Reconstruction Era: Beginning

Beginning of Reconstruction

• Emancipation Proclamation (1863) freed enslaved people in Confederate states, weakening the Confederate economy
• It declared that all persons held as slaves within rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free."
• Lincoln's 10% Plan aimed to readmit Southern states into the Union, requiring only 10% of a state's male voting population to pledge allegiance
• Once the oath was taken, voters could elect delegates to write new state constitutions
• The plan pardoned those who participated in the Confederate army or government
• Radical Republicans opposed the plan, believing it was too lenient and wouldn't protect African Americans' rights
• The Wade-Davis Bill (1864) was proposed, requiring 50% of voters to take an oath and placing stricter conditions on Confederate states, but it was pocket-vetoed
• After Lincoln's assassination, Andrew Johnson's approach to Reconstruction was similar, facing stronger Congressional resistance
• It was used to reject the Wade-Davis Bill in July 1864
• The bill would have imposed stricter requirements for Southern states to rejoin the Union, requiring a majority of white male citizens to swear loyalty
• The 13th Amendment (1865) officially freed all enslaved individuals in every U.S. state and territory, except as punishment for a crime
• Freedmen's Bureau (1865) was established by Congress to assist freed slaves, poor whites, and refugees, helping reclaim lost property (except slaves)
• Civil Rights Bill (1866) extended the Freedmen's Bureau's life and defined all people born in the U.S. as national citizens with equal rights
• Black Codes (1865–1866) were Southern laws restricting African Americans' rights, including preventing land ownership and limiting testimonies
• A loophole in the 13th Amendment allowed convicted African Americans to be forced into unpaid labor
• Sharecropping emerged as a response to post-slavery labor shortages where African Americans worked land in exchange for the harvest
• Sharecropping led to perpetual debt and dependency on landowners where only 5% of Southern African Americans owned land by 1880
• Wade Davis Bill was intended to punish the South with at least half of voters to take an oath of loyalty and not allow Confederates to run in office
• Rise of the Redeemers involved Southern conservatives taking control of states, advocating for states' rights, reduced taxes, and white supremacy

Response to Black Codes

• Civil Rights Act of 1866 was passed by Radical Republicans, granting citizenship and equal protection to African Americans, but was later replaced by Jim Crow Laws
• It responded to Black Codes and aimed to counter restrictive laws in the South that sought to limit the freedoms of newly freed African Americans
• Citizenship Rights declared that all persons born in the United States (except Native Americans not taxed) were citizens, effectively granting citizenship to African Americans
• Equal Protection guaranteed that citizens had the same rights as white citizens in contracts, lawsuits, and property ownership
• President Andrew Johnson vetoed the Civil Rights Act, but Congress overrode it
• 14th Amendment (1868) granted citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the U.S., guaranteeing equal protection under the law

Rise of the KKK (Ku Klux Klan)

• KKK Founded (1867) by Nathan Bedford Forrest sought to restrict Black privileges, suppress Black votes, and enforce white supremacy
• Democrats waged violence trying to control Mississippi in 1875, but Grant refused to send federal support, ending federal support for Reconstruction-era state governments
• The Force Acts (1870-1871) gave the federal government power to combat the KKK
• Violence resulted against churches and targeting leaders who supported Black suffrage

Radical Reconstruction

• The Reconstruction Act of 1867 divided the South into five military districts, requiring Southern states to create constitutions guaranteeing Black men the right to vote and ratify the 14th Amendment
• Former Confederate officials were barred from holding office unless pardoned by Congress and states had to ratify the 14th Amendment
• Black people gained a voice in government where Southern state legislators went to U.S Congress
• Thousands of African Americans voted and help office, such as Hiram Revels, the first Black U.S. senator, resulted in an increased Black Political Participation
• Southern elites' former power was weakened fueling resistance and violence
• Groups like the KKK used terror to suppress Black voters and Jim Crow laws emerge once federal troops left because of Southern resistance
• The Amnesty Act 1872, lifted most restrictions on ex-confederates except top leaders

Compromise of 1877

• A controversial presidential election between Rutherford B. Hayes (Republican) and Samuel J. Tilden (Democrat) in 1876 had disputed electoral votes where Tilden won the popular vote but had one short of the required electoral votes
• In exchange Hayes became President where Southern Democrats made concession
• Republicans promised to withdraw federal troops from the South, ending Reconstruction and leading to white Democratic control
• Hayes supported infrastructure projects in the South and appointed a Southerner to his cabinet.
• White Southerners implemented Jim Crow laws and disenfranchised Black voters
• A political shift marked the beginning of the "Solid South," where Democrats dominated Southern politics

Economic and Political Consequences

• The Panic of 1873 (First Great Depression) was caused by bank failures, railroad overexpansion, and post-Civil War struggles
• It shifted focus from Reconstruction to economic recovery and worsened inequality and led to a shift in U.S. government policies and debates

President Andrew Johnson's Reconstruction Plan (1865)

• It was lenient toward the South, offering amnesty to most Southern whites and Confederate leaders could only receive pardons personally
• States had to create new governments and recognize the Union's sovereignty, but Black Codes were allowed that restricted Black Americans' rights
• Radical Republicans opposed the plan because it was too lenient, where Congress took control and passed stricter Reconstruction Acts with military occupation
• This weakened Presidential power and Congress replaced Johnson's plan with stricter measures

Key Events Leading to Johnson's Impeachment

• Conflicts with Congress arose because Johnson's approach allowed Black Codes
• Johnson vetoed extending the Freedmen's Bureau but Congress overrode the veto
• Johnson vetoed the Civil Rights Act of 1866 but Congress overrode the veto
• Congress passed the Tenure of Office Act (1867) stopping the president from removing federal officials without Senate approval because he clashed with his Cabinet, particularly with Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton
• Johnson believed the Tenure of Office Act was unconstitutional and replaced Stanton with a sympathetic official
• In 1868, Johnson dismissed Stanton and appointed a new Secretary of War and was charged with "high crimes and misdemeanors," specifically violating the Tenure of Office Act
• The case was brought to the Senate for trail arguing the Tenure of Office Act was unconstitutional and that he was within his rights to remove Stanton and it failed to reach two-thirds majority vote
• Although Johnson was acquitted he remained in office, but his influence was greatly diminished because of the result of the trial

Aftermath and Impact

• Although Johnson was not removed from office, his presidency was greatly weakened, the Radical Republican party gaining control of the Reconstruction efforts
• Legacy was set with Johnson's impeachment that highlighted the tensions between the executive and legislative branches during Reconstruction and reinforced the idea that impeachment shouldn't be used as a political tool
• African Americans were nicknamed exodusters who migrated for a better life
• Some fled after reconstruction ended because they dealt with sharecropping and the KKK
• There were rumors that African Americans will get 110 acres and a mule or $500 dollars and free land which motivated the African Americans to migrate
• Immigrants arrived at San Francisco for economic reasons
• Because it wasn't safe they faced discrimination and even though the courts sided with the Chinese, they still uphold discriminatory laws such as the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882
• They dealt with challenges such as windstorms, blizzards, droughts, locusts, lack of trees, and loneliness
• 80% of the Mexican-Americans lost their land, while native-americans were moving into reservations
• The end of Indian Resistance was the battle of Wounded Knee symbolizing the brutal treatment of Native American Communities

Highs and Lows of Reconstruction

• Civil War ends when south are surrenders
• 13th amendment,13th amendment, civil rights act of 1866 and 14th amendment all passed
• First African American Congressman was seated in 1868
• Wyoming territory was the first to grant women the right to vote in 1869
• 15th amendment was ratified
• KKK acts legalizes violence against african Americans and prevent them from getting voter rights
• Lincon Is assassinated
• The black codes made life harder for African Americans
• Sharcropper came up after the
• KKK was formed
• The panic of 1873 caused bussiness failures.
• poll taxes, literacy tests kept black people

Key Figures of Reconstruction

• Abraham Lincoln initiated the Ten-Percent Plan in 1865
• Andrew Johnson favored lenient policies and opposed voting rights and used the Patronage System
• Ulysses S. Grant supported 15th amendment but has many corrupt cabinet members
• Political Parties and Factions
• Radical Republicans emphasized civil rights
• Moderate Republicans wanted to swiftly store the union
• The democratic Party advocated for stated rights
• Factors such as violence, white supremacies and northern fatigue ended reconstruction and gave rise to the Jim Crow Laws