RECONSTRUCTIONChapter 10

Objective 3.4 Analyze the political, economic and social impact of reconstruction & why it came to an end

LINCOLN’S 10% PLAN Amnesty to all but a few

Southerners who took an oath of loyalty to the US & accepted its proclamations concerning slavery

When 10% of voters took the oath they could organize a new state government

Members of former Confederate government and military would not receive amnesty

Proclamation of Amnesty & Reconstruction -1863* Lincoln assassinated April 1865

Goal-Rapid readmission of seceding states

RADICAL REPUBLICANS

Didn’t want reconciliation with Southerners

Wanted to “revolutionize southern institutions, habits, and manners”

Prevent leaders of Confederacy from returning to power

Institute Republican Party in the South

Guarantee of African American right to vote in the South

Opposed Lincoln’s Plan

Leading Radical Republicans

Rep. Thaddeus Stevens

Sen. Charles Sumner

Radicals knew that once the South was admittedback into the Union, they (the South) would gain 15 seats because slaves now counted as a whole person not 3/5!

The WADE DAVIS BILL – summer 1864

Required former Confederates to take an oath of allegiance to the Union

Once a majority did, the state could hold a Constitutional Convention to rewrite their Constitutions

Requirement of abolishing slavery Requirement of depriving all former

Confederate officials & officers the right to vote & hold office

Lincoln did not sign the bill – (pocket vetoed) killing it

Lincoln did not want a “harsh peace”

RECONSTRUCTION

Freedom from white control

Reunions with family they were separated from

Control over their labor

Income to support families

Needed ex-slaves to work the land

Control over ex-slaves Black codes – laws

passed by states to severely limit the rights of African Americans

To keep African Americans similar to slaves

Vision of Former SlavesVision of Former Planters

REFUGEE CRISIS

Former slaves followed Sherman’s march in search for food Sherman gave abandoned plantations to them (40,000

former slaves settled on land between SC & Ga. ) The Freedman’s Bureau

Established by Congress-1865; led by Oliver O. Howard

Organized the feeding, clothing & housing of war refugees (immediate concern at end of war)

Aided former slaves in search for work (work contracts)

Established courts to deal with grievances Successful in establishing education for African

Americans (built schools, hired teachers) Many Northerners argued that freedmen should get

“40 Acres & a Mule”- idea never came to pass!

Southern View of Freedman’s Bureau

ANDREW JOHNSON1865-1869

A Southern Democratadded to Lincoln’s Ticket to gain votes in Tenn. back in the Union in 1864. • former Sen. Of Tenn.• Remained loyal toUnion when Tenn.Seceded. • Lincoln namedhim Military Gov.after Tenn. rejoinedUnion.

ANDREW JOHNSON’S PLAN Proclamation of Amnesty

1. Pardon of all former Confederate citizens who took oath of loyalty

2. Property would be returned to them3. Excluded former officers, officials &

Planters who had property of $20,000 or more – all had to apply for a presidential pardon personally.

4. Had to approve the 13th Amendment When Congress returned to session

in Dec. 1865-Johnson’s plan was well underway

Many former Confederate leaders had been elected to serve in US Congress (Alexander Stephens)

Angered northerners & Radical Republicans

Post-Civil War Amendments & Acts 13TH Amendment –abolished slavery in the US Civil Rights Act of 1866

Passed to combat the Black codes Granted citizenship to all person born in US except

Native Americans Allowed African Americans to own property &

receive equal treatment in court Resulted in violence in the South

14th Amendment Quickly passed for fear the Civil Rights Act would be

overturned in Supreme Court Equal Protection Amendment-applied to Federal Gov Granted citizenship to all persons born in US or

naturalized

Congressional Elections of 1866 President Johnson- attacked the 14th

Amendment & hoped voters would also July 1866- white mobs in attacked legislators

in New Orleans who supported black rights Republicans accused Democrats of starting

the Civil War The Election- Republicans won a ¾ majority

in Congress= Radical Republicans will control Johnson & Reconstruction!!

NOW- Republicans could override any presidential veto by Johnson– but were still afraid he might interfere with their Reconstruction Plans

*MILITARY RECONSTRUCTION ACT

March 1867- Plan developed by Radical Republicans

Divided the south into 5 military districts where a Union general was placed in each one

Constitutional Conventions were required with the right to vote given to all male citizens regardless of race

Ratification of the 14th amendment Military would remain in the state until

completed By 1868 6 states were readmitted to the Union

under this plan. Republicans knew that they could override veto!

Southern Readmission to the Union Under Military Reconstruction

ANDREW JOHNSON’S IMPEACHMENT

Command of the Army Act – required all orders from President to go through Gen. Grant & required the Senate to approve the removal of any government official

Tenure of Office Act- required Senate approval to fire any government official that had been approved by the Senate

Johnson fired Secretary of War Edwin Stanton Congress voted to impeach Johnson for breaking the

law Came within 1 vote (requires 2/3 vote) Belief it would set a dangerous precedent to impeach

a president just because he did not agree with Congressional policies

Johnson Completes his Term & the Election of 1868

Johnson did not interfere with Reconstruction again for the rest of his term.

Completed his term Did not run for re-election in 1868Election of 1868- Grant v. Horatio

Seymour Republicans nominate U.S. Grant Republicans “waved the bloody shirt” Presence of Union troops in the South= black

men (500,000) allowed to vote= they vote for Grant!

Grant won 6 Southern states & most Northern states

The 15th Amendment

Congress passed the 15th Amendment- granting black men the right to vote.

Key- allowed black men to vote in the South= they vote for the Republicans & Grant 1868

By 1870- 2/3 of states had ratified it & it became part of the US Constitution

Significance- Radical Reconstruction began to bring blacks into the politics & change southern society

Southern whites were angry= lashed back!!

Ulysses S. Grant1869 - 1877

Republican Rule in the South

By 1870- all former Confederate states had rejoined the Union under Congressional (Military Reconstruction).

Southerners disliked the Republican Party- it included Northerners & it contained blacks.

Many Northerners moved South & were appointed to positions new state governments

Southern Democrats called them “carpetbaggers”

White southerners who helped the Republican governments were nicknamed –scalawags.

Scalawags- former Whigs, or owners of small farms, or southern businessmen

African Americans in Politics- “Black Republicanism”

At first blacks who had been educated before the war assumed leadership in politics in the South

100’s of formerly enslaved men served in state constitutional conventions, won local elections, served in state legislatures.

14 African-Americans were elected to the US House under Military Reconstruction (Joseph Rainey-1st )

2 African-Americans were elected to the US Senate: Hiram Revels & Blanche K. BruceBlanche K. Bruce

Hiram Revels

Republican Reforms

How were Republicans able to take control of politics in the South?

Presence of Union troops, black men allowed to vote

Large number of poor white Southerners supported Reconstruction & election of Republican candidates.

Republicans Reforms in the South 1. Repealed the Black Codes2. Made more state offices elective3. Established schools, state hospitals4. Built roads, railways, bridges & industry Imposed high property taxes & debt Graft- corruption existed during this era

African-American Communities After the war, blacks built their own

churches- center of life in the communityEducation By 1870, 4,000 school & 9,000 teachers est.

by Freedman’s Bureau A comprehensive public school system

emerged in the South 1876- 40% of African-American children

attended school Higher Education- Morehouse College (Ga.),

Howard University (Wsahington-1867) 1881- Tuskegee Institute (University); first

teacher Booker T. Washington

The Ku Klux Klan

Southerners organized secret societies to resist Reconstruction

1866- The Ku Klux Klan was organized by former Confederate Nathan Bedford Forrest in Tenn.

Goal- drive out carpetbaggers, intimidate black voters, regain control of the South for Democrat Party

The US Government Fights the Klan

President Grant-outraged at Klan activities 1870-1871- Congress passed three

Enforcement Acts laws to restrict the Klan.

1. Made it a federal crime to interfere with a citizen’s right to vote.

2. Placed Federal elections under supervision of federal marshals.

3. KKK Act- outlawed Klan activities 3,000 Klansmen & officials were arrested Southern juries convicted only about 600 Hard to enforce

The Grant Administration (1868-1876)

Grant not a politician- had only voted once. Policy- Continue Reconstruction using federal troops to

enforce. Surrounded himself with corrupt & incompetent

advisors Grant’s Presidency plagued by scandals & economic

problems (2nd term)

1. Sec. of War (William Belknap) was impeached & resigned= he accepted bribes.

2. The Whiskey Ring Scandal (1875)- government officials & whiskey distillers cheated government out of taxes; Grant’s personal secretary involved.

3. Credit Mobilier Scandal (1872)- Union Pacific RR investors formed Credit Mobilier & hired themselves at inflated prices to build the RR Line; bribed members of Congress.

The Panic of 1873

Started when a series of bad Railroad investments forced a major bank –Jay Cooke & Co. to go bankrupt= smaller banks close= 1000’s of businesses shut down

Scandals & Economic crisis allowed Democrats to win control of Congress in 1874 & make gains in the Senate

Northerners became more concerned about the economy not-Reconstruction

“Redeeming” the South

1870’s- Southern Democrats regained control of state & local governments.

KKK & other groups- intimidated blacks & white Republicans

Election fraud was common (usually against Republicans in the South)

Southern Democrats –called on whites to “redeem” the South from Republican rule

By 1876- Democrats controlled all southern state governments except- Louisiana, SC, & Florida.

Election of 1876 Republicans did not nominate Grant for 3rd

term Rutherford B. Hayes ® V. Samuel Tilden (D) Hayes wanted to end ReconstructionElection Day Tilden won 184 electoral votes (1 short of a

majority); Hayes won 165 electoral votes. 20 electoral votes were in dispute (19 votes in

3 Southern states: La., SC, & Florida) Election fraud in all three states= disputed

election

Electoral Map of 1876

**The Compromise of 1877 Congress appointed a 15 person commission

to settle the deputed election (8 Republicans/ 7 Democrats)

The commission voted 8 to 7 to give Hayes the election.

Next- The House would vote A few Southern Democrats voted with

Republicans to give Hayes the election! Within a month- President Hayes removed

US troops from the South Significance- Reconstruction Ends!!! Was there a secret deal?

The “Solid South”

The “New South” Emerges Southern leaders called for a New South to

emerge= less reliant on agriculture; more emphasis on industries .

Northerners & Rich Southerners used capital to build RR’s (1890- 40,000 miles of track in the South)

Northerners moved textile mills to the South NC- tobacco became big business (James B.

Duke) Socially- little change Still remained mostly agriculture

The Sharecropping System Most blacks & poor whites returned to

plantations & farms owned by whites to work the land

Worked for wages or became Tenant Farmers

Most Tenant Farmers became Sharecroppers (paid land rent with shares of crop)

Furnishing Merchants- supplied fertilizer, seed, equipment to sharecroppers on credit at high rates of interest.

Debts owed= crop liens= debt peonage Failure to pay debts= imprisonment or forced

labor. Blacks & poor whites trapped in a system

similar to slavery.

Sharecroppers