Reconstruction Era Overview

Study Notes

Reconstruction Era

Civil Rights Act of 1866
- Outlawed discriminatory Black Codes enacted by Southern states
- Passed by Congress, vetoed by President Johnson, but Congress overrode the veto
14th Amendment (1866)
- Granted citizenship to formerly enslaved people
- Intended to protect the civil rights of freedmen
Impeachment of President Johnson (1868)
- President Johnson was impeached by the House of Representatives for violating the Tenure of Office Act
- The Senate trial resulted in his acquittal by a single vote
- Republican Ulysses S. Grant won the subsequent presidential election
15th Amendment (1870)
- Guaranteed the right to vote for all men, regardless of race
Carpetbaggers
- Northerners who moved to the South during Reconstruction
- Included teachers, businessmen, political leaders, and some opportunistic individuals
Scalawags
- White Southerners who supported Reconstruction
- Often opposed secession during the Civil War
New South
- Post-Civil War South focused on economic development and industrialization
- Farming Changes:
  - Sharecropping: System where a farmer worked a portion of a landowner's land in exchange for a share of the crops
    - Often resulted in debt and limited economic mobility for sharecroppers
Growth of Atlanta
- Atlanta emerged as a major industrial center
- Over 3,300 miles of new railroad track were built in the South, representing a 40% increase
- Cotton mills and textile factories thrived
Funding Reconstruction
- Reconstruction efforts:
  - Focused on rebuilding infrastructure: roads, bridges, canals, railroads, telegraphs, and public schools
  - Added over $130 million to Southern debt
- Corruption:
  - Widespread corruption plagued Reconstruction spending
  - President Grant was aware of the corruption
  - Southerners blamed African Americans and carpetbaggers for the corruption
Spreading Terror: KKK
- The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) emerged to defend white supremacy and terrorize African Americans, carpetbaggers, and scalawags
- Employed violence, intimidation, and murder to achieve their goals
Enforcement Act of 1870
- Federal response to KKK violence
- Banned the use of terror, force, or bribery to prevent voting
- Strengthened military presence in the South and outlawed the KKK
- Thousands of KKK members were prosecuted, leading to a decline in KKK activity within a few years
End of Reconstruction
- Financial strain:
  - Heavy spending on Reconstruction left Southern states with significant debt
  - This debt contributed to the perception of corruption and fueled calls for an end to federal involvement
- White Southern Resistance:
  - White Southerners formed groups to block African American voting and political participation
  - Democrats in the South contributed to the growing resistance
- Economic downturn:
  - The Southern economy faced challenges and a decline
- Compromise of 1877:
  - Republican Rutherford B. Hayes was elected president through a controversial agreement
  - Federal troops were withdrawn from the South, providing more autonomy to Southern states
  - Democrats gained political power in the South and Reconstruction effectively ended
  - The removal of federal troops allowed for the implementation of Jim Crow laws and the resurgence of white supremacy in the South