1. AMERICAN HISTORY

2. REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT BRINGS CHANGE TO THE SOUTH  Congress & the army took control of Reconstruction  Political power shifted in the south  General James Longstreet and other white SCALAWAGS chose to the support this change.  SCALAWAG—a scoundrel and a traitor in the eyes of former Confederates

3.  Longstreet had to rely on the Republican Party for government jobs until his death in 1904  SCALAWAGS AND CARPETBAGGERS  Many scalawags were farmers who didn’t own slaves and had opposed the war  Others were wealthy farmers from before the war that were ruined after it

4.  These people hoped the new state governments would protect them from their debts  Scalawags allied themselves with northern Republicans who came south to take part in the region’s political and economic rebirth  Southern critics called these people CARPETBAGGERS  The newcomers were scorned as low-class person who could carry everything they owned in a carpetbag

5.  Many carpetbaggers were educated people and came from a variety of backgrounds  AFRICAN AMERICANS IN GOVERNMENT  Carpetbaggers and scalawags allied to control state governments  They were joined by freedmen  SC & LA—African American delegates outnumbered whites at constitutional conventions

6.  African Americans formed the largest group of Republican voters in the south  Nearly 700 African Americans served in southern state legislatures during Reconstruction  NEW STATE GOVERNMENTS  New state constitutions guaranteed male freedman the right to vote

7.  Republican governments created the region’s first public school systems  They also built hospitals and institutions for orphans and people with mental disabilities  These places were open to all southerners but were usually segregated by race  Property requirements for voting were eliminated  Divorce laws were modernized and the rights of married women were expanded

8.  To help the South’s economy, thousands of miles of new railroad were built  Railroads got grants of land and money from state governments  These grants came from taxes on large landowners  Taxes were reduced on poor farmers  Freedman were unhappy because the government did little to help them obtain their own land

9. LIFE AFTER SLAVERY FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS  SEEKING ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY  Some freedman searched for relatives sold into slavery  Others searched for employment by moving into urban areas  The African American population in the 10 biggest southern cities doubled 1865-1870  Some former slaves went west and worked as miners, soldiers, cowboys

10.  Most former slaves stayed in the south to work for their former owners  EDUCATION AND RELIGION  1877—600,000 African Americans had enrolled in elementary schools  The Freedmen’s Bureau started over 4,000 schools  Schools were started by many different groups

11.  African Americans established other institutions, especially churches  Churches became centers for community life  THE MEANING OF FREEDOM  Freedmen created a wide variety of organizations to help themselves  These included debating clubs, drama societies, trade associations, fire companies, and mutual aid societies

12. RECONSTRUCTION AND LAND OWNERSHIP  The main symbol of personal freedom for African Americans was their own land  HOPES OF LAND FADE  African Americans were given land after the Civil War in SC and GA  President Johnson returned that land to the original owners

13.  SOUTHERN HOMESTED ACT (June 1866)  45 million acres of government-owned land in southern states to provide free farms for African Americans  Few freedmen had the means to buy seed, animals, and equipment  Only about 4,000 families took advantage and the law was repealed in 1872

14.  SHARECROPPERS AND TENANT FARMERS  Most freedman were not content to work for the low wages planters were willing to pay  Instead of receiving wages, freedmen began receiving a portion of the planter’s crop— SHARECROPPING  Employer provided land, seed, tools, a mule, and a cabin.  The sharecropper provided the labor

15.  TENANT FARMING—farmers rented the land they farmed from the landowner.  This allowed the farmers to grow whatever crops they wanted to  Several factors kept sharecroppers and tenant farmers in poverty  --neither group had money until harvest  --to meet daily needs they had to promise their crop to someone and buy their items on credit  --if they crop didn’t pay off the debt it was continued into the next year

16.  A nationwide depression caused cotton prices to fall steeply in the 1870s.  Farmers grew more cotton to help pay for debts  This caused the prices to fall further  INDUSTRIAL GROWTH IN THE SOUTH  Southern cities grew quickly  Southern railroad lines were linked to the north  Southern business leaders joined with northern investors to build textile mills

17. MMost southern industrial growth occurred after Reconstruction had ended TTHE END