War

Reconstruction, Bourbonism, and Populism 1865-1900

Reconstruction—Political Developments

• Georgia Governor Joseph E. Brown– By May of 1865, he had been removed from

office, arrested, and jailed in Washington D.C. until pardoned by President Johnson.

– Resigned the governorship in June 1865

Reconstruction—Political Development cont.

Brown encouraged Georgians to accept both Presidential Reconstruction and later Radical Reconstruction.

Urged Georgia to approve the Fourteenth Amendment and accept universal male suffrage.

Served under Republican rule as the chief justice of the Georgia Supreme Court.

Served as a Democratic U.S. Senator from 1880-1891. One of the “Bourbon Triumvirate” that dominated the

state’s politics in the 1880s along with John B. Gordon and Alfred Colquitt.

Reconstruction—Political Development cont.

• Joseph E. Brown’s political allegiance– Before 1860 he was a Democrat– During the Civil War he was a Confederate– In 1865 he was a Unionist– A Republican during the party’s time in power– Later, he returned to the Democrats.

Georgia After the War

• Just after the war, disorder was common.– Both blacks and whites, together with army

stragglers, often simply pillaged what they wanted.

Georgia After the War cont.

James Johnson, a Unionist provisional governor was appointed by President Johnson on June 17,1865.› He served until Charles J. Jenkins took over on

December 15, 1865.› Served in the 32 U.S. Congress (1851-53) as a Whig

representative.› He opposed secession› He did not participate in the Civil War › As governor he called for the election of delegates to a

state convention

Constitutional Convention of 1865

• Began on the fourth Wednesday in October 1865.

• Most of the state’s previous leaders were excluded from the convention as they either had yet to receive a presidential pardon, take the amnesty oath, or both.

Constitutional Convention of 1865 cont.

• Governor Johnson supported President Johnson’s reconstruction.

• The convention thus repealed (not made null and void as required) the state ordinance of secession, abolished slavery, and repudiated the state’s $18 million war debt.

• Ratified the Thirteenth Amendment on December 9, 1865.


The Constitution of 1865 (considered to be the work of carpetbaggers and scalawags) made few changes from the Confederate Constitution of 1861.

Major changes included› Prohibited slavery› Limited the governor to two successive terms› Allowed the legislature to select judges to both the Supreme

Court and the superior courts› Allowed for universal white male suffrage (no disqualifications

for Confederate service)› Black Codes

Prohibited interracial marriage Not allowed to serve on juries Not allowed to testify against whites


• The general election produced a new governor—Governor Charles Jones Jenkins (1865-1868)

• The election also produced new legislature which elected Alexander H. Stephens, former Vice President of the Confederacy and Herschel V. Johnson, a former Confederate senator as Georgia’s two U.S. Senators (both opposed secession).

The Constitution of 1868 Governor Jenkins was convinced that military

rule in the South was unconstitutional.› He refused to cooperate with the Radical

Republicans, extend civil rights to African Americans, and punish Confederate leaders.

In 1868 Congress ordered Georgia to write a new constitution to incorporate the Fourteenth Amendment and male African American suffrage.

The Constitution of 1868 cont.

When General George Meade, commander of the U.S. Third Military District, ordered the state to pay the $40,000 cost of the convention, Jenkins objected, pointing out that the legislature had not authorized such an expenditure.

Jenkins believed that since the federal government had called for the convention, it ought to pay for it.

General Meade ordered Jenkins removed from office.

The Constitution of 1868 cont.

• In leaving the Governor’s Mansion in Milledgeville, Jenkins carried with him $400,000 in state funds, the seal of the Executive Department, and the executive records of his term of office.

• In January 1872, with Georgia finally in “safe” hands, Jenkins returned all of the state property intact to Governor James M. Smith.

Georgia’s Provisional Governor Appointed by General Meade, Brigadier General

Thomas Ruger served as provisional governor of Georgia from January 13-July 4, 1868.

Ruger made convict-lease a practice in Georgia when acting on an 1866 statute that gave the governor discretionary power to lease convicts and relieve the state of prison expenses.› He leased 100 prisoners to William A. Fort of Rome

for work on railroad construction.

Governor Rufus B. Bullock (1868-1871)

The new legislature met on July 4, 1868, ratifying the Fourteenth Amendment.

The legislature elected Joshua Hill and Dr. H.V. Miller (of Rome) to the U.S. Senate over the objectives of Georgia’s first Republican governor, Rufus B. Bullock who took office on July 4, 1868.

Bullock could not control the legislature and over his objections, expelled its African American members (3 senators and 29 house representatives) in September.

Governor Rufus B. Bullock cont. The Democrats, the old planter leadership, most of

the legislature, and the Ku Klux Klan all opposed Bullock as governor.

The presidential election in November had Georgia going to Democrat Horatio Seymour due in large part to KKK threats and violence.

In December, Governor Bullock asked for military rule in Georgia to be reinstated.› Congress added the stipulation that Georgia also ratify

the Fifteenth Amendment before being readmitted to the Union.

Governor Rufus B. Bullock cont. After March 1869, Georgia’s congressmen were

excluded on a technicality, her senators were not seated, and the army was again given jurisdiction over the state with General Alfred H. Terry in command.

The legislature that convened in January 1870 was more to Bullock’s liking.› With the assistance of the military, the black

members were restored and Bullock’s critics were purged.

› The legislature then approved the Fifteenth Amendment.

Governor Rufus B. Bullock cont.

• On July 15, 1870, Congress decided that Georgia had been chastised sufficiently and now was entitled to representation.

• With the seating of Senators Hill and Miller and the congressional delegation, Georgia was again officially in the Union.

• Bullock, who barely held power with the support of federal troops, could not remain in office without them.

Governor Rufus B. Bullock cont.

• The election of large Democratic majorities in both houses of the legislature convinced Bullock that when the legislature convened in November 1871, its first order of business would be his impeachment.

• To avoid that disgrace he secretly resigned on October 23 and fled the state.

The President of the Senate Assumes the Governorship

Benjamin F. Conley of Augusta and an old ally of Bullock, as president of the Senate, assumed the governorship.

The Democrats, on doubtful constitutional grounds, rammed through a law, over Conley’s veto, calling for a special election in December 1871, to fill the remaining portion of Bullock’s term, which ended on January 1, 1873.

The Governorship cont. In a special convention, James M. Smith, newly

elected speaker of the House was nominated by the Democrats.

Smith, a Columbus lawyer who had opposed secession but later served in the Confederate army, was sworn in as governor on January 12, 1872.

With the Democrats in control of both houses of the legislature, Georgia was now “redeemed” with Radical Reconstruction a thing of the past.

Governor James M. Smith (1872-1877)

• Enlisted at the outbreak of the Civil War in Georgia’s Volunteer Infantry.

• Rose to the rank of colonel before receiving a wound (serious enough to make him unfit for military service) at Cold Harbor in June 1862.

• Served as a member of the Confederate Congress from May 2, 1864 until March 8, 1865.

Governor James M. Smith (1872-1877) cont.

• Elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in December 1871.

• Nominated for governor by acclamation to finish Bullock’s unexpired term.

• Elected in 1872 to serve a four-year term.

Minority Influence After the “redeemers” took control of the

legislature, African American numbers and influence waned in the Georgia General Assembly until they were a nullity.

At the local level there were black public office holders but they were usually minor ones.

By the 1872 election, only four African Americans were elected to the Georgia legislature (all in the House).

Bourbon Democrats

• “Bourbon” comes from a French ruling dynasty known for its conservatism.

• The term was first used by Radical Republicans as a slur against those who opposed Congressional Reconstruction.

• Bourbons were southerners who had “learned nothing and forgot nothing” from the Civil War.

Bourbon Democrats cont. Bourbons were mostly composed of old Whigs

and Democrats. Almost all accepted the end of slavery

› Some accepted it as a mixed blessing They landed the Confederacy and the “Lost

Cause,” usually for political gain. As the promoters of the “New South,” they

sought to “Yankeefy” Georgia (and the South) with commerce and industry leaving agriculture behind in terms of importance.

Bourbon Democrats cont.

• The “little man” (usually the farmer) became the forgotten man of Georgia, except at election time.

• The old fear of African American rule was raised to keep white men in line.

• Economic coercion and intimidation caused African Americans to vote Democratic or terror tactics kept them from voting at all.

Bourbon Democrats cont.

• From 1873 through 1878, Georgia’s Bourbon Democrats (like the rest of the nation) focused on the depression brought by the Panic of 1873 causing them to have little hope for progress in creating the “New South.”

Independent Candidates

• The modern “Independent” movement began in 1874 when Dr. William H. Felton was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia’s “Bloody Seventh” District of 14 counties in North Georgia (includes Bartow, Chattooga, Floyd, and Polk).

• He ran against the “Atlanta ring” championing the small farmer.

Independent Candidates cont. Felton was re-elected in 1876. Following the election, many Republicans

turned their support to Independent candidates who now became the only threat to complete Bourbon control.

In the election of 1878, Dr. Felton was re-elected to Congress and joined by two more Independents, Henry Parsons from the 4th District and Emory Speer from the 9th District.

Independent Candidates cont. The years of 1878-1882 represented the height

of the Independent revolt. In 1880 Dr. Felton lost his bid for a fourth term

in the U.S. Congress. In 1882 no Independent won election in Georgia. Independents had attempted to run former

Confederate Vice President Alexander H. Stephens until the Democrats wooed him to their side, effectively ending the Independent movement in Georgia.

The Constitution of 1877

• The Constitutional Convention met in Atlanta during the summer of 1877.

• The Constitution of 1868 was more in keeping with Bourbon beliefs than the one that replaced it in 1877.

• Many Bourbons as well as other Georgians continued to view the Constitution of 1868 as “the handiwork of negroes, thieves, and Yankees.”

The Constitution of 1877 cont. No African American delegates were chosen. Since the Bourbons had not favored the convention, it

resulted in the anti-Bourbon and conservative agricultural interests, taking the commanding leadership role.

The Constitution of 1877 reduced the authority of the state government (especially the executive and judiciary branches) while increasing the power and influence of the sparsely populated rural communities.

The Constitution was an ill-suited document for the needs of a modern state and numerous amendments were added.

Governor Alfred H. Colquitt (1877-1882)

• Colquitt was one-third of the “Bourbon Triumvirate” along with John B. Gordon and Joseph E. Brown.

• Together the three men dominated the governorship and the two U.S. Senate seats for most of the period from 1876-1890.

John B. Gordon (1886-1890)

• With the possible exception of Nathan Bedford Forrest, Gordon is regarded as the greatest untrained soldier produced by the Confederacy.

• Reputedly was the head of the Ku Klux Klan in Georgia.

• U.S. Senator from 1873-1880

John B. Gordon (1886-1890) cont.

• With Henry Grady of the Atlanta Journal Constitution as his campaign manager, Gordon was elected governor without opposition in 1886 and was reelected in 1888.

• As governor he attempted to reform the convict-lease system.

• Reelected to the U.S. Senate 1891-1897

The Farmers’ Alliance takes control of state politics in the 1890s

• In 1887, a third challenge to Bourbon, Democratic control

• Was first founded in Texas and by the mid-1880s, the Alliance had spread throughout the South and West

• The Alliance sought by cooperative marketing arrangements and the spread of scientific methods of agriculture to improve the economic plight of the farmer

The Farmers’ Alliance cont.

• The Alliance realized early that only political power for the farmer was going to lead to improvement for his lot.

• There was also a Colored Alliance—a separate political party was not the answer–for the obvious reason of fear that it would leave the Negro holding the balance of power.

The Farmers’ Alliance cont. White farmers set out to capture control of the

Democratic party, or at least make sure that the party’s candidates measured up to Alliance principles.› This meant a program of increased state and federal

regulation of monopolies› A federal sub-treasury or crop support plan› More equitable distribution of the tax burden› More and better public schools› Abolition of the convict lease system› Better regulated and more honest elections, among

other demands

The Farmers’ Alliance cont. By 1891 the Alliance had captured control of the

Democratic party in Georgia Though the Democratic party had only absorbed

the Alliance, whose members, when they realized that fact, fell out among themselves over the question of joining a national, separate party, the Populists.

The fight between this new party and the Democratic would dominate the decade of the 1890s and also see the Negro restored to a significant, if not major role in Georgia politics.

William Jonathan Northen (1890-1894)

Failing health forced him out of teaching in 1874 Retired to his 800 acre farm and began the

rigorous study of agriculture Rather than raising cotton, he specialized in

dairying and breeding horses and pigs and soon became recognized as an expert on agricultural matters

His success convinced him that diversification and scientific farming would solve the plight of Georgia’s farmers

William Jonathan Northen (1890-1894) cont.

• Active in numerous farm organizations, he served as president of the prestigious Georgia State Agricultural Society from 1886 to 1890

• Northen had gained a popular following in state politics, having served three terms in the Georgia General Assembly, first in the House in 1877-1878 and 1880-1881 and then in the Senate in 1884-1885.


• He became a candidate for governor in 1890• Regarded as “progressive but safe” by

business interests, he gained the backing of the Georgia Farmers Alliance and the Atlanta Constitution

• Was elected without opposition• Two years later he won a second term


• In 1890 the farmers regained control of Georgia’s government in dramatic fashion.

• In addition to endorsing the governor and the entire congressional delegation, the Farmers Alliance also backed three-fourths of the senators and four-fifths of the representatives in the General Assembly


The “farmers” assembly passed several significant bills under Northen’s leadership.› It adopted the thirteen-hour day for railroad employees› Declared Labor Day a holiday› Expanded the inspection of fertilizer and cottonseed

meal› Extended the school term› Increased the number of schools› Established an agricultural and mechanical college for

black students at Savannah› Established a normal school for training white teachers

Birth and Growth of Populism

• In 1887 the Farmers Alliance arrived in Georgia

• During the next three years the Alliance set up local cooperative stores and a state exchange through which members could buy farm supplies at reduced prices

Birth and Growth of Populism cont.

• As economic conditions worsened by 1890, the Alliance turned increasingly to political reforms.– Free and unlimited coinage of silver– Economy in government– Prohibition of alien ownership of lands– Abolition of the convict lease system– Government ownership of railroads, telegraphs,

and telephones


• Alliance candidates won six of Georgia’s ten congressional seats and such a majority in both houses of the General Assembly that it came to called “the Farmers’ Legislature”

• Those measures fell short of fulfilling the hopes of many hard-pressed farmers who had expected more from “the Farmers’ Legislature”


• The failure of the Alliance legislature to enact stronger reforms contributed to the organization’s demise

• By the fall of 1891 the order had lost most of its strength

• Yet the Alliance had increased awareness among farmers of their common problems and had presented a set of reforms that many believed could help them


Since the Democrats had failed to enact those reforms, some Alliance men concluded that they could achieve them only through a third party

The state’s most important Populist leader was a first-term congressman, Thomas E. Watson, a young man who rejected the New South creed of Henry Grady and instead believed in an agrarian order for the South


Although Watson never joined the Alliance, he supported its platform in 1890 when he ran successfully for Congress

Once in office he remained loyal to Alliance principles and actively worked for every plank in the order’s platform

Alliance programs called for a graduated income tax, low-interest loans for farmers, an eight-hour day for labor, and the direct election of senators.


Populism represented a movement of small landowners, who did not strive to overthrow the prevailing political and economic system but wanted to ease some of the major problems that they had long experienced.

With the Democrats facing their first major challenge in two decades, the election of 1892 became an exciting one that sometimes resulted in open violence


In addition, there were many potential black voters, and both Populists and Democrats fought for their support.

The Democrats accused the Populists of endangering white supremacy.

Watson asked blacks to vote for him on the basis of common interest.

Watson also condemned lynching, at the time a major problem in Georgia, and declared that black and white people should be allowed freely and have their votes counted honestly.

Watson did not, however, advocate social equality between blacks and whites.


Other white Populists followed Watson’s lead in appealing to black voters.

The Democrats responded to the Populist challenge by accusing them of being in secret alliance with the Republicans and of working to bring blacks into political power.

The Democratic campaign became so intense that it sometimes led to Populists “being turned out of churches, driven from their homes, and refused credit” at stores.


In some places on the night before elections, Democrats sponsored revelries for Negro plantation hands at which they served barbecue, whiskey, and beer by the barrel.

The following day Democrats marched blacks to the polls in squads and had them vote repeatedly.

Occasionally the Democrats resorted to physical violence and possibly killed as many as fifteen black people during the election of 1892.


• Most blacks who voted, voted Democratic.• Under Governor Northen’s administration the

Democrats had established a state college for Negroes, and the governor himself had consistently denounced lynching and called for penal reforms.

• Most Populists—including Tom Watson—went down in defeat in 1892.


• The new party’s prospects remained slim until the following year, when a serious economic depression hit the nation.

• As the depression deepened, Populist strength grew.

• The depression drove more white voters to the Populist side.

• The third party also won more black voters.


• In the 1894 elections intimidation and fraud again played a decisive role in accounting for Tom Watson’s defeat.

• The Populists captured 44.5% of the vote and carried 46 of the state’s 137 counties.

• The Populists elected five state senators and forty-seven representatives.


• During the next two years developments inside and outside the state undermined the entire Populist movement.

• Between the summer of 1895 and 1896 the Georgia Democratic party shifted its position on the highly emotional money question and endorsed the free and unlimited coinage of silver.


On the national level, those believing that the free and unlimited coinage of silver could end the depression and restore prosperity won control of the Democratic party by 1896.

The Democrats stole the most attractive plank in the Populist platform.

The Democrats selected William Jennings Bryan, a man of immense popularity throughout rural America, as their presidential nominee.


The Populists also nominated Bryan for the presidency.

They could not, however, accept the Democratic vice presidential nominee, Arthur Sewall, a banker.

Instead they nominated Tom Watson for that office.

Watson’s nomination did not offset the fact that by supporting the Democratic presidential nominee, the Populists abdicated their role as a third party.


The Georgia Populists adopted a platform similar to those of the past, the major difference being they now endorsed prohibition.

For the governorship they nominated Seaborn Wright, a lawyer from Rome.

The Democrats renominated Governor Atkinson and accepted the Populist challenge by supporting local option in place of statewide prohibition.


Many whites who were strongly attracted to Bryan and free silver simply voted the straight Democratic ticket.

As a result of these developments, the Populists lost fifteen counties that they had won in 1894.

Their representation in the General Assembly dropped from fifty-three to twenty-nine.

The party never regained its lost strength.

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