1. RECONSTRUCTION
Chapter 12

2. Lincoln’s Plan for Reconstruction
1865 – 1877: Period of Reconstruction
Lincoln favored a lenient Reconstruction policy
December 1863, Lincoln announced his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction
Lincoln’s plan angered the Radical Republicans, led by Thaddeus Stevens and Charles Sumner
Radicals responded to the Ten-Percent Plan by passing the Wade-Davis Bill
Lincoln vetoed the Wade-Davis Bill

3. Johnson’s Plan
Lincoln’s assassination left Andrew Johnson in charge of the Reconstruction controversy
May 1865, Johnson announced his plan – Presidential Reconstruction:
Each state would have to withdraw its secession
Swear allegiance to the Union
Annul Confederate war debts
Ratify the 13th amendment
The Radicals were angry that the plan ignored former slaves in three areas: land, voting rights, and prosecution under the law
Southerners supported Johnson’s reconstruction plans
The remaining Confederate states quickly agreed to Johnson’s terms
Dec. 1865, newly elected Southern legislators arrived in Washington

4. Presidential Reconstruction Comes to a Standstill
Congress refused to admit the newly elected Southern legislators
Moderate Republicans sought to push new laws to fix the weaknesses they saw in Johnson’s plan
Feb – Congress voted to continue and enlarge the Freedman’s Bureau
Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866:
Gave African Americans citizenship
Forbade passing of black codes
Black codes restored many of the restrictions of slavery
Johnson shocked everyone by vetoing both the Freedman’s Bureau and the Civil Rights Act

5. Congressional Reconstruction
Moderate and Radical Republicans came together against Johnson
Congress drafted the 14th Amendment
Congress overrode Johnson’s veto on the Civil Rights Act
Johnson urged Southerners to reject the 14th Amendment

6. 1868 Congressional Elections
Johnson went on tour with Ulysses S. Grant to urge people to support Presidential Reconstruction
Race riots in New Orleans and Memphis resulted in over 80 African American deaths
Republicans gained 2/3 majority in Congress
Radicals and Moderated joined to pass the Reconstruction Act of 1867
Didn’t recognize state governments formed under Lincoln or Johnson’s plans
Divided other ten former Confederate states into 5 military districts
Voters would elect delegates to draft new state constitutions
States needed to guarantee African American men the right to vote and ratify the 14th Amendment to be readmitted to the Union
Johnson vetoed the Reconstruction Plan of 1867

7. Johnson’s Impeachment
Radical leaders looked for ways to impeach Johnson
March 1867 – Congress passed the Tenure of Office Act
Johnson fired Secretary of War Edwin Stanton
The House brought 11 charges of impeachment against Johnson
March – May 1868, Johnson’s trial before the Senate

8. Ulysses S. Grant Elected
Democrats nominated Horatio Seymour to run in the 1868 presidential election
Republicans nominated Ulysses S. Grant
After the election, the Radicals introduced the Fifteenth Amendment
Amendment ratified in 1870
Congress passed the Enforcement Act of 1870

9. Conditions in the Postwar South
Congressional Reconstruction reigned supreme – by 1870 all Confederate states had been admitted back to the Union
Southern states faced the challenge of physically rebuilding a battle scarred region
Economic effects ravaged the South
Population was also devastated
Republican governments began many public works projects to help
To raise money, taxes were raised

10. Politics in the Postwar South
Different groups in the Republican Party in the South often had conflicting goals
Democrats called white Southerners who joined the Republicans scalawags
Democrats called Northerners who moved to the South after the war carpetbaggers
African-Americans made up the largest group of Southern Republicans

11. Political Differences
Conflicting goals among Republican Party members in the South led to disunity in the party
Many white Southerners refused to accept blacks’ new status and resisted the idea of equal rights
White Southerners also had to accept the day-to-day involvement of Northerners in their lives

12. Former Slaves Face Many Challenges
Many slaves were cautious about testing their new freedoms
African Americans began to travel for the first time legally
From 1865 – 1870 the African American population of the ten largest Southern cities doubled
Many began to search for their family members throughout the country
The Freedmen’s Bureau worked to reunite families

13. Education and Volunteer Groups
1870 – nearly 80% of freed African Americans over the age of 20 were illiterate
By 1870, African Americans had spent over $1 million on education
Some white Southerners responded violently to African American education
After the war, many African Americans founded their own churches, usually Baptist or Methodist
African Americans also formed thousands of volunteer organizations

14. Politics and Laws for African Americans
African American involvement in politics grew rapidly
African American officeholders still remained the minority in the South
Hiram Revels was only one of 16 (of 125) African American Southerners elected to Congress
African Americans proposed bills to desegregate transportation
African Americans tended to focus more on building up their community than on total integration

15. Changes in the Southern Economy
1865, General Sherman had promised “40 acres and a mule” to freed slaves who joined his army
Thaddeus Stevens called for the government to confiscate plantations and to redistribute part of the land to former slaves
1866 – Homestead Act passed
Planters claimed to have the plantation system work, they needed almost complete control over their laborers
Planters faced a labor shortage
Many former slaves worked in mills or factories

16. Sharecropping and Tenant Cropping
Without their own land, many former slaves were forced to sign contracts with planters
Sharecropping became widely used
Tenant Farming also became popular
Tenant Farming rarely worked in practice

17. Cotton No Longer King
During the war, demand for Southern cotton began to drop
The agricultural problems led many to try and diversify the Southern economy
Falling cotton prices and mounting debts caused many Southern banks to fail
Many whites began to take out frustration on African Americans

18. Opposition to Reconstruction
The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) started in Tennessee in 1866
1868 – 1871, the Klan killed thousands of men, women, and children, and burned schools, churches and property
The Klan also wanted to take way the Republicans political power in the South
Southern Democrats openly used violence to intimidate Republicans voting in Mississippi, (1875), and Florida, South Carolina, and Louisiana (1876)

19. Further Opposition
The Klan also tried to stop African Americans from gaining economic progress
Some white Southerners refused to hire or do business with African Americans who were revealed to have voted Republican
Congress passed the Enrollment Acts in 1870 and 1871
1882, Supreme Court ruled the 1871 Enforcement Act unconstitutional
The Amnesty Act greatly reduced Republican power

20. Scandals and Money Crises Hurt Republicans
Grant had no political experience and hired mostly friends to his cabinet
After many scandals, the Liberal Republican Party was formed
The Liberal Republicans chose Horace Greeley as their candidate
Although Greeley didn’t win, the Party greatly weakened the Radicals’ hold over the Republican Party
Corruption in Grant’s administration continued
As corruption continued, Grant lost more support, and Northerners were distracted from the problems in the South

21. Judicial and Popular Support Fades
The Panic of 1873 and a currency crisis further distracted Northerners from the South
The Supreme Court issued a series of decisions that undermined both the 14th and 15th Amendments
Slaughterhouse Cases of 1873
U.S. v. Cruikshank in 1876
U.S. v. Reese
As both judicial and public support decreased, Republicans began to back away from their commitment to Reconstruction

22. Democrats “Redeem” the South
1869 – 1875, period of redemption for Democrats in the South
1876, Republicans chose Rutherford B. Hayes to run for president
The Democrats chose Samuel J. Tilden from NY as their candidate
Tilden won the popular vote, but fell 1 electoral vote shy of the number needed
The House of Representatives held the power to approve election results
The Compromise of 1877 granted the Democrats:
Withdrawal of federal troops in Louisiana and SC
Democrats were given money to build a railroad from Texas to the West Coast
Hayes had to appoint a conservative Southerner to his cabinet
The Democrats achieved their long-desired goal of home rule
The compromise meant the end of Reconstruction

23. Home Rule and the Legacy of Reconstruction
Reconstruction ended without much real progress in the battle against discrimination
Radical Republicans made several mistakes in their effort to help former slaves
The Thirteenth Amendment was a major success, and the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments were also very important