Reconstruction Ends

Reconstruction Ends By 1877 Reconstruction had ended, and the South was undergoing even more changes.

During Grant’s presidency many northerners believed it was time for the South to solve its own problems. Southerners began to protest the “bayonet rule”- the use of federal troops in their states during Reconstruction. Loss of Support for Reconstruction

In the early 1870’s people began to charge President Grant’s administration and Reconstruction governments of corruption. Some Republicans split with the party and started their own, calling themselves the Liberal Republicans. Republican Revolt

Liberal Republicans called for amnesty to white Southerners. In May 1872, Congress passed the Amnesty Act, which pardoned most former Confederates. Nearly all white Southerners could vote & hold office again. Amnesty Act

The Amnesty Act changed the political balance in the South by restoring full rights to those who supported the Southern Democrats. In states where there was a an equal black & white population, or a greater black population, the KKK helped to terrorize Republican voters. Democrats Regain Power “Of course he wants to vote the Democratic ticket” (Harpers 1867)

Democrats Regain Power • African American leaders urged blacks to vote even at the threat of violence. 14 black leaders wrote a letter to Southern newspapers which stated: • “The success of the Democratic Party will, sound the death knell of all the hopes that the colored man has indulged of educating, elevating & improving his race in this State…” • From the Jackson Pilot, October 4, 1875

By 1876 Republicans held a majority in Congress in only 3 Southern states. (FLA, LA, SC) For the first time since the Civil War Democrats controlled a part of the federal government (Congress). Reconstruction & protecting the rights of African Americans began to weaken. Republicans Losing Power

Republican Candidate:Rutherford B. Hayes Governor of Ohio Held moderate views on Reconstruction Democratic Candidate: Samuel Tilden Governor of New York Gained national fame for fighting political corruption in New York City. The Election of 1876

Election of 1876 • Tilden received 250,000 more votes than Hayes but lost the election. • Disputed returns from Florida, Louisiana, South Carolina, and Oregon kept the outcome in doubt. • First to 185 electoral: • Tilden 184 • Hayes 165 • Florida, Louisiana, South Carolina, Oregon= 20 electoral votes.

Congress created a special commission of 7 Democrats, 7 Republicans, and 1 independent to review election results. The independent quit & a Republican took his place. The commission voted 8 to 7 to award all 20 electoral votes to Hayes. Which gave him the presidency. Dispute Over Election Results

Democrats were angry with the election commissions decision. They were going to fight the results in court. Republicans didn’t want a long legal battle so they say down with the Southern Democrats and made a compromise. Compromise of 1877- Reconstruction Ends

Compromise of 1877 settled the election dispute & included lots of favors to the South. The new government would give more aid($) to the South. All remaining federal troops would leave the South. Reconstruction ends Democrats promised to maintain African Americans rights. Compromise of 1877

South After Reconstruction • At the end of Reconstruction, many African Americans faced lives of poverty, and despair.

After Reconstruction many white southerners who hated Reconstruction took over. They called themselves “Redeemers” because they had “redeemed”, or saved, the South from Republican rule. Redeemers adopted conservative policies such as reduced government regulations, less public spending. They eliminated many social services started during Reconstruction including public education. Conservative South

Industry in the South began to make dramatic gains. The owners of large plantations began to open up textile, lumber, and tobacco mills. African Americans & poor whites began to work at these mills. Southern Industry

With no government regulation, workers were paid low wages & worked such long hours. Whole families had to work in the factories just to survive. Southern Industry made the rich richer & the poor poorer. Southern Industry

Plantation owners retained ownership of large areas of land. Poor blacks and whites had to sharecrop or tenant farm which was not profitable. Rural Economy

Many poor people working as sharecroppers went into debt because land owners sold credit with extremely high interest. The new conservative government did not grant affordable loans. Plantation owners became rich again while the rural South sank into deep poverty and debt. Rural Economy

As Reconstruction ended, true freedom for African Americans became a distant dream. With Reconstruction gone racism becomes firmly entrenched, & local governments took steps to keep blacks separated from whites & to deny them their basic rights. A Divided South

Voting Restrictions • Poll Tax: A fee that people had to pay before voting. • Southern states required a poll tax which kept many blacks from voting.

Literacy Test: A test voters had to read, & then explain difficult parts of state and the federal Constitution. Grandfather Clause: This law allowed individuals who did not pass the literacy test to vote if their fathers or grandfathers had voted before Reconstruction. Because African Americans could not vote until 1867 they were excluded. Voting Restrictions

Segregation: The separation of races. Jim Crow laws required blacks & whites to be separated in almost every public place. Jim Crow Laws

In 1896 the Supreme Court upheld the Jim Crow laws. Ruling that segregation was legal as long as facilities were equal. This became known as “separate but equal”. The problem was that the facilities were in no way equal. Southern states spent much more money on schools for whites than schools for blacks. Jim Crow Laws

The “separate but equal” doctrine segregated the South for close to an extra 90 years. Along with voting restrictions & laws to segregate society, violence against blacks increased. Lynching common. Jim Crow Laws

Reconstruction’s Impact • Reconstruction was both a success & a failure. • It helped the South recover from the Civil War & began to rebuild its battered economy. • Under Reconstruction, the rights of African Americans didn’t last long. • They began to gain greater equality and become elected to government but these improvements stopped when Reconstruction ended.

Reconstruction’s Impact • The biggest disappointment of Reconstruction was that it did not make good on the promise of true freedom for freed African Americans. With troop withdrawals and the end of Reconstruction, African Americans lost most of the gains they had made. The South soon created a segregated society. • The Civil War had ended slavery, but the failure of Reconstruction left many African Americans trapped in poverty and deprived of political, & social opportunities

Reconstruction Ends