur in the early 1600s? Canadian Museum of History, Virtual Museum of New France, "Fur Trade"; course topic 2.2
  • What did Spanish rule in New Mexico require of the Pueblo people in the 17th century? The Pueblo Revolt of 1680: Declaration of Pedro Naranjo, editor's introduction, Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.2
  • What was an indentured servant in the English colonies? Robert Beverley, "Of the Servants and Slaves in Virginia," editor's introduction, Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.2
  • Who were the coureurs de bois of New France? Canadian Museum of History, Virtual Museum of New France, "Fur Trade"; course topic 2.2
  • Why did the French in North America depend so heavily on alliances with Native nations in the 17th century? Canadian Museum of History, Virtual Museum of New France, "Fur Trade"; course topic 2.2
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Topic 2.3: The regions of British colonies 11

  • For whom did George Calvert seek the charter of Maryland, granted in 1632? Library of Congress, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic, "America as a Religious Refuge: The Seventeenth Century, Part 2"; course topic 2.3
  • John Winthrop told the Puritans bound for Massachusetts in 1630 that their colony would be a "city upon a hill." What did he mean? John Winthrop, A Model of Christian Charity (1630), editor's introduction, Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.3
  • Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut and New Haven formed the United Colonies of New England on May 19, 1643. What was the league for? The Articles of Confederation of the United Colonies of New England (1643), Avalon Project, Yale Law School; course topic 2.3
  • The Virginia Company's colonists tried silkmaking, glassmaking, lumber and other ventures without success. What became Virginia's first profitable export? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "John Rolfe" and "A Short History of Jamestown"; course topic 2.3
  • What did the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut (1639) provide for the office of governor? Fundamental Orders of 1639, Avalon Project, Yale Law School; course topic 2.3
  • What did the Trustees of Georgia remove in the last years of their rule, which ended in 1752? New Georgia Encyclopedia, "Trustee Georgia, 1732-1752"; course topic 2.3
  • What met in the church at Jamestown on July 30, 1619? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "The First Legislative Assembly"; Ordinances for Virginia (1621), Avalon Project, Yale Law School; course topic 2.3
  • What practical purpose did the founders of Georgia have in mind by the time its charter was granted in 1732? New Georgia Encyclopedia, "Trustee Georgia, 1732-1752"; Charter of Georgia (1732), Avalon Project, Yale Law School; course topic 2.3
  • Why did tobacco planters in 17th-century Virginia depend on indentured servants or enslaved workers? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "Tobacco: Colonial Cultivation Methods"; course topic 2.3
  • Why was Roger Williams banished from Massachusetts, and what did he found in 1636? National Park Service, "Roger Williams: Minister, Merchant, Magistrate"; course topic 2.3
  • William Penn's Charter of Privileges for Pennsylvania (October 28, 1701) says that "no People can be truly happy, though under the greatest Enjoyment of Civil Liberties, if abridged of the Freedom of their Consciences." What did the charter promise? Charter of Privileges Granted by William Penn (1701), Avalon Project, Yale Law School; Library of Congress, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic; course topic 2.3

Topic 2.4: Transatlantic trade 6

  • According to the Virtual Museum of New France, the fur trade was "far more than a simple exchange of commodities." What else did it bring about? Canadian Museum of History, Virtual Museum of New France, "Fur Trade"; course topic 2.4
  • How did many colonists respond to the Navigation Acts? NCpedia, State Library of North Carolina, "Navigation Acts (1651, 1660)"; course topic 2.4
  • The Navigation Act of 1660 "enumerated" sugar, tobacco, cotton, indigo and ginger. What did that mean for those goods? NCpedia, State Library of North Carolina, "Navigation Acts (1651, 1660)"; course topic 2.4
  • What did the Navigation Act of 1651 require? NCpedia, State Library of North Carolina, "Navigation Acts (1651, 1660)"; course topic 2.4
  • Which economic troubles weighed on Virginia in the years before Bacon's Rebellion of 1676? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "Bacon's Rebellion"; course topic 2.4
  • Why did Great Britain pay a bounty for the tar, pitch and turpentine made from North Carolina's pine trees? NCpedia, State Library of North Carolina, "Naval Stores"; course topic 2.4

Topic 2.5: Interactions between American Indians and Europeans 8

  • Before King Philip's War (1675 to 1676), Metacomet told Rhode Island officials his people's grievances. Which was among them? Metacomet Explains the Causes of King Philip's War (John Easton's account), Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.5
  • Pedro Naranjo, a Pueblo man questioned by the Spanish after the revolt of 1680, said his people "had always desired to live as they had when they came out of the lake of Copala." What reason for the revolt was he giving? The Pueblo Revolt of 1680: Declaration of Pedro Naranjo, Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.5
  • The Pilgrims and the Wampanoag sachem Massasoit kept a partnership through his lifetime. What held it together? Metacomet Explains the Causes of King Philip's War, editor's introduction, Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.5
  • What did the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, organized by Popé, achieve? The Pueblo Revolt of 1680: Declaration of Pedro Naranjo, editor's introduction, Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.5
  • What does the National Park Service say would probably have happened to Jamestown without the help of the Powhatan in its first years? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "A Short History of Jamestown"; course topic 2.5
  • What led to war between the English and the Pequot in 1636? Metacomet Explains the Causes of King Philip's War, editor's introduction, Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.5
  • What set Roger Williams apart from most English colonists in his view of Native peoples? National Park Service, "Roger Williams: Minister, Merchant, Magistrate"; course topic 2.5
  • Why did the Powhatan paramount chief Opechancanough plan a coordinated attack on the English settlements in March 1622? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "A Short History of Jamestown"; course topic 2.5

Topic 2.6: Slavery in the British colonies 10

  • By the end of the 1670s enslaved Africans had begun to replace indentured servants as Virginia's main source of labor. What helped cause the shift? Robert Beverley, "Of the Servants and Slaves in Virginia," editor's introduction, Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.6
  • By the late 1600s people enslaved in Carolina had learned they could find freedom in Spanish Florida. On what terms? National Park Service, Fort Matanzas National Monument, "Fort Mose"; course topic 2.6
  • How did South Carolina's government respond to the Stono Rebellion? South Carolina Encyclopedia, "Stono Rebellion"; course topic 2.6
  • Virginia wrote slavery into its statute law in 1662. How did that law settle the status of a child? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "African Americans at Jamestown"; Robert Beverley, "Of the Servants and Slaves in Virginia," Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.6
  • What did the rediscovery of the African Burial Ground in lower Manhattan in 1991 show about colonial New York? National Park Service, African Burial Ground National Monument, "History and Culture"; course topic 2.6
  • What did Virginia's General Assembly decide in 1667 about an enslaved person who was baptized? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "African Americans at Jamestown"; course topic 2.6
  • Where had the "20 and odd" Africans who reached Virginia in late August 1619 come from? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "African Americans at Jamestown"; course topic 2.6
  • Where were the enslaved people who rose in the Stono Rebellion of September 1739 trying to go? South Carolina Encyclopedia, "Stono Rebellion"; course topic 2.6
  • Which law did Virginia pass for the first time in 1691? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "African Americans at Jamestown"; course topic 2.6
  • Which of these was a quiet, everyday way that enslaved people resisted slavery? Library of Congress, The African American Odyssey, "Slavery: The Peculiar Institution"; course topic 2.6

Topic 2.7: Colonial society and culture 10

  • Benjamin Franklin called the subscription library he started in Philadelphia "the mother of all the North American subscription libraries." What did he say such libraries had done? Benjamin Franklin, Autobiography, Project Gutenberg; course topic 2.7
  • Benjamin Franklin wrote that when George Whitefield came to Philadelphia in 1739, "the clergy taking a dislike to him, soon refused him their pulpits." Where did Whitefield preach then? Benjamin Franklin, "George Whitefield Preaches in Philadelphia," Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.7
  • The English Bill of Rights of 1689 listed the offenses of King James II. Which of these was among them? English Bill of Rights (1689), Avalon Project, Yale Law School; Library of Congress, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic; course topic 2.7
  • The first charter of the Virginia Company (April 10, 1606) said that colonists and their children "shall have and enjoy all liberties, franchises and immunities as if they had been abiding and borne within this our realme of England." Why did those words matter later? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "The First Legislative Assembly"; course topic 2.7
  • How did the Great Awakening affect the Congregational and Presbyterian churches? Library of Congress, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic, "Religion in Eighteenth-Century America"; course topic 2.7
  • In 1735 the New York printer John Peter Zenger was tried for libel against Governor William Cosby. What did his lawyer, Andrew Hamilton, argue? National Park Service, Federal Hall National Memorial, "The Trial of John Peter Zenger"; course topic 2.7
  • In his "Declaration of the People" (July 30, 1676), what did Nathaniel Bacon charge against Governor William Berkeley of Virginia? National Park Service, Historic Jamestowne, "Bacon's Rebellion"; course topic 2.7
  • Philadelphians built a large meeting house after Whitefield's visit. For whose use was it meant? Benjamin Franklin, "George Whitefield Preaches in Philadelphia," Teaching American History, Ashland University; course topic 2.7
  • Who arrived in New Amsterdam in 1654 and soon held religious services there? Library of Congress, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic, "America as a Religious Refuge: The Seventeenth Century, Part 2"; course topic 2.7
  • Why is Jonathan Edwards of Northampton, Massachusetts, important to the Great Awakening? Library of Congress, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic, "Religion in Eighteenth-Century America"; course topic 2.7

How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to Unit 2 (Period 2: 1607-1754) of the College Board's AP U.S. History Course and Exam Description, effective fall 2026, https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap-us-history-course-and-exam-description.pdf, read 2026-10-08. Each fact was read on 2026-10-08 in the public page named under its question: the National Park Service (Historic Jamestowne and other parks), the Library of Congress, the Avalon Project at Yale Law School, Teaching American History (Ashland University), NCpedia (State Library of North Carolina), the South Carolina Encyclopedia (University of South Carolina), the New Georgia Encyclopedia (Georgia Humanities), the Virtual Museum of New France (Canadian Museum of History) and Project Gutenberg. Licence: Own work. Short quotations from the public documents named under each question.

How it works

This Period 2 APUSH practice test has 53 questions of our own on 1607 to 1754, from Jamestown to the Great Awakening, and doubles as an APUSH Unit 2 practice test. It is unofficial; the College Board, which owns AP, is not affiliated with it.

Read the full guide

What Period 2 covers

Unit 2 of the College Board's course description, read October 8, 2026, lists eight topics. Six have questions here: European colonization (8), the regions of the British colonies (11), transatlantic trade (6), relations between American Indians and Europeans (8), slavery in the British colonies (10) and colonial society and culture (10). The opening topic on context and the closing one on comparison are practiced inside those six. The regions get the most questions by our choice, since the description sets no weight for a topic.

Where the answers come from

The page behind each answer is named under it: colonial charters at Yale's Avalon Project, National Park Service histories of Jamestown and other sites, and Library of Congress exhibitions.

  • Learn each region by its crop and its labor: tobacco and servants in the Chesapeake, family farms in New England, grain in the middle colonies.
  • Date the hardening of slavery by Virginia's laws: 1662 on the mother's status, 1667 on baptism, 1691 on marriage.

Questions and answers

What is Period 2 in APUSH?

Period 2 is 1607 to 1754, from the founding of Jamestown to the eve of the Seven Years' War: how Spanish, French, Dutch and British colonies grew, traded, dealt with Native nations and came to depend on slavery.

Is Unit 2 the same as Period 2 in APUSH?

Yes. Unit 2 of the course is Period 2, the years 1607 to 1754, so one set of questions serves both names.

How much of the APUSH exam is Period 2?

Only 6 to 8% of the exam, by the College Board's course page, against 10 to 17% for each of Periods 3 through 8. The course description suggests about 14 class periods for it.

What is the difference between Period 1 and Period 2 in APUSH?

Period 1, 1491 to 1607, is Native America and first contact with Europeans. Period 2 begins with Jamestown in 1607 and follows the colonies of four European powers until 1754.

Are these the College Board's Unit 2 questions?

No. The College Board gives its own unit questions through AP Classroom. Ours were written from the topics of Unit 2 and from public sources, and none copies or rewords an exam question.

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