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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What was Eads' proposition to change the mouth of the Mississippi River?

2. Where did the Mississippi River Commission decide their failure was in the 1912 and 1913 floods?

3. Why did armed St. Bernard Parish men visit the bankers of New Orleans?

4. Before going to Washington, what was Hoover's life like?

5. As the floods continued, what did 30,000 people decide to do?

Short Essay Questions

1. Both Ellet and Humphreys are in competition to survey the Mississippi River. Ellet's report came out first and Humphreys takes Ellet's report as a personal insult. Why would Humphreys be insulted by Ellet's report?

2. Humphreys has his friend, Charles Howell, inspect the progress Eads is making on the jetties. Howell makes a report that the jetties aren't working the way Eads said they would. Eads in turn has a friend of his disclaim Humphreys' report. Why does Humphreys lie in his report?

3. How involved in the flooding is Coolidge when he is the President of the United States?

4. Much of the Delta region is underwater from the failure of levees, yet the people of Greenville still have faith in their protection levee. What happens to their levee?

5. After facing complete opposition, how would Eads' offer to independently pay for the construction of the jetties completely change the minds of the public and politicians?

6. Why did the author start the book on a stormy night?

7. How do the politics in New Orleans operate during the time of the flood in 1927?

8. The author wrote that during the 1800's "the prevailing attitude is that the Mississippi River can be controlled if the laws of nature governing the river were understood." What could John M. Barry mean by this?

9. A racist governor is elected into office in Mississippi, yet it is still considered a safe place for the blacks to work. However, when waters begin to rise, black convicts are ordered to lay on the levee and use their bodies as sandbags. Does everyone follow Percy's influence to alleviate discrimination?

10. Why do people want to follow the ways of the Ku Klux Klan rather than follow Percy's successful lead?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

World War I was occurring during the time of the flood. How did the war affect the Delta region during this time? Why was the war mentioned repeatedly throughout the book? Who did the war affect the greatest and why?

Essay Topic 2

In St. Bernard and Plaquemines Parishes, the main source of income came from bootlegging liquor which was illegal at that time. Compare and contrast St. Bernard and Plaquemines to New Orleans. How did the communities view each other? Why did they feel this way? What could change their views on each other?

Essay Topic 3

Many events happened concurrently in a rapid pace. What events marked the climax? Why is this the climax? How did the history of the Delta region change from this point?

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