1. Chapter 12: Reconstruction American History

2. Plans begin to unfold
The president and Congress grappled with the difficult tasks of Reconstruction, or rebuilding the country after the Civil War
plans began right after the Civil War began
In 1863, Lincoln issued the Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction
offered general amnesty, or pardon for all Southerners who took loyalty to the U.S. and accepted Union proclamation on slavery
The Radical Republicans, in opposition to Lincoln’s policies, had three goals:
prevent leaders of Confederacy from returning to power
wanted Republican Party to be an institution in the South
Help African Americans gain the right to vote

3. Wade-Davis Bill
Moderate Republicans caught in the mix between the radicals and Lincoln came up with a plan that supported both sides
Wade-Davis Bill
Required majority of white male Southerners to swear allegiance to the Union
Confederate state would then hold a constitutional convention to establish a new state government
Each convention would then abolish slavery, reject all debts, and deprive all Confederate officials and military leaders of the right to vote or hold office
Lincoln blocked the bill with a pocket veto, or waiting until the session of Congress expired without signing the bill
felt bill was counterproductive

4. Freedman’s Bureau
Lincoln realized that the South was in chaos from the thousands of homeless, unemployed, and hungry
Lincoln also realized that thousands of freedmen, or freed slaves, were coming into the North
During the war, General Sherman used all abandoned plantations to help freed African Americans
Refugee crisis led to the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, or the Freedman’s Bureau
Bureaus helped feed and clothe refugees of the war, find employment for African Americans on plantations, negotiate pay wages with Southern employers, and educated former slaves in the North

5. Johnson’s Plans for Reconstruction
Johnson took over as President when Lincoln was assassinated
was hot tempered, but believed in moderate principles
In 1865, Johnson implemented his own restoration plan
Offered pardon to all Confederates
excluded former military officials and Confederates with property valuing more than $20,000
Those who were excluded from the pardon had to apply directly to Johnson for a pardon, for he believed these people caused the war
Each state had to revoke its secession and ratify the Thirteenth Amendment

6. Black Codes
New Southern legislatives passed a series of laws known as black codes
severely limited African rights in the South
Africans were required to enter into an annual working contract
African children had to join apprenticeships and could be subjected to beating during these apprenticeships
Set specific work hours and required Africans to get licenses for non-agricultural jobs

7. Radicals take control
Many moderates joined the radicals and developed the Joint Committee on Reconstruction, developing their own plan for rebuilding the Union
passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866, granting all Americans, except Native Americans, citizenship, and gave Africans the right to own land
passed the Fourteenth Amendment, granting citizenship to all people born and naturalized in the United States and that no person should be deprived of “life, liberty, and property”, or “equal protection of the laws”
passed the Military Reconstruction Act, dividing the South into five military districts and had to hold another constitutional convention to ratify a constitution deemed acceptable by Congress

8. Johnson impeached
By preventing Johnsons from bypassing Grant or firing Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, both supporters of Republican ideals, Congress passed these two acts:
Command of Army Act: all orders of the president had to go through headquarters of the general of the army
Tenure of Office Act: Senate had to approve any removal of office who appointment required Senate consent
Johnson fired Stanton anyway, and was impeached, or charged with high crimes and misdemeanors for not abiding by the Tenure of Office Act
was put on trial, but was acquitted and kept his place in office, but had little power due to the impeachment

9. Election of 1868
Johnson finished his term and did not seek re-election
Republicans nominated Ulysses S. Grant for President
won elected, and gained major support from Africans in the South
With the President on their side, Congress passed the Fifteenth Amendment
Declared the right to vote shall not be denied by any “race, color, or previous conditions of servitude”

10. Carpetbaggers and Scalawags
Many Northerners moved to the South and were elected into government positions
Carpetbaggers
were seen as intruders trying to exploit the South
some wanted to help, while others did want to take advantage of the war-torn South
Southerners also hated scalawags, or white Southerners working with Republicans and supported Reconstruction
some were farmers, some were Democrats, and most were businessmen

11. Republican Reforms
African Americans begin to take government positions
held different types of positions in all facets of government
angered Southerners, claiming “Black Republicanism” was taking over the South
Republicans made reforms in the South
repelled all black code laws
established state hospitals and institutes for orphans, the mentally ill, and the hearing and visually disabled
established a system of public schools
rebuilt roads, railways, and bridges
Reforms cost money, however
officials implemented heavy taxes
corrupt officials committed grafts, or illegally gaining money through politics

12. African American communities
Once freed, African Americans desired to get an education
incorporated African Americans in public schools
built schools for African American children
institutions offered advanced academics for African Americans
African Americans also established their own churches
housed social gatherings, events, and schools
African Americans began several organizations established to help communities

13. Resistance from the South
Organizations began to erupt to counteract the Black Republicans
Ku Klux Klan
started by former Confederate soldiers
Goal was to drive out the Union and carpetbaggers and regain the South for the Democratic Party
terrorized African American and Republican communities
Republicans and African Americans formed groups to protect themselves from these organizations
confrontations all turned out violent

14. Enforcement Acts
To combat the violence in the South, Grant and Congress passed three Enforcement Acts
One made it a federal crime to interfere with a person’s right to vote
Two made federal marshals in charge of federal elections
Three was the Klu Klux Klan Act, outlawed the activities of the Klan

15. Republican Party splits
Republican-controlled Congress continued to enforce Reconstruction and expanded on programs it introduced during the Civil War
kept tariffs high, tightened banking regulations, repaid debts with gold, and increased federal spending on railways, port facilities, and the postal service
Kept in place taxes on alcohol and tobacco: sin taxes
Democrats and Liberal Republicans disagreed with these motions, stating they were used only to make the wealthy more rich
nominated Horace Greeley for president, promising to remove Union troops from the South and pardon nearly all Confederates
still lost to Grant

16. Scandals and Panics rock the White House
Grant’s second term was plagued with scandals and a financial panic
One scandal involved Secretary of War William Belknap, who accepted bribes from merchants operating in army posts in the West
Another, called the “Whiskey Ring” scandal, a group of government officials and distillers cheated the government by filing false tax reports
Panic of 1873: when large banking firm of Jay Cooke & Company declared bankruptcy, smaller banks closed and the stock market plummeted

17. Democrats take control, but illegally
In the mid-term elections in 1873, Democrats took much of the seats in Congress, giving them power
committed election frauds and appealed to Southern farmers, stating that the South had a struggle between African Americans and whites
From Grant’s damaged reputation, the Republicans nominated Rutherford B. Hayes, while Democrats nominated Samuel Tilton for president

18. Compromise of 1877
From the election, Tilton won the majority of votes, but 20 electoral votes could not be accounted for
came from three states that Republicans controlled: Louisiana, South Carolina, and Florida
Had been so much election fraud on both sides, no one could tell who the votes went to
To help solve this issue, Congress appointed a 15 man panel
8 were Republican, who voted for Hayes to have the votes
Southern Democrats sided with the Republicans, stating they helped Hayes win and the Democrats accepted this vote
Compromise of 1877

19. The New South emerges
Southern leaders called for the creation of the “New South”, since the South could not be like it was before the war
With deals from Northerner financiers, portions of the South’s economy became industrial
African Americans began to return to plantations to either work for wages or become tenant farmers, or work for rent
some tenant farmers became sharecroppers, or people who paid rent using the crops they grew
got equipment from furnishing merchants, or country stores, who supplied credit and issued crop liens, or taking of crops to pay for debts acquired by credit
the crop liens system led many to debt peonage, or inability to move off of land due to the debts they had acquired
could not pay off debt or declare bankruptcy