Download Study Guide: Reconstruction

Study Guide: Reconstruction
Chapter 17
Section 1: Reconstruction Plans
1. Define all the key terms on pg. 500. (Yes, I want you to define all of them.)
2. In what condition did the Civil War leave much of the South?
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Towns & Cities were ruined,
•
plantations burned,
•
roads, bridges and railroads destroyed
3. What were the three main plans for reconstruction? Fill in the chart below describing the provisions of
each of those plans and identifying their sponsors.
Plan
Sponsor
Lincoln
10 Percent Plan
Provisions
a. 10% of voters had to take an oath of loyalty to the
Union
b. Then the state could form a new government
c. The state had to adopt a new constitution
d. Constitution had to ban slavery
e. Amnesty – pardon to all white Southerners except
Confederate leaders.
Congress
Wade-Davis Bill
(not signed by Lincoln)
a. Majority of white males in a state had to swear loyalty to
the Union.
b. Each state holds a Constitutional Convention – only
white males who
swore they had never fought against the Union could
vote for delegates
c. Former Confederates were denied the right to hold
public office
d. Convention had to adopt a new State Constitution that
banned slavery
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“Restoration”
(a. k. a “Presidential
Reconstruction”)
President
a. Most Southerners would be granted amnesty once they
Andrew Johnson swore an oath of loyalty to the Union.
b. Confederate officials and wealthy landowners could be
pardoned if they applied personally to the president
c. He appointed governors to Southern states and required
them to hold elections for state constitutional conventions.
d. Only whites who had sworn loyalty to the government
could be in the conventions.
e. No African Americans could vote or have equal rights
f. Each southern state should decide what to do about freed
people.
What do these plans tell you about attitudes toward the South?
Lincoln’s plan was the most fair, the other plans wanted to punish the South. Johnson resented the
slaveholders – felt like they had caused the war.
4. What was the Freedman’s Bureau? Describe its accomplishments.
 helped African Americans make the transition to freedom
•
Distributed food and clothing
•
Provided medical services that lowered the death rate among freed men and women
•
Provided education – established schools (most teachers were from the North)
Established African American colleges.
5. Who assassinated Lincoln? When, where, how?
John Wilkes Boothe
Lincoln was attending a play at Ford’s Theater. John Wilkes Booth entered the President’s balcony box and
shot Lincoln in the back of the head. Booth leapt to the stage and escaped. Lincoln died a few hours later at a
nearby home. He never regained consciousness.
6. Describe the conspiracy Booth was a part of, and the consequences for its members.
Booth was a part of a small group that plotted to kill high officials in the US government.
7. Who became President? Describe his background, his political beliefs, and how he disappointed Radical
Republicans.
Andrew Johnson – they thought he was too lenient
8. What was the Thirteenth Amendment? Freed all slaves
9. When/Why did Johnson declare the “Restoration” almost complete?
By the end of 1865, all former Confederate states except Texas had formed new governments and were ready
to rejoin the Union.
10. Why do you think both Lincoln and the Radical Republicans excluded former Confederate officers from
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their Reconstruction plans?
Because they were afraid they would try to overthrow the government, and influence votes in Congress
11. Do you think President Johnson’s early ties to the South influenced his treatment of African Americans
in his Reconstruction plans? Explain why/why not.
Yes – he believed in states’ rights and that they should control many of their own decision. He had no desire
to help African Americans, so did not include them in his plans.
12. Look at the graphic on pg. 500 about Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address. What attitude is suggested?
Lincoln’s face is serious – commitment to reuniting the country. Opening line “with malice toward none” –
didn’t want to make any more trouble than they already had.
Section 2: Radicals in Control
Black codes – laws passed in the South just after the Civil War aimed at controlling freedmen & enabling
plantation owners to exploit African American workers.
Override – to overturn or defeat, as a bill proposed in Congress
Impeach – to formally charge a public official with misconduct in office
13. Describe post-Civil War Southern politics. List 2 ways they violated Lincoln’s Reconstruction plan.
Southern states created new governments that met President Johnson’s rules. New representatives
were elected to Congress, and over a dozen of them had been high-ranking Confederate officials.
Confederate leaders were not to hold public office, treatment of African Americans in the South was not
improving
14. What were black codes? What was their purpose? Give some examples.
Laws that controlled freed men and women and let plantation owners exploit African American workers.
Trampled the rights of African Americans
Some laws let local officials arrest and fine unemployed African Americans and make them work for white
employers to pay off their fines.
Laws banned African Americans from owning or renting farms.
One law let white take orphaned African American children as unpaid apprentices.
15. What affect did post-Civil War Southern politics, terrorist actions against African Americans, and the
black codes have on Congress?
Congress extended the life of the Freedmen’s Bureau and gave it new powers. They also passed the Civil
Rights Act of 1866, grating full citizenship to African Americans and gave the federal government power to
intervene in state affairs to protect their rights (overturned the “black codes”)
16. Describe the expanded powers of the Freedman’s Bureau.
Extended the life of the Freedmen’s Bureau and they could now set up special courts to prosecute individuals
charged with violating the rights of African Americans. Provided African Americans with a form of justice
where they could serve on juries.
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17. Describe the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and its affects on black codes and Dred Scott.
Gave full citizenship to African Americans and gave the federal government the power to intervene in state
affairs to protect their rights. The law overturned the black codes. It also contradicted the 1857 Dred Scott
decision of the Supreme Court (had ruled that African Americans were not citizens)
18. What did Johnson do? What reason(s) did he give?
He vetoed both, saying the federal government was overstepping its proper authority. Said laws were
unconstitutional because they were passed by a Congress that did not include representatives from all states.
19. What was Congress’s response? This begins “Congressional Reconstruction.”
Republicans in Congress had enough votes to override the veto, so the bills became laws.
20. What did the Fourteenth Amendment do? To whom did it not apply? Briefly describe its impact.
Granted full citizenship to all individuals born in the US. Since most slaves were born here, they became
citizens. Every citizen is entitled to equal protection under the law, and no one can take away a citizen’s life,
liberty and property without due process of law
21. Radical Reconstruction: List its parts.
a. Creation of new government in the 10 Southern states that had not ratified the 14 th amendment.
b. Divided the 10 Southern states into 5 military districts and placed each under th authority of a
military commander until new governments were formed.
c. Guaranteed African American males the right to vote in state elections.
d. Prevented former Confederate leaders from holding political office.
22. How long did it take states to be readmitted into the Union?
1868 – 7 states had been readmitted (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, N. and S. Carolina
1870 – Mississippi, Virginia, and Texas readmitted.
23. Why/how was Andrew Johnson impeached? Why wasn’t he removed from office?
A) Tenure of Office Act of March 1867 prohibited the president from removing government officials,
including members of his own cabinet, without the Senate’s approval. This violated the tradition that
presidents controlled their cabinets, and it threatened presidential power.
B) He was exercising his right to challenge laws he considered unconstitutional. They argued the impeachment
was politically motivated and contrary to the spirit of the Constitution. Johnson stayed in office until the end
of his term in March 1869 because the senate was one vote short on the 2 votes it took to impeach Johnson
24. Who was elected president in 1868? Why?
Ulysses S. Grant, a Republican. Grant was elected because he was a Civil War hero, and most voters supported
the Republican approach to Reconstruction. He won 214 of 294 electoral votes, and received most of the votes
of African Americans in the South.
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25. What did the Fifteenth Amendment do? Briefly describe its impact.
February 1869, Congress passed the 15 th Amendment, prohibiting the state and federal governments from
denying the right to vote to any male citizen because of “race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”
26. Look at the map on pg. 507. Which military reconstruction district was Texas part of? Who was the
commander?
5th Reconstruction District, Philip Sheridan - Commander
Section 3: The South During Reconstruction
27. Define all the key terms.
28. Which groups made up most of the Southern Republican Party?
 African Americans (overwhelmingly Republican)
 White Southerners (supported Republican policies)
 White settlers from the North
29. Who were Hiram Revels and Blanche K. Bruce?
 Revels – first African American Mississippi Senator, an ordained minister. During the Civil War he
had recruited African Americans for the Union army, started a school for freed African Americans in
St. Louis, MO, and served as a chaplain (minister) of an African American regiment in MS
 Bruce – African American senator from Mississippi. Former runaway slave, school teacher for
African Americans in Missouri. Superintendent of schools in MS
30. Why were “scalawags” and “carpetbaggers” resented?
Because they sided with the Republicans
31. Why was the Ku Klux Klan formed? Describe its activities. Why weren’t they punished?
a. They tried to prevent freed men and women from exercising their rights and to help white regain power.
b.They wore white sheets and hoods, went on “midnight rides”against African Americans, burned homes,
churches and schools. Murdered more than 150 people over 3 years. Tried to scare African Americans away
from voting – violence would increase before elections were held.
c. Even though laws were passed to try and stop the violence, most white Southerners wouldn’t tetify against
those who were attacking African Americans.
32. What improvements occurred due to Reconstruction efforts?
 Education improved for whites and African Americans.
33. How did public schools change?
 Many public school systems were created where they had not existed.
 Within a few years, over 50% of white children and about 40% of African American children were
enrolled in public schools.
 Northern missionary societies established academies offering advanced education for African
Americans (later became Morehouse College and Atlanta University)
34. How did sharecroppers’ lives compare to enslavement? Why was land ownership so important?
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It was only a little better than slavery. Land ownership was important because they wouldn’t have to sell all
their crops to the landowner – they could grow enough to feed their families and sell what was left.
Section 4: Change in the South
35. Define all key terms, except “cash crop.”
36. Why did Reconstruction activity and interest in Reconstruction and the South decline?
Because many believed it was time for the South to solve their own problems.
Old Radical leaders disappeared from the political scene
Racial prejudice in the North
37. What was “bayonet rule”?
It was the use of federal troops to support the Reconstruction governments. President Grant had sent them to
stop violence and enforce the law when necessary
38. What caused a split in the Republican Party in the early 1870s?
Corruption in Grant’s administration and the Reconstruction governments.
39. Who opposed Grant in the 1872 Election? Who were Grant’s supporters? Who won?
Horace Greeley
Grant’s supporters were conservative Republicans
Grant won
40. What was the Amnesty Act (1872)? Describe its effects.
The Amnesty Act pardoned most former Confederates
Almost all whit Southerners could vote and hold office again.
It changed the political balance in the South by restoring full rights to people who supported the Democratic
Party.
41. How did Democrats regain political power in the South?
A majority of the voters were white
42. How did they pressure whites to support Democratic Party members/policies? How did they attempt to
influence African Americans?
The KKK and other violent groups helped the Democrats take power by terrorizing Republican voters.
They used violence to persuade African Americans not to vote.
43. What other problems faced the Republican Party?
Corruption, scandals of unfair business deals, withholding public tax money and accepting bribes plagued
Republican politicians
44. How did the 1874 Congressional election results affect Reconstruction?
The Democrats gained control for the first time since the Civil War – this weakened Congress’ further
commitment to Reconstruction and protecting the rights of newly freed African Americans
45. Who became president in 1877?
Rutherford B. Hayes
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46. List the parts of the Compromise of 1877.
a) the new government would give more aid to the region
b) all remaining troops would be withdrawn from Southern states
c) Democrats promised to maintain African American rights.
47. Who were the “Redeemers”?
Democrats who had “redeemed” or saved, the South from Republican rule.
48. How and why did Southern industry and economy change after the Civil War?
The South developed new “industries” based on coal, iron, tobacco, cotton, lumber, and the region’s other
abundant resources.
49. What was the Bessemer process? What were the effects?
A method of inexpensively producing steel from iron.
This was the answer to industry’s need for a sturdy, workable metal.
By 1890 Southern mills produced nearly 20% of the nation’s iron and steel
50. How did Southern agriculture change?
Some plantations were broken up, but many large landowners kept control of their property. When the
estates were divided, it was used for sharecropping and tenant farming. Neither of these makes much money.
51. Discuss ways Southerners attempted to limit African American social and political power. Be specific.
Southern states required a “poll” tax – you had to pay to vote
Literacy tests – prove you could read before you could vote
Grandfather clauses kept African Americans from voting since they had no rights before the 15th
Amendment.
Jim Crow laws – separating of whites and blacks in almost all public places
52. Describe the impact of Reconstruction on the South, in terms of its successes and failures.
 Helped the South recover from the war and begin rebuilding the economy
 South was still a rural economy and very poor
 African Americans gained greater equality and began creating their own institutions.
 Biggest disappointment – did not give African Americans “true” freedom
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