The Civil War: Reconstruction
The economy in the North boomed as factories ran non-stop to meet the demands of the war. In the South, the economy collapsed. Their money became worthless and people were starving. They had many farms, but they grew cotton not food.
With the help of antislavery Democrats, Congress sent a constitutional amendment to the states for ratification. The Thirteenth Amendment banned slavery in the United States. Article XIII. Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States or any place subject to their jurisdiction. Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Unable to recover from the defeat at Gettysburg, Lee s battered Army of Virginia surrender to General Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, April 9, 1865.
Big Ideas: Presidents Lincoln & Johnson wanted to end the war with forgiveness instead of punishment. Many Republicans wanted to punish the South for starting the war and wanted to protect the rights of black people in the South.
With peace, came the problem of reconstruction, the process of bringing the South back into the United States. Lincoln s 10% Plan offered amnesty (pardon) to all Southerners who agreed to take an oath to the United States and accept an end to slavery.
Many republicans, such as Thaddeus Stevens, opposed Lincoln s amnesty plan. These Radical Republicans wanted tougher measures to prevent Confederates from taking part in government and to protect the rights of the newly freed African Americans.
In March of 1865, Congress established the Freedmen s Bureau headed by General Oliver Howard to assist African American refugees in the South. The Freedmen s Bureau helped former slaves find work, reunite families, and negotiated on their behalf with planters.
All hopes for a peaceful reconstruction died with Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865. Lincoln s death caused more people to side with Radical Republicans.
After Lincoln s death, Vice President Andrew Johnson became President. Johnson was a Tennessee Democrat who remained loyal to the Union during the war. Johnson, like Lincoln, was a moderate who did not favor punishing the South.
When white Southern voters elected former Confederate leaders to Congress, Republicans blamed Johnson. Republicans were also angered that southern legislatures had passed laws know as black codes which were designed to keep blacks in a slave-like condition.
To combat the black codes, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866. granted citizenship to all those born in the United States (except Native Americans) guaranteed the right of black Americans to own property demanded blacks be treated fairly in court President Johnson vetoed the bill, but the Republicans overrode his veto.
Radical Republicans also introduced the 14 th Amendment which: granted citizenship to all persons born in the US guaranteed due process provided for equal protection under the law
March 1867 Congress passed the Military Reconstruction Act which placed southern states under military jurisdiction to protect the rights of people and property. It also stated that Congress had to approve of each state s constitution before they could be readmitted to the Union.
Big Ideas: As Republicans gained more power, white southerners resorted to violent resistance. Eventually the nation grew tired of bickering over reconstruction and desired to move past the Civil War and focus on other issues.
Johnson did not run for reelection and General Grant was elected president in 1868. Grant won six southern states thanks to black voters who were protected by Union troops.
With their power secured, Republicans pushed passed the 15 th Amendment declaring that the right to vote shall not be denied due to race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Radical reconstruction allowed hundreds of thousands of blacks to participate in government for the first time.
Many former abolitionists flooded into the South to support reconstruction efforts. Many were elected into political office by black voters. Southerners hated this incursion and referred to them as carpetbaggers.
Black Americans were now allowed to vote and run for public office. 14 were elected to the House of Representatives 2 were elected to the Senate Senator Blanche Bruce of Mississippi Senator Hiram Revels of Mississippi
Southern Democrats who opposed reconstruction efforts formed secret resistance societies such as the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). The Klan terrorized blacks and white Republicans with violence and murder. Many government officials, including law enforcement and judges, were Klan members, making it nearly impossible to arrest or convict them for their crimes.
President Grant s second term was plagued by scandals and a deepening economic depression that helped Democrats take control of the Senate.
The 1876 election was the most controversial in US history. Rutherford B. Hayes (R) had 184 electoral votes to Samuel Tilden s (D) 165 with 20 votes in dispute from FL, LA, SC.
In the Compromise of 1877 Democrats agreed to recognize the votes for Hayes if he agreed to remove all federal troops from the South. The public was tired of reconstruction and wanted the government to move past the Civil War and focus on the economy.
The end of reconstruction meant that the hopes of black Americans would be put on hold for nearly 100 years. Many returned to working for their former masters as share-croppers. They worked the land in exchange they got to keep 1/2 to 1/3 of the crops they produced. The system forced many into a perpetual state of poverty.