How West Virginia became a state during the Civil War

Grade 8 Social Studies Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Slavery and freedom in West Virginia

   Map 1, "Enslaved people in the western counties, 1850" (1850): 20,527 people were enslaved in the counties that became West Virginia, 6.79 percent of all 302,313 people there. Most lived in four valleys: the Shenandoah, South Branch, Kanawha and Greenbrier. Jefferson County had the most, 4,341 or 28.2 percent of its people; Kanawha County had 3,140, Hampshire 1,433 and Greenbrier 1,317. Kanawha saltmakers used more than 1,500 enslaved workers. Map 2, "West Virginia, 1863 to 1865" (1865): The 1863 constitution, with the Willey Amendment, allowed slavery but freed people gradually over time. The Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863, did not apply here, because the state was loyal to the Union. On February 3, 1865, a state law ended slavery at once. Key: darker shading is a larger share of people enslaved; a broken chain is a law that freed people. Below the maps: Enslaved people in western Virginia cleared forests, farmed, tended livestock, worked in homes, and mined coal and made salt. During the war some escaped, gathered in towns where free Black people helped them, or joined the Union army. Slavery was rare in the west, yet it lay behind the quarrels that split Virginia.

2. 1.

   How many people were enslaved in the western counties in 1850, Ari asks?

   • 302,313
   • 20,527
   • 2,052
   • 4,341
3. 2.

   Which work did enslaved people do, by the note, Esme asks?

   • Running the new state's legislature and courts
   • Teaching in public schools
   • Owning the salt works
   • Mining coal and making salt, among other work
4. 3.

   Why didn't the Emancipation Proclamation free people in West Virginia, Jun asks?

   • West Virginia had no enslaved people
   • Congress had not met that year
   • It was signed after the war ended in 1865
   • It applied only to areas in rebellion
5. 4.

   What did the Willey Amendment do, by map 2, Kira asks?

   • Freed enslaved people gradually over time
   • Ended slavery across Virginia, east and west
   • Moved the capital to Charleston
   • Ended slavery in a single day
6. 5.

   When did a West Virginia law end slavery at once, Luz asks?

   • June 20, 1863
   • January 1, 1863
   • 1850, the year of the count
   • February 3, 1865
7. 6.

   How many years after statehood did slavery end in the state, Milo asks?

   • 2 years
   • 3,728 years
   • 12 years
   • 15 years
8. 7.

   How did some enslaved people gain freedom during the war, by the note, Noah asks?

   • By moving to Richmond
   • By escaping, some to join the Union army
   • By the 1830 Virginia state constitution's rules
   • By a vote in the 1850 census
9. 8.

   Which claim fits both maps, Pia asks?

   • The west held most of Virginia's enslaved people then
   • Slavery ended there in 1850
   • Slavery was rare in the west but shaped its politics
   • No one was enslaved in the west
10. 9.

    A note says, 'West Virginia joined the Union with no slavery.' What fix does Ren make?

    • Change the Union to the Confederacy in the note
    • Change West Virginia to Ohio
    • Keep it; the note is right
    • Slavery ended gradually, then by law in 1865
11. 10.

    Which county had the most enslaved people in 1850, Tala asks?

    • Jefferson County
    • Greenbrier County
    • Hampshire County
    • Kanawha County