Reconstruction after the Civil War

Reconstruction after the Civil War Mr. Williamson

Reconstruction after Civil War • Reconstructionwas a process of readmitting the former Confederate states to the Union which lasted from 1865 to 1877. • Effects on South : • Cities, towns, and farms ruined • High food prices & crop failures, many southerners faced starvation • Confederate money was worthless - Banksfailed, & merchants became bankrupt - people couldn’t pay their debts

Lincoln’s Plan • President Abraham Lincoln wanted to reunite the nation as quickly and painlessly as possible. • Lincoln proposed a plan for readmitting Southern states called Ten Percent Plan - it offered southerners amnesty, or official pardon, for all illegal acts supporting the rebellion. • Southerners get Amnesty must do two things: 1) swear an oath of loyalty to the USA; 2) Agree that slavery was illegal • Once Ten Percent of the voters in state made pledges, they could form a new government. The State then could be readmitted to Union. Louisiana quickly elected a new state legislature under Lincoln’s Plan and other states followed Louisiana back to the US.

Wade-Davis Bill • Some politicians argued that Congress, not the president, should control the southern states’ return to the Union. Congress thought Lincoln’s plan didn’t go far enough. • Two Republicans—Senator Benjamin Wade & Representative Henry Davis proposed an alternative to Lincoln’s plan. • Wade-Davis Billa state must meet two conditions before rejoin the Union-1) Ban slavery; 2) majority of adult males take loyalty oath to the US • Only southerners who swore they never supported Confederacy could vote or hold office. • The bill was much stricter then the Ten Percent Plan. It made it harder for southern states to rejoin the Union quickly . Lincoln refused to sign the bill because he thought few Southern states would agree to meet its requirements. Also he believed his planwouldrestored order more quickly.

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Activity • Distribute the Student Sheets: What Might Have Been: Proclamation Of Amnesty And Reconstruction December 8, 1863 one set per team. • Direct the students, working in their pairs, to read the quotation from President Lincoln's speech to discover his attitude toward the restoring of the South after the Civil War. • Discussion: Why was Lincoln’s Ten Percent Plan so lenient (easy) on the South?

Compare and Contrast Lincoln’s Ten Percent Plan to Wade-Davis Bill

Lincoln Assassination On April 14, 1865, President Lincoln & wife attended play at Ford’s Theater; Washington, D.C. John Wilkes Booth, southerner who opposed Lincoln’s policies shot him and rushed to boardinghouse across the street. Lincoln died early the next morning. Vice President Andrew Johnson was sworn into office quickly and Reconstruction was his responsibility now. "Our country owed all her troubles to him, and God simply made me the instrument of his punishment." from the Diary of John Wilkes Booth

O Captain! My Captain!

Johnson’s Plan Johnson’s plan was similar to Lincoln’s plan –wealthy southerners & former Confederate officials needed a presidential pardon to get amnesty-more than 7,000 people pardoned by 1866. Johnson set up new southern state governments. 1)appointed temporary governor for each state 2)required states revise constitutions 3) Voters elected state &federal representatives 4) New state government declare secession illegal- ratify 13th Amendment & refuse pay Confederate debts . By end 1865, all Southern states except Texas created New Governments . Johnson approved all & declared USA restored. Republicans complained many new representatives were leaders of Confederacy - Congress refused to readmit Southern states into Union

Distribute the Student Sheet: If Lincoln Had Lived. • With your partner, read about the Reconstruction plans of the two presidents and discuss the following questions. • How did the plans differ? In what ways were they similar? • Speculate: In your opinion, how might history have been different if Lincoln had lived?

Compare and Contrast Lincoln’s Ten Percent Plan to Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan

13th Amendment • 13th Amendment was proposed by Congress on January 31, 1865. Congress proposed his amendment at the urging of Lincoln. It made slavery illegal throughout USA . It was ratified & took effect on December 18, 1865. • Freedom brought changes to newly freed slaves. Many searched for relatives & kids. While others held ceremonies to legalize marriages. • Some moved from mostly white counties to places with more African Americans . They took new last namesand insisted on being called Mr. or Mrs. as a sign of respect. • While others demanded the same economic and political rights as white citizens.

Distribute the Student Sheet: UnderstandingTwo Important Amendments. Tell students that Congress passed the Thirteenth and Fourteenth amendments to the Constitution at the end of the Civil War. • Read the amendments with the students, helping them to understand the language and interpret them. • Students restate the central idea of each amendment in one sentence in their own words. • Students predict. • How will this amendments affect the North and South after the Civil War? • How will it affect white citizens? • How will it affect African American?

Freedmen’s Bureau • In 1865 Congress created the Freedmen’s Bureau to help freed people & poor southerners recover from Civil War. The bureau commissioner was Oliver O. Howard. The Bureau helped by: 1. providing supplies (food) & medical services 2. establishing schools -by 1869 more than 150,000 African American students attending more than 3,000 schools 3. supervising contracts between freed people & employers 4. taking care of lands abandoned or captured during war

Distribute the Student Sheet: Help is on the Way! The Freedmen's Bureau. • Students, working in their small teams, read the information on the Student Sheet and discuss how the Freedmen's Bureau moved the country toward freedom. • Make a list of how the Freedmen's Bureau moved the country toward freedom.

Reviewing Ideas, Terms, and People • 1. a. Identify: What does Reconstruction mean? • b. Summarize: What was President Lincoln’s plan for Reconstruction? • 2. a. Recall: What is the Thirteenth Amendment? • b. Elaborate: In your opinion, what was the most important accomplishment of the Freedmen’s Bureau? Explain. • 3. a. Recall: Why was President Lincoln killed? • b. Analyze: Why did some America oppose President Johnson’s Reconstruction plan?

Black Codes • Every Southern state passed Black Codes, or laws that greatly limited the freedom of African Americans. • African Americans were required to sign work contracts. The conditions were similar under slavery and if could not prove you were employed you were arrested-punishment might be one year of work without pay. • It prevented African Americans from owning guns& not allowed rent property except in cities. • African Americans oppose the codes

Radical Republicans • Radical Republicans wanted the federal government to force change in the South & believed the Black Codes were cruel & unjust. • Thaddeus Stevens - Pennsylvania & Charles Sumner - Massachusettsleaders – both believed in African American rights & President Johnson’s plan was a failure • They gained support of moderate Republicans when President Johnson ignored Black Codes. The federal government couldn’t allow racial inequality . • Civil Rights Act of 1866 - provided African Americans with the same legal rights as whites but Johnson vetoed it. Congress overrode Johnson’s veto

POINTS OF VIEW Johnson vs. Stevens President Andrew Johnson argued that the South should not be placed under military control. “Military governments . . . established for an indefinite period, would have divided the people into the vanquishers and the vanquished, and would have envenomed [made poisonous] hatred rather than have restored affection.” —Andrew Johnson Thaddeus Stevens believed that Congress had the power to treat the South as conquered territory. “The future condition of the conquered power depends on the will of the conqueror. They must come in as new states or remain as conquered provinces. Congress . . . is the only power that can act in the matter.” —Thaddeus Stevens Identifying Points of View How did Johnson’s and Stevens' views on the South differ?

Many people in Congress opposed Johnson—they were called Radical Republicans. “Radical” means extreme, and “radicals” typically want to see extreme changes in society. • In the 1860s the Radical Republicans wanted to punish the South for the Civil War and they wanted freedmen to have equal rights. • Today, we’re going to investigate: Why was the Radical Republican plan for Reconstruction considered “radical?”

Hand out Thaddeus Stevens and Andrew Johnson Documents. Have students answer Guiding Questions . Review student responses. Be sure to ask students to point to evidence in the text to support their claims. • Discussion questions: • What are the major differences between the Radical Republicans and Andrew Johnson? • Which plan do you think would be more likely to unite the country after the Civil War? • Why do you think the Radical Republican plan was considered “radical?” • What do you predict actually happened during Reconstruction?

14th Amendment • Republicans were worried about Southern states readmitted - proposed 14th Amendment – summer 1866 - included the following provisions. • All people born or naturalized within the United States, except Native Americans, as citizens. • Guaranteed citizens equal protection of the laws • States could not “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” • Banned many former Confederate officials holding state or federal offices • State laws subject to federal court review • Congress power to pass any laws needed to enforce it

Distribute the Student Sheet: Understanding Two Important Amendments. Tell students that Congress passed the Fourteenth amendments to the Constitution at the end of the Civil War. • Read the amendment with the students, helping them to understand the language and interpret them. • Students restate the central idea of the amendment in one sentence in their own words. Write suggested sentences on the chalkboard and encourage the class to edit, combine and refine them into one accurate restatements. • Students predict. • How will these amendments affect the North and South after the Civil War? • How will they affect white citizens? • How will they affect African American?

1866 Election & Congress Control • President Johnson & most Democrats opposed 14th Amendment and civil rights for African Americans key issue in the 1866 Congressional Elections. • To help the Democrats, Johnson traveled around the country defending his Reconstruction plan. The tour was a disaster and did little to win votes. • The elections gave the Republican Party 2/3rds majority in both House & Senate and Republicans power to override a presidential veto. • The Republicans were united - moderates & Radicals called for new form of Reconstruction.

Reconstruction Act • March 1867, Congress passed first of several Reconstruction Acts –laws divided the South into 5 districts & US military commander controlled each district. The Military would remain in control of the South until rejoined Union. • To be readmitted, a state had to write new state constitution supporting the 14th Amendment & give African American men the right to vote. • Thaddeus Stevens was one of the new Reconstruction Acts’ most enthusiastic supporter. He spoke in Congress to defend the acts. “Have not loyal blacks quite as good a right to choose rulers and make laws as rebel whites? Every man, no matter what his race or color . . . has an equal right to justice, honesty, and fair play with every other man; and the law should secure him those rights.” –Thaddeus Stevens, quoted in Sources of the American Republic, edited by Marvin Meyers et al.

Impeachment • Johnson didn’t support Reconstruction policies, Congress passed a law limiting his power. This law prevented the president from removing cabinet officials without Senate approval. Johnson broke law by firing Edwin Stanton, the secretary of war. • The House of Representatives responded by voting to impeach the President - Impeachment -process used by a legislative body to bring charges of wrongdoing against a public official. • According to the Constitution, a 2/3rds majority was needed to find Johnson guilty & remove him from office. The Republicans failed by single vote to convict the president.

1866 Election • New York governor Horatio Seymour –Democrats • Ulysses S. Grant -war hero, appealed northern voters & supported Congressional Reconstruction plan-Republicans • Readmitted 7 Southern states— Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, and South Carolina - approved the 14th Amendment& let African American men vote • White Southerners violence keep African Americans away from polls -African American votes helped Grant win narrow victory

15th Amendment • After Grant’s victory, Congressional Republicans wanted to protect Reconstruction plan-worried southern states keep black voters from polls in future elections • Congress (1869) proposed 15th Amendment gave African American men the right to vote • Went into effect 1870 - one of the last Reconstruction laws passed at the federal level

Reviewing Ideas, Terms, and People 1. a. Describe What were Black Codes? • b. Make Inferences Why did Republicans think Johnson’s Reconstruction plan was a failure? 2. a. Recall What was the Civil Rights Act of 1866? • b. Summarize Why was the Fourteenth Amendment important? 3. a. Recall Why was President Johnson impeached? • b. Evaluate Which element of the Reconstruction Acts do you believe was most important? Why? 4. a. Recall What does the Fifteenth Amendment state? • b. Elaborate Do you think that women should have been included in the Fifteenth Amendment? Explain.

Reconstruction Governments • Northern-born Republicans moved South after the war - white southerners called them Carpetbaggers - rushed South carrying all their possessions in bags made from carpeting • Southern Democrats cared even less for white southern Republicans referred to them as scalawags, or greedy rascals -betrayed the South by voting for Republican Party • African Americans largest group of southern Republican voters -During Reconstruction more than 600 African Americans won election to state legislatures -16 were elected to Congress. • African American politicians came from many backgrounds. Hiram Revels was born free in North Carolina and went to college in Illinois. In 1870 Revels became the first African American in the U.S. Senate. Unlike Revels, Blanche K. Bruce grew up in slavery in Virginia. Bruce became an important Republican in Mississippi and served one term as a U.S. senator.

Reconstruction Governments • Reconstruction governments provided money for new programs and organizations in South. They helped to establish first state-funded public school systems, built new hospitals, prisons, & orphanages and passed laws against discrimination against African Americans • Southern states under Republican control spent large amounts of money. They aided the construction of railroads, bridges, and public buildings. These improvements were intended to help the southern economy recover from the war. To get the money for these projects, the Reconstruction governments raised taxes and issued bonds.

Ku Klux Klan • In 1866 a group of white southerners in Tennessee created Ku Klux Klan -secret society opposed civil rights, particularly suffrage, for African Americans. • They used violence and terror against African Americans -membership grew rapidly as it spread throughout the South • Their members wore robes and disguises to hide their identities –attacked & murdered—African Americans, white Republican voters, and public officials, usually at night • In 1870 -1871 the federal government took action-Congress passed laws that made it a federal crime to interfere with elections or to deny citizens equal protection under the law - Within a few years they were no longer an organized threat

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Distribute the Student Sheet Not So Free At Last. Working in small teams, students discuss the following: • How did the KKK create difficulties for blacks and whites alike?

Election of 1876 • Republicans could tell that northern support for Reconstruction was fading. Voters’ attention was shifting to economic problems. • Republicans selected Ohio governor Rutherford B. Hayes as their 1876 presidential candidate. He believed in ending federal support of the Reconstruction governments. • The Democrats nominated New York governor Samuel J. Tilden. During the election, Democrats in the South again used violence at the polls to keep Republican voters away.

Election of 1876 • The election between Hayes and Tilden was close. Tilden appeared to have won. • Republicans challenged the electoral votes in Oregon and three southern states. A special commission of members of Congress and Supreme Court justices was appointed to settle the issue. • The commission narrowly decided to give all the disputed votes to Hayes. Hayes thus won the presidency by one electoral vote. • In the Compromise of 1877, the Democrats agreed to accept Hayes’s victory. In return, they wanted all remaining federal troops removed from the South. They also asked for funding for internal improvements in the South and the appointment of a southern Democrat to the president’s cabinet. Shortly after he took office in 1877, President Hayes removed the last of the federal troops from the South.

Activity • Using the Harpers' Weekly drawing of Rutherford B. Hayes taking the oath of office, students draw a pen and ink caricature of Hayes. • Students choose a quote from the Student Sheet: The Healer President to add to their drawing.

Redeemers • Gradually, Democrats regained control of state governments in the South. In each state, they moved quickly to get rid of the Reconstruction reforms. • Democrats who brought their party back to power in the South were called Redeemers. • Redeemers wanted to reduce the size of state government and limit the rights of African Americans. They lowered state budgets and got rid of a variety of social programs. The Redeemers cut property taxes and cut public funding for schools. They also succeeded in limiting African Americans’ civil rights.

Redeemer Restrict Rights • Redeemers set up the poll tax in an effort to deny the vote to African Americans. The poll tax was a special tax people had to pay before they could vote. • Some states also targeted African American voters by requiring them to pass a literacy test. A so-called grandfather clause written into law affected men whose fathers or grandfathers could vote before 1867. As a result, almost every white man could escape the voting restrictions. • Redeemer governments also introduced legal segregation , the forced separation of whites and African Americans in public places. Jim Crow laws —laws that enforced segregation—became common in southern states in the 1880s.

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The term Jim Crow came from a clown-like stage character. This stereotype gave its name to the series of laws created in the post-Reconstruction south that kept African Americans segregated and unequal and severely limited their civil rights. • Students brainstorm with partner the answer the following questions. • What is a stereotype? • What groups of people are often stereotyped? • Why are stereotypes hurtful?

Distribute the Student Sheet: Images of Jim Crow. Working with a partner, students answer the following questions. • Describe Jim Crow. What is he doing? How is he dressed? Facial expression? • How do these pictures demean (put down) and stereotype African Americans? • What messages do they send about African Americans? • How would African Americans (including Frederick Douglass) react to seeing such pictures? • The song is written in dialect. What does the language use say about black Americans? • Distribute the Student Sheet: Examples of Jim Crow Laws. Students read and discuss the laws with teammates to answer the following questions. • How did these laws affect the lives of African Americans? Were there any aspects of daily life that these laws did not touch? • Find adjectives to describe such a life. What emotions would you feel living under these restrictions? • Imagine that you were a white person opposed to these laws (and many were). What might happen if you spoke out or wrote a letter to the newspaper? • Can people really be separate but equal?

Plessy v. Ferguson • In 1896 the U.S. Supreme Court returned to the issue of segregation. When Homer Plessy, an African American, refused to leave the whites-only Louisiana train car he was riding on, he was arrested and accused of breaking a state law requiring separate cars for blacks and whites. • Plessy sued the railroad company and lost. His lawyers argued that the law violated his right to equal treatment under the Fourteenth Amendment. He then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. • The Supreme Court ruled against Plessy in Plessy v. Ferguson. Segregation was allowed, said the Court, if “separate-but-equal” facilities were provided.

Reconstruction after the Civil War