Reconstruction and the New South Chapter 16
Reconstruction and the New South
Chapter 16
Rebuilding the Nation
Section 1
Huge problems after Civil War endedVast parts of the South were ruinedHomeless refugees scattered across the
SouthBoth African American & Whites
Needed: food, shelter, & work
Biggest problemSuppressing the hard feelings between the
North & South
Preparing for Reunion
Lincoln’s plan for reconstructionDecember 1863
10% of voters need to take loyalty oath to U.S.New gov’t could then be formedDeclare an end to slaveryMembers of state could be sent to Congress to
take part in national gov’tPlan included amnesty for former
ConfederatesNot for Confederate gov’t leaders or military
leaders
10% Plan
Stricter than 10% plan50% of voters to swear loyalty oathVoluntary Confederate soldiers not allowed to
vote for delegates meeting to form new state constitution
Lincoln refused the bill & it never became law
Lincoln thought his lenient plan would promote a strong Republican party in the SouthRadical Republicans opposed lenient plan &
wanted strict planThought strict plan would keep Confederates who
led the secession from regaining power
The Wade-Davis Bill
Developed to deal with the needs of freed African Americans & war refugees after the war
1st Duty: provide emergency relief2nd: set up schools to teach freed slaves to
read & writeAfrican American communities also set up their
own schools & paid for teachers by pooling money
Many white northern women were teachers as well as black northern women
Continue education centers were also startedPublic Education system to education whites &
blacks in most southern states
Freedmen's Bureau
Bureau also helped freedmen find jobs & resolve disputes between whites & blacks
Bureau also set up its own court system to deal with cheaters
Defending Freedmen
April 14, 1865 5 DAYS after the war John Wilkes Booth assassinated Lincoln at the Ford’s Theater in
Washington Shot Lincoln in the head with a single bullet Booth later shot & killed after the barn he was hiding in was set on fire
8 others convicted & 4 were hung for their part in the plot to kill Lincoln
Nation shocked by deathHuge crowds paid their last respects & Lincoln’s body was
transported back to Illinois for burialVice President Andrew Johnson, southern Democrat, became
President Showed bitterness toward the Confederacy before & during the
war, many expected him to take a strict approach to Reconstruction
Lincoln is Murdered
Section 2The Battle Over Reconstruction
A Growing ConflictAndrew Johnson
Proposed lenient plan of ReconstructionPut plan into effect himself, did not consult w/
legislators
13th AmendmentJanuary 1865
Congress approved amendment to abolish slavery throughout the nationBanned slavery & forced laborCongress had power to make laws to enforce its
terms
Johnson’s PlanAmnesty offered
Southern states could organize new gov’t & elect reps. for CongressHad to abolish slavery & ratify the 13th Amendment
December 1865Most states met Johnson’s requirementsSenators elected included many former Confederate
leadersCongress rejected plan
1st: refused to seat southern senators & reps.2nd: two houses appointed a committee to form a new
plan for the SouthHeard testimony about black codes: new laws used by
southern states to control African Americans
Black CodesReplaced slavery w/ near slavery
Caused hard line in CongressRadical Republicans
Wanted to prevent former Confederates from regaining control over southern politics
To protect the freedmen & guarantee them a right to vote
Civil Rights Act of 1866Granted citizenship rights to African
Americans and guaranteed the civil rights of all people except Native AmericansVetoed by Johnson & another bill extending the
life of the Freedmen’s BureauCongress voted to overturn vetoes, & both received
2/3 vote of each house & became law
14th AmendmentAll people born or naturalized in the U.S. are
citizensStates may not pass laws that take away a
citizen’s rights; cannot deprive any person of life, liberty, or property w/o due process of law, or deny equal protection of the laws.
Any state that denies the vote to any male citizen over the age of 21, will have representation in Congress reduced (not enforced until 1970s)
Became powerful tool for enforcing civil rights
Radical Reconstruction1866 election
Rioters & police killed many African Americans in southern cities
Led Congress to push for a stricter form of Reconstruction
Radicals In ChargeRadical Republicans
Won support to begin strict reconstructionReconstruction Act of 1867
Removed gov’t of all southern states that did not ratify 14th Amendment
Imposed military rule & divided states into five military districts
Before returning to Union, each state had to write new state constitution & ratify 14th Amendment
Also had to let African Americans vote
Time of Hope and AdvancementAfrican Americans
Were elected as sheriffs, mayors18 served in Congress
Radical ReconstructionSouthern states opened public schools, legislators
spread tax money more evenly, & made fairer voting rules, gave property rights to women, states rebuilt bridges, roads & buildings
Republican Party built a strong following from 3 groupsScalawags: southern whites who had opposed secessionFreedmen votersCarpetbaggers: name given by southerners to northern whites
who went south to start businesses or pursue political office
15th AmendmentApproved in 1869Barred all states from denying African
American males the right to vote on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitudeDid not prevent states from requiring voters to
own property or pay a voting tax
Ku Klux KlanSecret societies created by white shut out of
power to terrorize African Americans & their white alliesWould threaten African American voters, burn
crosses in their yardWhen threats failed they would: whip, torture,
shoot, or hang African Americans & white Republicans
Congress responded to violence w/ new lawsKu Klux Klan Acts of 1870 & 1871
Barred use of force against voeters
Section 3The End of Reconstruction
Reconstruction’s ConclusionRadical Republicans
Support declinedPeople focused more on their own lives
Grant’s ScandalsPoor public office appointments
Corruption of appointeesGrant
Claimed no part in scandals, but reputation was hurt
Won reelection in 1872, but Northerners lost faith in Republicans & their policies
Self-rule for the SouthAmnesty for Confederates?
Northerners & Southerners both wanted the withdrawal of federal troops & amnesty for Confederates
1869Republican opponents: began taking back the
south one state at a timeChipped away at African Americans rights
The Election of 1876End of Reconstruction resulted from this electionChoice of President decided by Congress
Due to election returns Deal made between Republicans & Democrats
Republicans: Rutherford B. Hayes; would continue reconstruction Democrats: Tilden; would end reconstruction
Won popular vote; 20 electoral votes disputed; one vote short of 185 needed to win electoral college
Special Commissions 15 members appointed by Congress Most were Republicans 20 electoral votes given to Hayes
Democrats did not fight decision because Hayes told them privately he would end reconstruction
Once in office Hayes removed federal troops from the South
African Americans Lose RightsEnd of Reconstruction
African Americans lost political & civil rightsSeveral techniques used to stop blacks from voting
Poll tax: must pay a tax before voting; kept poor whites & freedmen from voting
Literacy test: required to read & explain section of Constitution Grandfather clause allowed illiterate white males to vote; test
avoided if father or grandfather had been eligible to vote on Jan. 1, 1867
Segregation: enforced separation of races; barred mixing of races in almost every aspect of life, know as Jim Crow laws (born in separate hospitals, buried in separate cemeteries, separate playgrounds, restaurants, & schools, travel on specific seats on streetcars or take black streetcars); Laws were upheld in local courts
1896Supreme Court upheld segregation laws
Plessy v. FergusonHomer Plessy arrested for sitting in a coach marked
for whites onlyCourt upheld Louisiana law of segregated streetcars
Ok if they were equal
Separate but equal rule was in effect until the 1950sFacilities were rarely equal
A Cycle of PovertyPoverty forced freedmen & poor whites to
become sharecroppersWork the land for the farmer in return for a share
in the value of the cropLandlord
Supplied living quarters, tools, seed, & food on credit
Crops were harvested & sold and amount given to sharecroppers was figured outIn times of bad harvests or low crop prices
sharecroppers often earned enough money to pay what they owned landlords Locked into a cycle of debt
Industrial GrowthSouth’s economy began to recover1880s
New industries Agriculture in the South recovered, especially
cotton production Tobacco production also increased
Southern investors started or expanded industriesTextile industry became important part of
economySouth began to develop their natural resources
New mills to use South’s iron, timber, & oil South no longer dependent on cotton