Alexander Hamilton Is Famous for Many Things. Name One: Civics Question 89

Name one thing. “He was the first Secretary of the Treasury” is the answer officers hear most.

Question 89 says Alexander Hamilton is famous for many things and asks you to name one. Accepted answers include that he was the first Secretary of the Treasury, that he was one of the writers of the Federalist Papers, that he helped establish the First Bank of the United States, that he was an aide to General George Washington, and that he was a member of the Continental Congress.

The Answers, and Most of Them Are About Money

Hamilton was the first Secretary of the Treasury, appointed by George Washington. The job meant building a financial system for a country that had just fought a war and owed money for it.

He helped establish the First Bank of the United States, which held government funds and gave the young country a place to manage its debts.

He was also one of the three writers of the Federalist Papers, the essays that argued for accepting the Constitution.

Before any of that he served as an aide to General George Washington during the Revolutionary War, and he sat as a member of the Continental Congress. Both are accepted answers.

Why the Officer Asks This

Hamilton shows what the executive branch does below the president. Departments run the daily work of government, and the Treasury was one of the first.

His name also appears in question 83, which asks you to name one writer of the Federalist Papers. Hamilton answers both questions, so learning him once covers two spots on the list.

How to Remember Hamilton

Take a ten dollar bill out of your wallet and look at the face on it. That is Hamilton, and the reason he is on money is that he built the country’s money system.

Ten dollar bill, Treasury, bank. The picture and the answer are the same idea, so the bill works as a flashcard you already carry.

For the writing answer, remember that he wrote alongside Madison and Jay. The Federalist Papers question comes six questions before this one.

Common Ways People Get This Wrong

Applicants sometimes name Hamilton as a president, because most faces on U.S. money were presidents. Two were not: Hamilton on the ten dollar bill and Benjamin Franklin on the hundred. Hamilton’s office was Secretary of the Treasury, which a president appoints.

He also did not write the Constitution itself. He argued for it in the Federalist Papers, which is a different accepted answer.

What to Say on Test Day

Say “he was the first Secretary of the Treasury.” Then stop.

If Treasury is hard to pronounce, say “he was one of the writers of the Federalist Papers.” Both answers are accepted, and one is enough.