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The Reconstruction Era Mrs. Excell Intro to Reconstruction April 14th, 1865- Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth @ Ford Theatre – Andrew Johnson (VP) succeeded Lincoln Presidential Reconstruction Plan – A state could rejoin the Union once it had: written a new state constitution Elected a new Govenor Repealed its act of secession Canceled its war debt Ratified the 13th Amendment (abolishing slavery) End of Slavery “Freedmen”- African Americans who had been set free from slavery Positives of being set free: – New name and a new life – Marriage that was legal and forever – Reuniting scattered family Negatives of being set free: – Began new lives with nothing End of Slavery continued… Freedman’s Bureau established by Congress – Assisted former slaves – Provided food, medical care for both blacks and whites in the South – Built schools Forty Acres and a Mule – Congressman Stevens attempted to get Congress to break up plantations and give it to freedmen Congress voted NO End of Slavery continued… The Black Codes: – Laws passed to control former slaves Spelled out the rights of freedman Help planters find workers to replace their slaves – Required freedman to work or they were arrested and hired out anyway – Limited freedmen to farm work or jobs with few skills; no trade jobs or businesses Kept freedmen at the bottom of the Social Pyramid – Segregation in public places – Kids could not attend public schools Congressional Reconstruction By 1865- Johnson felt that all Southern states were ready to return to the Union – Congress did not agree. They felt that the Union needed to: Extend the life of the freedmen’s Bureau Establish the Civil Rights Act of 1866 (gave full rights as a citizen to African Americans – Johnson vetoed their suggestions and passed the 14th Amendment (declaring former slaves to be citizens with full rights) Congressional Reconstruction continued… Military Reconstruction Act of 1867 – Divided the South into five military districts, each governed by a general who was backed by federal troops – Southerners who had supported the Confederacy were denied the right to Vote Southerners not so happy about the president’s new power over them so… – Command of the Army Act: limited the presidents power over the army – Tenure of Office Act- barred him from firing certain federal officials without Senate’s permission Johnson ruled the two acts UNCONSTITUTIONAL and proved his power Congressional Reconstruction continued… Because of Johnson’s push-back, House of Representatives tried to impeach Johnson for “contempt, ridicule, and disgrace.” – Johnson was not impeached BUT lost his power MEANWHILE: Sharecropping became a means of survival – African Americans wanted land but had no money or jobs to get money – White farmers had land but no one to farm it and no money to pay for it to be farmed SO…. White farmers divided land into small plots & rented plots and African American farmers rented land and paid for the land by working it – Sharecropping led to a lifetime of poverty and debt for African Americans Used debt to by tools, seeds, etc and never made enough off the land to pay the debt back Southern Reconstruction 1867- Federal Army returned to the South and started registering people to vote – Freedmen, white Southerners who opposed the war, and Northerners who moved South after the war African Americans joined the Republican Party – Largest group in the South White Southerners opposing the War – Second largest group – Mostly poor white farmers, became known as Scalawags Northerners who moved South after war – 3rd largest group, became known as “Carpet baggers” Southern Reconstruction continued… 1868 Election – Ulysses S. Grant for the Republicans Supporter of Reconstruction Promises to protect the rights of African Americans in the south – Horatio Seymour for the Democrats Wanted to end reconstruction Wanted to return south to traditional WHITE leaders – GRANT WINS!!!! Southern Reconstruction continued… 15th Amendment- urged by Grant – “Citizens right to vote shall not be denied… on account of race, color, and previous condition of servitude.” Because of the new right to vote states elected new delegates (1/4 elected were African America) – Created new state constitutions that were very progressive Southern Reconstruction continued… New State Governments – Republican Governments (1/2 were African Americans) – Ratified 14 and 15 Amendment – By 1870 all states rejoined the Union Started working on damage cause by the war (damage on roads, bridges, railroads, schools and hospitals) Taxes increased up to 400% due to need to rebuild – African Americans in office ½ officeholders- 22 in State Congress, 20 in the House of Representatives, and 2 in Senate End of Reconstruction Southerners resented Reconstruction governments Tax payers blamed increased taxes on corruption – White Terrorism Tried winning black voters with charm, then legal tricks to keep them from voting, and then with terrorism and violence – Ku Klux Klan (KKK)- dressed in long hooded robes and armed with guns; worked at night, used methods from threats to beatings to tar and feathering, to murder. End of Reconstruction continued… Enforcement Acts (1870 and 1871) – Illegal to prevent another person from voting by bribery, force, or scare tactics GRANTS ARMY ENFORCED THIS Amnesty Act of 1872 – Amnesty (forgiveness) Allowed most former Confederates to vote once again Hayes (R) succeeded Grant – Forced to remove all troops from the South due to back door deals – Ended Reconstruction Reconstruction Reversed “New South” with textile mills, factories, and cities – Textile mills increased in South Losing Ground in Education – Old southern Democrats regained control and started cutting spending on education Funding dried up so schools shut down OR those that stayed open had a fee Losing Voting Ground – Voters pay a poll tax- which most African Americans could not afford – Made voters pay tax or pass literacy test Whites “grandfathered in”- father or grandfather voted on Jan. 1, 1867 THEN they could vote without tax or test Reconstruction Reversed continued… Drawing a “color-line’: – Established Jim Crown Laws enforcing segregation of blacks and whites in the South after the Civil War. “Jim Crow” was a black character from entertainer's at in the mid-1800s Plessy V Ferguson – African Americans argued that the Jim Crow Laws violated the 14th Amendment Homer Plessy, arrested for refusing to obey a Jim Crow Law – Plessy lost – More Jim Crow Laws passed Jim Crow Laws (White Only Labels) – – – – Blacks and whites attended different schools Played at different parks Separate theatre sections Back of bus Responding to Segregation Open Protest – Attacked by whites – Lynched – Murdered (often hung) Migration – Left South Some to Africa founding Liberia (liberty) by freed American slaves – Northern Cities Competed for jobs with recent immigrants from Europe – West Worked as cowboys or as India fighters Responding to Segregation continued… Self Help – Worked hard in families, churched, and communities to improve their lives Banded together to build schools and colleges for black children Literacy rose rapidly – 1865- 5% read – 1900- 50% read and wrote – Started businesses