By Rhett and Brendan 16 - 1 Rebuilding the Nation

Preparing For Reunion (Below is a picture comparison of Abraham Lincoln Before and After the Civil War.) Vast Stretches of the South lay in ruins at the time. People of White and Black skin color needed food, shelter, and jobs. The Union had won the War but the Nation was still divided. The North and South needed a nationwide unity. The eventual unity of the North and the South, called the Reconstruction, would last for many years that would come.

Lincoln’s Ten Percent Plan (Below is a picture symbolizing the need for Lincoln to come up with an idea to reunite the nation) It stated that if 10% of a state’s Voters Swore an oath of loyalty to the US, the state could have a new state government but would have to declare an end of slavery. Afterwards, they could take part in National Government again and be part of Congress. Lincoln made a 10% plan in December of 1863 to allow seceded states to enter the US easily again Lincoln's plan also gave AMNESTY, a group pardon, to former confederates who took an oath but disregarding high military officers and Confederate leaders.

The Wade-Davis Bill (The Wade-Davis Bill is presented, showing its main causes) Six months later, Congress passed a strict Wade-Davis Bill that Lincoln never signed. 50% of voters would now have to swear oath to be admitted to a state and anybody who VOLUNTARILY, or under their own will, fought in the Confederate army could not vote These people would be barred from voting in delegates to write a new state constitution at a state convention. They wanted a strict plan to keep people who forced the South into secession from weakening the Radical Republicans and from regaining power. The republicans wanted to see a republican party in the South. Lincoln thought the South would agree with the lenient plan but the Radical Republicans disagreed.

Freedmen’s Bureau It was urgent to deal with the needs of Freedmen- Enslaved people who had been freed by the war. To deal with this problem Congress set up the Freedmen's Bureau in March 1865. The Freedmen's Bureau's first job was to provide emergency relief for the people displaced by the war.

Freedmen's Bureau Education The Freedmen's Bureau also set up schools to teach Freedmen how to read and write since they never learned how to. Many African American communities set up their own schools to feed the hunger of education. Many of the teachers were Northern white women, but a pretty large number were African American Women. It was very hard to pay teachers, some used pennies and dimes. The south now had many schools teaching whites and blacks, some schools even allowing you to extend your education this led to present day universities such as Fisk University and Hampton University. Here Edmonia Highgate can be seen teaching a class, she was the daughter of the freed slaves and taught in Louisiana

Freedmen's Bureau Defending Freedom Thanks to the Freedmen's Bureau….. Freedmen were finding jobs. Some conflicts between blacks and whites were resolved- to decide, to solve. The Freedmen's Bureau even set up their own courts to deal with disputes. Here we can see Freedmen and White males having a dispute

Lincoln is Murdered Lincoln hoped for a peaceful construction However he was shot dead on April 14th 1865, 5 days after Lee's surrender. John Wilkes Booth a confederate sympathizer snuck his way into the president's box and fired a single bullet while Lincoln was watching a play at Ford's theatre, Lincoln was pronounced dead a few hours later. Booth was shot dead 2 weeks later while being trapped in a barn. 8 people were convicted and 4 were hung A train carried Lincoln's body back to Illinois for burial, the train would stop in cities on its way to Illinois. Here is a painting of Lincoln being shot

Lincoln is Murdered Pt.2 Lincoln's successor was Vice President Andrew Johnson of Tennessee, who was a Southern Democrat that stayed loyal to the Union. Many people hoped he would take a strict approach towards reconstruction due to his bitterness towards the Confederates. Andrew Johnson, 17th President of the U.S.A