US History Test Study Guide: Emancipation & Reconstruction PDF

Test Study Guide: Emancipation and Reconstruction US History Dr. Korfhage Format: Multiple choice questions Primary source analysis Essay Essential questions: 1. To what extent has the United States upheld th...

Test Study Guide: Emancipation and Reconstruction US History Dr. Korfhage Format: Multiple choice questions Primary source analysis Essay Essential questions: 1. To what extent has the United States upheld the notion that all Americans are created equal? 2. Who is an American? How have our definitions and conceptions of citizenship changed over time? 3. How have black Americans challenged oppression and created opportunity over time? Unit objectives By the end of this unit you should be able to explain and analyze: Describe the evolution and impact of antebellum abolitionism Analyze black responses to both abolitionism and colonization Describe the series of events that led up to the Civil War State in your own words the different ideologies regarding the existence of slavery during the years before the Civil War, including positive good and free soil Analyze the causes of the sectional crisis of the 1840s and 1850s Analyze the causes of emancipation, including the the roles of military action, political leadership, and actions by slaves State in your own words the various approaches to Reconstruction, and explain why Congressional Reconstruction won out State in your own words the key ideas in the 14th amendment and explain their significance Analyze the impact of the Civil War on state-federal relations Describe and analyze the responses to emancipation of freed slaves Evaluate the impact of emancipation on the freedmen Describe the responses of southern Whites to emancipation and Reconstruction Explain why Reconstruction ended Analyze the success or failure of Reconstruction Specific examples, terms, and evidence. Rather than just memorizing these terms, you should think of them as evidence for answers. If the unit objectives were questions, how could you use these terms to answer them? 1. American Colonization Society - (1816) - Promoted the gradual abolition of slavery and the settlement of Black Americans in Africa - Goal: to create “abolition” of freed slaves by deporting them to Africa, the caribbean, or Central America - Colonization rested on the premise that America is a fundamentally white society 2. Liberia - Established by the American Colonization Society on the coast of West Africa, an outpost of American influence - The capital is Monrovia, named after President James Monroe - In decades before civil war, several thousand Black Americans did emigrate to Liberia w help of American Colonization Society - → some were freed by their owners on condition that they will depart, some left voluntarily 3. David Walker (read more 348 - 357) - An Appeal to the Coloured Citizens of the World (1829) - Was an abolitionist writing about passionate indictment of slavery, etc - He died mysteriously in 1830 4. William Lloyd Garrison (read more 348 - 357) - The Liberator (1831) weekly journal, and Thoughts on African Colonization - The movement’s most notable propagandist 5. moral suasion - The belief that peacefully converting people to christian values, rather than using violence, was the best way to achieve social change 6. birthright citizenship - “Native free born men must be citizens” - All people born in US are considered citizens - 14th amendment guaranteed 7. Uncle Tom’s Cabin - The most effective pieces of antislavery literature was this novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe - To some extent modeled by the autobiography of fugitive slave Josiah Henson - By portraying slaves as sympathetic men/women, it gives the message a powerful human appeal - More than 1 million copies sold in 1854 8. Frederick Douglass - Frederick Douglass was a former slaves that published accounts of his life of bondage, to help convince thousands of northerners of the evils of slavery - 1852 “what to the slave in the fourth of july?” speech 9. gag rule - (1836) when Washington was flooded w abolitionist petitions calling for emancipation, the House of Representatives adopted the notorious gag rule, which prohibited their consideration - Rule was repealed in 1844 10. Missouri Compromise - Question: should Missouri be admitted as a slave/free state? - Solution: - missouri admitted as a slave state - maine separated from massachusetts as a free state - No slavery in the Louisiana Purchase north of 36’30 degrees 11. Wilmot Proviso - (1846) - ( during the Mexican War, Representative David Wilmot of Pennsylvania attempted to limit slavery in the West through an amendment to a war appropriations bill. His proviso, banning slavery in any territories acquired from Mexico, passed the House but not the Senate) - proposition prohibiting slavery from all Mexican-acquired territory (passed the House, failed the Senate, every northerner supported, every southerner opposed) 12. Free Soil - “Free soil” party formed in 1848 - called for the limiting of slave expansion in the west so that it can be open for white people to work - opponents of slavery expansion - nominated Martin Van Buren (for president) & Charles Francis Adams - popular appeal in the North - “aimed to advance “the cause and rights of the free white man,” in part by preventing him from having to compete w “black labor”’ (379) 13. Compromise of 1850 - produced by Henry Clay 4 points: 1. California would be admitted as a free state 2. The slave trade (not slavery) would be outlawed in Washington DC 3. New harsh fugitive slave law enacted 4. Popular sovereignty  - restored sectional peace temporarilly 14. Fugitive Slave Act - “made further controversy inevitable” (380) - this law allowed special federal commissioners to determine the fate of alleged fugitives without the benefit of a jury trial or testimony - southern leaders supported, this act brought federal agents into communities in the North and overrode local jurisdiction - the law further widened sectional divisions and reinvigorated the Underground Railroad 15. Underground Railroad - A loose organization of sympathetic abolitionists who hid fugitives in their homes and sent them onto their next “station” - Assisted some runaway slaves 16. “popular sovereignty” - Idea that the question of whether to allow slavery should be left for the settlers in the new territories, not Congress - offered middle ground between the extremes of North and South 17. Kansas-Nebraska Act - the two states were in the middle of westward expansion - Appeal of the Independent Democrats - in 1854, Kansas-Nebraska Act was enacted - shattered democratic party’s unity and sparked a profound reorganization of american politics - whig party collapsed two years after - south became democratic, north became republican (on 382) 18. Republican Party - North - “republicans were not abolitionists- they focused on preventing the spread of slavery, not attacking it where it existed.” (386) - free labor outlook 19. Bleeding Kansas - during Kansas elections of 1854/55, hundreds of proslavery Missourians crossed the border to place fraudulent ballots - sporadic civil war broke out in Kansas - Bleeding Kansas, Bloody Kansas, or the Border War, was a series of violent civil confrontations in Kansas Territory, and to a lesser extent in western Missouri,  between 1854 and 1859. It emerged from a political and ideological debate over the legality of slavery in the proposed state of Kansas. - Between roughly 1855 and 1859, Kansans engaged in a violent guerrilla war between pro-slavery and anti-slavery forces in an event known as Bleeding Kansas, which significantly shaped American politics and contributed to the coming of the Civil War. - Much like the actual Civil War, this period is characterized mainly by the heightened sectional tensions between Northerners and Southerners and the extreme actions taken by both sides. 20. Dred Scott decision - In this decision, the Supreme Court tried to resolve the question: were free AA citizens of the US? Court answered no. - Supreme Court Chief Justice Taney said that the Black Americans had “no rights which the white man was bound to respect.” - Taney believed that US citizenship were for the white people alone, the “master race” - the ruling stated that congress possessed no power under the constitution to bar slavery from a territory - So every state, free or slave state, can legally be a slave state now - President buchanan announced that slavery henceforth existed in all territories “by virtue of the Constitution” 21. Lincoln-Douglas debates - Lincoln battled against Douglas for senate in 1858→ Lincoln-Douglas Campaign - Debates including clashing definitions of freedom - - “a house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free.” - - inalienable rights applied to “all men, in all lands, everywhere” - The main focus of these debates was slavery and its influence on American politics and society—specifically the slave power, popular sovereignty, race equality, emancipation, etc. - Lincoln believed that slaves were humans, and as humans deserve the fundamental right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” - Douglas believed in the inferiority of African Americans and often articulated this conviction quite bluntly. However, Douglas believed just because this group was inferior did not automatically mean that they should be enslaved. To Douglas, it was up to the citizens in respective states/territories to decide if they wanted slavery 22. Abraham Lincoln  - Born into a modest farm family in Kentucky in 1809 - he developed a critique of slavery and its expansion that gave voice to the central values of the emerging Republican party & millions of northerners - 16th president of the US 23. John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry John Brown - Leader of harper’s ferry, white abolitionist - Inspired by nat turner rebellion and haiti revolution - Very religious man - Became a martyr for the north, “a crucified hero” Harper’s Ferry, - 1859 - An armed assault by 22 abolitionists, 5 of them black, on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, VA - Further heightened sectional tensions - Militarily, the plan made little sense - Mainly Funded by Secret Six (white abolitionists) and Mary Ellen Pleasant (black activist) 24. Election of 1860 - Here, the democratic party was shattered - In north, Lincoln v. Douglass - In south, Douglas, Breckenridge, and John Bell of Tennesse - Licoln was voted 16th president of the US because of North’s superiority in population - “the election of 1860 marked a fundamental shift in power” 25. Ft. Sumter - Where the first shot was fired for the Civil War - Shot by South - In the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina 26. Confiscation Acts - August 1861: First Confiscation Act allows government to seize enslaved people used in the Confederate war effort - July 1862: Second Confiscation Act frees enslaved people belonging to anyone who participated in or supported the rebellion - Was used to help Union in the war when they were losing 27. “Contrabands” - Although freeing an enemy's slaves had occurred in previous wars, Benjamin Butler came up with the idea of doing so by designating them as contraband of war, an idea that the Lincoln administration endorsed and that played a role in making emancipation an official war goal.  - This term meant that once the fleeing slaves crossed Union army lines, they were classified as property. All enemy property that fell into Union hands constituted contraband and would not be returned. 28. Radical Republicans Find in book - Were a political faction of the Republican party that originated 1854 - They called for the establishment of new governments with Confederate “rebels” excluded from power and Black men guaranteed the right to vote. - Believed gaining equality for all must become an instituted goal for Union war effort - Most prominent radicals in congress were charles sumner and thaddeus stevens, both outspoken foes of slavery and defenders of Black rights. 29. Battle of Antietam - August 1862: Antietam - Bloody Union victory - (deadliest day in US history) - Sep. 1862: Following the Battle of Antietam, Lincoln issued Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation 30. Emancipation Proclamation - signed by Lincoln on Jan. 1 1863 - Did not liberate all slaves - Freed slaves under Confederate control (in the seceded states), exempted anyone under Union control 31. “Forty Acres and a Mule” - (Jan 1865)General William T Sherman issued Special Field Order 15, which set aside the Sea Islands and a large area along the SC & GA coasts for the settlement of Black families across 40-acre plots of land. He also offered them broken-down mules that the army could no longer use. - -this order laid the origin of that phrase - -these acres of land were eventually returned to the former owners by Andrew Johnson in 1865 32. Freedmen's Bureau - an agency established by Congress in March 1865 to attempt to establish a working free labor system - under the direction of General O.O. Howard - the bureau took on daunting tasks, trying to establish institutions, provide aid, settle disputes, and secure equal treatment for former slaves & white Unionists in court - “I fear you have Hercules’ task” - lasted 1865-1870 - at peak, had less than 1000 agents in the whole south 33. Sharecropping - because no land distribution took place, vast majority of freed people remained poor/without property, and had no alternative but to work on white-owned plantations  - new systems of labor emerged in different regions in the South, such as sharecropping - sharecropping came to dominate Cotton Kingdom - it initially arose as a compromise between planters’ demand for labor and Blacks’ desire for land - it allowed each black family to rent a part of the plantation with the crop divided between the worker and owner at the end of the year - gave planters a stable resident labor force, gave former slaves less white supervision - as time went on, sharecropping became more and more oppressive 34. crop lien system - Google: In the post-Civil War South, the crop lien system allowed farmers to obtain supplies, such as food and seed, on credit from merchants; the debt was to be repaid after the crop was harvested and brought to market - since interest rates were extremely high and the price of cotton fell steadily, many farmers found themselves in debt, they found no other choice but to continue to plant cotton to obtain new loans - both black and white farmers found themselves caught in the sharecropping and crop-lien systems, some people never succeeded in getting out of debt (ex. Matt Brown) - rural south stagnated economically 35. 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments Three reconstruction amendments - (Dec 1865) 13th amendment- abolished slavery as an institution in all U.S. states and territories. - 14th amendment- placed the principle of birthright citizenship into the Constitution, prohibited anything that denied any person “equal protection under the law” - 15th amendment- all male citizens can vote, prohibited any state/federal government from denying any citizen the right to vote based on race (let the door open to restrictions not based on race) 36. Reconstruction ~1863-1877 - goal: reconstruct the Union -REF: Readmit southern states, Ex-confederates, Free blacks Includes: Lincoln 10% plan, Wade-Davis Bill, Johnson, Congressional Reconstruction 37. Andrew Johnson - Became president after Lincoln was assassinated - Deemed one of the worst presidents in US history - White supremacist, from tennessee, poor background-tailor  - Outlined Reconstruction plan that would provide opportunities for ex. Confederates and other leaders and planters to be granted pardons/gain amnesty, slavery is abolished, and they repudiate (refuse) secession →this plan backfired, as the South took advantage of this plan: Southerners elected ex. Confederates, created black codes →this angered the north, and was overturned by Congress 38. Black codes - Laws passed by the new southern governments that attempted to regulate the lives of the former slaves - Denied freemen various rights (to testify in court, vote, serve on juries) and legally required them to work on the plantation 39. Civil Rights Act of 1866 - A bill proposed in 1866 by senator Lyman Trumbull of Illonois - It defined all people of US as citizens and spelled out rights they were to enjoy w/o regard to race - This meant that states could no longer enact laws like Black codes that discriminated - Johnson vetoed this bill 40. Reconstruction Act of 1867 - This act (1867) temporarily divided the South into 5 military districts and called for the creation of new state governments - (The Reconstruction Acts established military rule over Southern states until new governments could be formed. They also limited some former Confederate officials' and military officers' rights to vote and to run for public office.) 41. Ku Klux Klan - Aka Klan, Redeemers, Night Riders - most basic reason for opposition to Reconstruction was because most white southerners couldn’t fathom the ability for former slaves to vote, hold office, and enjoy equality - -therefore, opponents launched campaigns of violence - -secret societies sprang up with the goal of preventing Blacks from voting and destroying Republican party organization by assassinating local leaders/public officials - -most notorious was Ku Klux Klan, served as a military arm of Democratic Party in the South - -was a terrorist organization - -committed some of the most brutal criminal acts in US History - -also known as “reign of terror” - -victims: White Republicans, African Americans, Unionists, etc. - -Enforcement Acts led to the disappearance of KKK until 1920s - 42. Colfax Massacre -was the bloodiest act of terrorist, white supremacist violence during reconstruction -took place in Colfax, Louisiana in 1873 -armed whites assaulted the town w/ a small cannon -estimated 150 people died, only 3 whites dead 43. Enforcement Acts -1870-1871 three Enforcement Acts were adopted -outlawed terrorist societies, allows the president to use the army against them -these laws continued the expansion of national authority during Reconstruction 44. Liberal Republicans -formed new political party -1872 -made by an influential group of republicans, alienated by corruption by Grant administration and believed the growth of the federal power during/after the war needed to be curtailed -Democratic criticisms of Reconstruction liked the Liberal Republicans (i think) -Horace Greeley was Liberal President, and ran against Grant for US president 45. Panic of 1873 - a financial crisis that triggered an economic depression in America -distracted by economic problems, Republicans were in no mood to devote further attention to the South, Democrats made substantial gains throughout the nation in the elections of 1874, led to Democrats gaining control of House 46. Civil Rights Act of 1875 -enacted right before new, Democratic controlled congress came in -it outlawed racial discrimination in places of public accommodation, like hotels & theaters 47. Slaughterhouse Cases The Slaughter-House Cases, (1873), was a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision which ruled that the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution only protects the legal rights that are associated with federal U.S. citizenship, not those that pertain to state citizenship. -in the Slaughterhouse Cases, the justices ruled that the Fourteenth amendment had not altered traditional federalism, most of the rights of citizens, it declared, remained under state control 48. United States v. Cruikshank (1876) -In United States vs. Cruikshank, the Court gutted the Enforcement Acts by throwing out the convictions of some of those responsible for the Colfax Massacre of 1873 -14th amendment applies only to state actions, not federal. 49. Civil Rights Cases 50. Redeemers  -Redeemers were democrats victorious of regaining control of states -believed they had “redeemed” the white south from corruption, misgovernment, and northern/black control 51. Bargain of 1877 (a.k.a. Compromise of 1877) -Hayes became president -violence and fraud led to disputed election returns Resolution: Compromise of 1877 -Hayes (Republican) became president Hayes agrees to: - recognize Democratic control of south and avoid further interventions in local affairs Democrats promised not to: -dispute Hayes’ right to office -respect the civil/political rights of Blacks (DID NOT HAPPEN)