Reconstruction of the Union An issue of reconstruction – Who had the authority to take charge of reconstructing the Union – the President or Congress?

How to Rebuild the Union What role should states play in regard to free slaves? Should the Government protect the rights of former slaves? Did the South actually secede? How should governments of Southern states be formed? Should former slaves be allowed to vote? Should Southerners be pardoned or punished? Should the Government give assistance to former slaves? Difficulties of Reconstruction

Presidential Reconstruction  Lincoln’s Plan  Leniency/forgiveness  Pardon all supporters of the Confederacy-except high officials  10% of pre-war voters take a loyalty oath - establish a state government and reapply for admission  New state constitutions must prohibit slavery  Publicly endorsed limited black suffrage

Radical Republicans Senator Charles Sumner from Mass Led by congressman Thaddeus Stevens from Pennsylvania  Insisted black suffrage necessary for Reconstruction  South treated as conquered territories

 Passed by Congress because they felt Lincoln’s plan was too lenient  50% of voters to take a loyalty oath  States must prohibit slavery  States must guarantee equality before the law = equal rights, rights to a fair trial for all citizens  Lincoln’s uses “pocket veto” Wade-Davis Bill 1864 Henry Davis Benjamin Wade

Freedmen’s Bureau HHelp freedmen adjust from slavery LLincoln creates bureau PProvides education, medical care, opportunities to lease land for farming BBureau also available for poor whites

13 th Amendment (1865) Abolished Slavery

President Andrew Johnson  Democrat from Tennessee  Anti-Southern aristocracy  Indifferent to slave issue  Own reconstruction plan shaped while congress on vacation  Reconstruction Plan:  a. general amnesty except for those in leadership class  b. States must ratify 13 th Amendment  c. emancipated slaves agree to work for former owners – not take interest in politics

Congressional Reconstruction (Radical)  Presidential Reconstruction a failure  New Southern State Governments passed: black codes = laws designed to regulate lives of former slaves  a. Blacks have limited rights  b. Blacks barred from serving on juries, testifying against whites, cannot bear arms, cannot vote.  c. must show written evidence of employment every January 10 th of each year or face arrest

Civil Rights Act (1866)  All persons born in U.S. are citizens guaranteed legal rights, except the right to vote  Civil rights do not include Indians  Bill passes Presidential veto because Southern congressmen not seated – locked out of congress

14 th Amendment  All native born or naturalized persons are citizens of U.S. and their state  Prohibits states from denying citizens equal protection under the law  10 out of 11 Southern states reject amendment

Tenure of Office Act  Congress passes to limit Johnson’s ability to interfere with its Reconstruction Plan  Barred President from removing officeholders without consent of Senate  Johnson tries to remove Edwin Stanton because he is ally to Republicans  House votes to impeach Johnson – fails by 1 vote

Ulysses S. Grant  Elected President 1868  Republican  Had strong support from black South  Lacks political experience – was a war hero  Presidency noted for its corruption

15 th Amendment Prohibits states from limiting vote because of race

Radical Reconstruction  Lasted 10 years  During time Democrats regain control of South  African Americans finally elected to higher office at state and national level  Hiram Revels and Blanch Bruce – Representatives in Mississippi Senate

Radical Reconstruction  Carpetbaggers = Northerners came South during and after war to reap spoils of public office – carried belongings in luggage called carpetbags.  Many were former soldiers, investors, or volunteers coming to help freedmen  Scalawags = native born Southerners who joined Republican party, negative term, most were white farmers hoping to recover wartime economic losses – hated by Confederates

South Fails to Develop Prosperous Economy  Most slaves do not own land  Few employment opportunities:  Sharecropping – lease/land: Family rents land, crops then divided between landowner and sharecropper – farmers exploited by landowners and tied to land in debt  Crop Lien System : Farmers forced to borrow and pledge against future crops – merchants insist that borrowers grow cotton not food crops  South not develop a prosperous and diverse economy

Ku Klux Klan  Formed in an effort to restore white supremacy  Used violence, terror, beatings, lynching, and mass murder to further cause  African Americans, scalawags, and Northerners victims

Enforcement Acts  Aimed at Ku Klux Klan (KKK)  Outlawed terrorist societies  Authorized the use of the Army against them

Rutherford B. Hayes  Elected in 1876  Republican  Ran against Tilden a Democrat  Tilden wins popular vote  Election contested by Republicans who claim blacks were denied the vote in Florida, South Carolina, Louisiana  Parties agree to compromise

Compromise of 1877  Hayes is declared winner of election  As winner, Hayes will declare the end of Reconstruction  Federal troops withdraw from the South  Reconstruction officially ends!

The South After The War Radical Reconstruction EconomicsSocial Issues First public schools African American suffrage Civil rights laws Black codes repealed Railroads and industry financed Sharecropping Crop-lien system Cotton dominates Racist societies (KKK) Racial violence US Army arrests terrorists North loses interest in the south

Reconstruction Timeline Lincoln 2 nd Term Johnson Impeach- ment 15 th Amend. Hayes Elected 14 th Amend. War Ends Lincoln Killed 13 th Amend. Grant Takes Office Grant Re-elect. Depres -sion Tenure of Office Act Violence Resumes