A Crash Course

“With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace” (Second Inaugural Address, 1865)

Lincoln was assassinated on April 14, 1865 while attending a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, DC John Wilkes Booth – last effort to save the Confederacy Sic Semper Tyrannis! (Thus Always with Tyrants OR Down with Tyrants) Andrew Johnson (Lincoln’s VP) stepped into the Presidency and was tasked with starting the Reconstruction process.

After the war, the South was literally in ruins Economy was devastated Sherman’s March had left a path of destruction With many people dead from the fighting, putting the country back together was going to be a challenge.

President Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan Former Confederate states can rejoin the Union with the following Conditions: New state Constitution New state government Repeal act of secession Cancel war debts Ratify the 13 th Amendment The Freedmen’s Bureau Established by Congress to assist former slaves. Provided food, medical care and schools for blacks and whites in the South. “Forty Acres and a Mule” Plan proposed by Congressman Thaddeus Stevens Give each former slave 40 acres of former plantation land as repayment for unpaid labor Rejected by Congress as Unconstitutional The Black Codes Laws passed by new Southern governments 3 purposes: Spell out the rights of freedmen Help planters find workers to replace slaves Keep freed slaves at the bottom of the social order Presidential Reconstruction

Civil Rights Act of 1866 Reaction to the Black Codes Declared freedmen to be full citizens with the same rights as white citizens 13 th, 14 th, and 15 th Amendment Known as the “Reconstruction Amendments” 13 th – made slavery or forced servitude illegal 14 th – declared former slaves to be full citizens with all Constitutional rights 15 th – ensured voting rights for all citizens regardless of race. Military Reconstruction Act military districts, governed by general /federal troops. State governments under Johnson illegal New governments formed by Southerners loyal to the Union. Supporters of Confederacy denied right to vote. Sharecropping Farming system – planters divided land into small plots which they rented to tenant farmers. Congressional Reconstruction

Vetoes: Civil Rights Act of th Amendment Military Reconstruction Act Congress passed two acts to reduce Johnson’s power to interfere with Congressional Reconstruction Command of the Army Act limited Johnson’s power over the Army Tenure of Office Act Prevented Johnson from firing certain federal officials without the Senate’s consent Impeachment House tried to have Johnson removed from office Needed two – thirds vote in the Senate – failed to convict.

New Voters Confederates banned from voting African Americans made up largest voting pool Election Ulysses S. Grant vs. Horatio Seymour Grant was elected with half a million Black votes. New State Constitutions Constitutional Conventions across the south New Southern Constitutions were the most progressive and modern in the country. New State Governments Elections held to fill state offices Majority elected were Republicans – about a fifth were African American Governments set to work rebuilding damaged infrastructure African Americans in Office “The colored men who took their seats in both the Senate and House did not appear ignorant or helpless. They were as a rule studious, earnest, ambitious men, whose public conduct … would be honorable to any race” J.G Blaine - Pennsylvania

Whites in the South resented Reconstruction governments White Terrorism Ku Klux Klan

The Enforcement Acts (1870 and 1871) Designed to combat terrorism against blacks Made it illegal to prevent people from voting using bribery, force, or scare tactics The Amnesty Act of 1872 Allowed most former Confederates to vote again Sign of changing attitudes in Congress towards the South

The “New South” 1880 – 1900: Southern Industry grew rapidly Education Voting Rights Poll taxes Literacy tests Jim Crow Laws Segregation of blacks and whites Plessy vs. Ferguson Separate but Equal

African Americans responded to segregation/ discrimination in many ways: Protesting Migration of Blacks Left the south Back to Africa – Liberia (nation founded by freed slaves in W. Africa) Most chose to stay in America – “we are not Africans now, but colored Americans” North – competed for jobs with recent immigrants (Irish) West – worked as cowboys and Indian fighters Exodus of 1879 – organized migration of thousands of black families Benjamin “Pap” Singleton and Henry Adams