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Reconstruction

Reconstruction. From 1865-1877 The process the U.S. federal government used to re-admit the Confederate states back into the Union. Not an easy solution. Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction Plan : The government would forgive (most) Confederates if they swore allegiance to the Union

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Reconstruction

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  1. Reconstruction From 1865-1877 The process the U.S. federal government used to re-admit the Confederate states back into the Union. Not an easy solution.

  2. Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction Plan: • The government would forgive (most) Confederates if they swore allegiance to the Union • Once 10% of Confederates promised, that state could form a new government and have representatives in Congress • Lincoln was assassinated before this took affect. Andrew Johnson became president…

  3. Andrew Johnson’s Plan • Johnson’s plan was similar to Lincoln’s, except that he did not want to include rich Southern landowners or high-ranking Confederates in the voting process. • By December 1865, most states were back in the Union.

  4. Rights for African Americans • In 1866, Congress voted for two laws that gave African Americans more rights: • Freedman’s Bureau: helped ex-slaves with food, shelter, medical care, homes, set up schools • Why would African Americans need this help? • Civil Rights Act of 1866: Anyone born in the U.S. is a U.S. citizen. • Johnson vetoed both, but they passed anyway.

  5. Johnson also opposed the 14th Amendment, which prevents states from denying rights to any citizen. • Congress impeached Johnson because they felt he was trying to prevent Reconstruction, but he did stay President. • In 1869, Ulysses S. Grant was elected President. • Soon after, the 15th amendment was passed, which states that no one can be prevented from voting because of their race (but not gender!)

  6. Reconstructing Society: Problems • In the South, many farms were ruined. The government started projects to repair them. • The Republican party was made up of 3 groups who often disagreed, leading to disunity: • Scalawags: White Southerners in the Rep. Party. Many were small farmers who did not want wealthy farmers to regain power • Carpetbaggers: Northerners who moved South after the war • African Americans: ex-slaves, men gained voting rights

  7. Former Slaves’ lives • Many founded churches, which became the center of African American communities • Needed schools to help become literate—95% could NOT read • Tried to unite with lost family members • Sharecropping: landowners divided land into parts, given to farmers. Farmers kept small amount, but gave most to landowners • Problems with this system?

  8. Opposition to Reconstruction • Ku Klux Klan: Unhappy that African Americans could vote and were no longer slaves. Their goal was to destroy the Republican Party, end Reconstruction, and prevent African Americans from having rights. • Killed about 20,000 men, women and children • Refused to do business with Republicans or African Americans • Depression of 1873 • Supreme Court undid some of the changes made

  9. Southern Democratsand the end of Reconstruction • As Republicans lost popularity, Southern Democrats gained power. • Election of 1876: Southern Democrats agreed to let Rutherford B. Hayes be president as long as federal troops were removed from the South. •  The official end of Reconstruction, 1877 • Not a lot of progress, except for the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, which still exist and played a big part in the 1960s.

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