Which of the following is true of the Mason-Dixon line?

Question

A: It was surveyed to settle a dispute between colonial settlers and Native Americans.
B: It is marked at its western end by the Fairfax Stone.
C: It marks a boundary between West Virginia and Pennsylvania.
D: It marks a boundary between West Virginia and Ohio.
E: It became the official border between Confederate and Union states during the Civil War.

Answer 1

The true statement about the Mason-Dixon line is:

E: It became the official border between Confederate and Union states during the Civil War.

The Mason-Dixon line was historically significant as it came to symbolize the division between the North and South in the United States, particularly during the Civil War era. The line itself was originally surveyed in the 1760s to resolve a border dispute between the British colonies of Maryland and Pennsylvania. It is also sometimes associated with the boundary between slave states and free states, but its primary significance in the context of the Civil War is as a border between the Union and Confederate states.

The other options are not accurate:

• A is incorrect because the line was not primarily surveyed to settle disputes with Native Americans.
• B is misleading since while the Fairfax Stone is an important landmark, it does not mark the western end of the Mason-Dixon line specifically.
• C is incorrect because the Mason-Dixon line does not mark the boundary between West Virginia and Pennsylvania; it marks the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland.
• D is incorrect because the Mason-Dixon line does not mark a boundary between West Virginia and Ohio.