- William Drake, a “man whom everyone liked” was the manufacturer of the “famous” Drake hand-made cigars. He was a traveling salesman. Another term for that profession in the late 1800s was….
a. Borler
b. Sandesman
c. Drummer
- John Douglass Gallup who was 94 when he died in 1915, was reportedly the oldest man in Suffield at the time. He was a successful entrepreneur. What did he do?
a. He bought land and built a picnic grove with amusements on the bank of the Connecticut River in Agawam.
b. He built the largest warehouse used to store ice harvested from Lake Congamond.
c. He started the trolley service which ran through Suffield.
- What was the Convention Army?
a. Union soldiers from the North in the Civil War who wore the conventional blue uniforms.
b. Prisoners of war in the Revolutionary War.
c. French soldiers who came to the aid of the Americans in the Revolutionary War.
- British General John Burgoyne surrendered to the American General Horatio Gates at Saratoga, the first triumph for the colonists in the American Revolutionary War. What were the terms of surrender in the Articles of Convention?
a. The defeated army would be freed in Canada, after promising not to return to fight again in the war, upon pain of death.
b. The defeated army would repair Fort Ticonderoga which would become their prison.
c. The defeated army would be shipped back to England on the promise of not returning to fight against American soldiers again during this conflict. - June 5, 1917 was one of those National Something Day. What was it?
a. Woman’s Suffrage Day
b. National Registration Day
c. National Buffalo Bill Day
- In 1982, Connecticut passed the nation’s first “Lemon Law.” What did it do?
a. It imposed a tariff on lemons.
b. It removed sales tax from all food, including lemons.
c. It provided consumer protection for automobile buyers.
- Ann Corio lived in town for several years. She became famous and appeared on the Johnny Carson show twice. Why was she famous?
a. She was the model for Rosie the Riveter, a famous World War II poster.
b. She was the Queen of Burlesque.
c. She was one of the top ten female spies during World War II.
- Robert Cumming was another famous person who lived for a time in Suffield. What was he famous for?
a. He was an actor starring in horror movies.
b. He was the senator who challenged Joe McCarthy during hearings in which McCarthy alleged that Communists had infiltrated multiple sectors in the country.
c. He was a famous photographer. - Isaac Bissell had an important job in April 1775. What was it?
a. He was the Captain of the Suffield militia that responded to the call for arms from Lexington at the start of the Revolutionary War.
b. He was the warden of Newgate Prison, soon to be a prison for British sympathizers.
c. He was one of the post riders who delivered the news that the British were attacking Lexington and Concord, Mass. - Why did the British attack Lexington and Concord in April 1775?
a. British General Thomas Gage ordered a raid to seize military stores, ammunition, and weapons that the colonists were reportedly stockpiling in Concord.
b. The British wanted to capture John Hancock and Samuel Adams who were staying in Lexington.
c. The British were not intending to attack Concord or Lexington, but instead were heading to Acton where the munitions stockpile was actually stored.
Answers
1. c. Drummer. A borler made coarse cloth for woolen clothing. A sandesman is a person employed at a water works.
2. a. He bought land on the bank of the Connecticut River in Agawam. In 1870, he built a picnic grove on the land with pavilions and amusements. Gallup provided a ferry service to the grove with his two steamships The Mayflower and the River Belle making it a popular destination. Called Gallup’s Grove, it was the predecessor of Riverside Park, now known as Six Flags
3. b. Prisoners of war in the Revolutionary War. At the start of their defeat, there were about 4,200 prisoners; almost half were Hessian mercenaries. They were accompanied by about 1,000 women and children.
4. c. They would be shipped back to England on the promise of not returning to fight against American soldiers again in this conflict.
5. b. National Registration Day. By 9 p.m. local time, all American male residents (regardless of their citizen status) between the ages of 21 to 30, were required to register for possible military service or face arrest and up to one year of imprisonment.
6. c. It provided consumer protection for automobile buyers.
7. b. She was the Queen of Burlesque, a stripper and actress. She wrote, directed and produced a Broadway play called This Was Burlesque which was a major hit.
8. c. He was a famous photographer. He was known as a conceptual artist who transformed camera work in the 1970s and 1980s.
9. c. He was one of the post riders who delivered the news that the British were attacking Lexington and Concord, Mass.
10. a. and b. are correct. The munitions stockpile was in Concord and John Hancock and Samuel Adams were in Lexington.