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50 free The Waltons trivia questions with answers — entertainment quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
47 free The Waltons trivia questions with answers. The Waltons ran on CBS from 1972 to 1981, following a big family on a Virginia mountain from the Depression through the Second World War, and ending nearly every episode with the family saying goodnight in the dark. This quiz covers the show from top to bottom: the seven children and what became of each of them, Grandpa and Grandma, Ike and Corabeth Godsey, the Baldwin sisters and their 'Recipe', the pilot film The Homecoming, the reunion movies and the record-breaking Emmy haul. It also goes behind the camera to Earl Hamner Jr., whose own childhood in Schuyler, Virginia gave the show its stories and its narrator's voice, and to the actors, from Will Geer's blacklist years to Michael Learned's unusual first name. The questions run from easy ones any casual viewer can get to genuinely tough ones for people who have seen all nine seasons. Every answer is checked against Wikipedia and cited on the question, so you can see where each fact comes from.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01The Waltons was created by Earl Hamner Jr., based on which of his novels?
Spencer's Mountain
The 1963 film version starred Henry Fonda and Maureen O'Hara and was set in Wyoming rather than Virginia.
Q 02On which network did The Waltons air its original nine seasons?
CBS
The three 1982 reunion movies moved to NBC before the 1990s reunions returned to CBS.
Q 03What was the title of the 1971 TV movie that led CBS to order the series?
The Homecoming: A Christmas Story
It was never meant as a pilot, and only the children and Grandma kept their roles when the series was cast.
Q 04How many Walton children are there in the series?
Seven
An eighth child, Jim-Bob's twin brother Joseph, died at birth.
Q 05Walton's Mountain sits in which fictional Virginia county?
Jefferson
The real inspiration, Earl Hamner's home town of Schuyler, is in Nelson County.
Q 06Which years does the main series cover, from the first episode to the finale?
1933 to 1946
The finale, 'The Revel', revolves around a party whose invitation is dated June 4, 1946.
Q 07Whose portrait hangs in both the Walton homestead and Ike's general store?
Franklin D. Roosevelt
The very first episode dates itself to 1933 partly through a reference to Chicago's Century of Progress fair.
Q 08How does John Walton Sr. earn the family's living?
Running a lumber mill
He had quit his city job after the events of the pilot, and the family topped up its income with small-scale farming and hunting.
Q 09The Baldwin sisters distil moonshine that they insist on calling what?
Papa's Recipe
Grandpa Zeb can often be found happily sipping the Recipe with them, to Olivia's disapproval.
Q 10What does the snobbish Corabeth insist on calling her storekeeper husband?
Mr. Godsey
Corabeth is John Walton's cousin, and arrived on the mountain after her mother died.
Q 11Sheriff Ep Bridges, who fought alongside John in the First World War, holds which decoration?
The Medal of Honor
He was played by John Crawford for the entire run of the series.
Q 12Which fictional college does John-Boy attend after high school?
Boatwright University
It was modelled on Richmond College, now part of the University of Richmond, which sits on Boatwright Drive.
Q 13Which two characters' season-seven fates reflected what had really happened to their actors?
Grandma and Grandpa
After her return Grandma rarely spoke, usually limited to brief lines like 'No!' or 'Oh, boy!'.
Q 21CBS placed The Waltons in what timeslot, opposite The Flip Wilson Show and The Mod Squad?
Thursdays at 8 p.m.
A full-page newspaper ad packed with good reviews is credited with turning the ratings around and saving the show.
Q 22Ralph Waite's agent talked him into auditioning for John Walton by promising what?
The show would never sell
He ended up playing the part for nine seasons and six reunion movies, and occasionally directed.
Q 23How many reunion movies were made after the series ended in 1981?
Six
The last, A Walton Easter (1997), is set in 1969, more than three decades after the first episode.
Q 14Mary Ellen's first husband Curt, a doctor, is reported killed in which event?
The attack on Pearl Harbor
Years later she finds him alive under an assumed name, divorces him and marries Jonesy.
Q 15Olivia is eventually written out of the series when she develops which illness and moves to a sanatorium?
Tuberculosis
Her cousin Rose Burton moves in to look after the family, and John Sr. later joins Olivia in Arizona.
Q 16Which actor replaced Richard Thomas as John-Boy for seasons eight and nine?
Robert Wightman
Wightman took the role in 1979 and kept it through the end of the series in 1981.
Q 17Which future Three's Company star played Reverend Matthew Fordwick?
John Ritter
His character marries the schoolteacher Rosemary Hunter.
Q 18Who played Olivia Walton in The Homecoming before Michael Learned took over for the series?
Patricia Neal
Neal won a Golden Globe for the role, and the film's score was by Jerry Goldsmith.
Q 19Which famous ventriloquist played Grandpa Zeb in The Homecoming?
Edgar Bergen
Andrew Duggan played John Sr. in the film before Ralph Waite took over.
Q 20Where were the exteriors for The Homecoming filmed?
Near Jackson Hole, Wyoming
The series itself often shot exteriors in Frazier Park, 70 miles north of Los Angeles.
Q 24A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion, filmed in 1993, is set in 1963 and revolves around what event?
The assassination of John F. Kennedy
By that reunion, Mary Ellen is being described as a 'war widow' even though she divorced Curt.
Q 25Which Primetime Emmy did The Waltons win in 1973?
Outstanding Drama Series
The same year Richard Thomas won Lead Actor in a Drama, and the first season also earned a Peabody Award.
Q 26How many Emmys did Michael Learned win for playing Olivia Walton?
Three
A fourth Emmy for the series Nurse gave her four in total, tying Tyne Daly's record for the category.
Q 27Which veteran actress won a 1977 Emmy for her guest role as Martha Corrine Walton in 'The Pony Cart'?
Beulah Bondi
She had first appeared as the widow of Zeb's brother in the earlier episode 'The Conflict'.
Q 28Which president said in 1992 families should be 'more like the Waltons' than the Simpsons?
George H. W. Bush
The Simpsons answered with a new tag in which Bart says, 'Hey, we're just like the Waltons. We're prayin' for an end to the Depression, too.'
Q 29Which network aired the 2021 remake The Waltons: Homecoming, narrated by Richard Thomas?
The CW
A second film, A Waltons Thanksgiving, followed in 2022 with much lower ratings.
Q 30In which Virginia community was Earl Hamner Jr. born and raised, providing the setting for the show?
Schuyler
It was a company town built around soapstone quarrying, hit hard when the mines closed in the Depression.