Rebuilding the South

Sharecropping – Freedmen or poor whites worked someone else’s land Owner provided them with a place to live, seed, tools, and food on credit. Many sharecroppers were cheated or taken advantage of Tenant Farming – Tenants provide their own tools and seed, while the owners provide the housing. Profits are shared by both.

Lincoln- plan to “reconstruct” the South and bring them back into the Union (started planning in 1863) Requirements: 10% of white male voters had to pledge an oath of allegiance to the Union High ranking Confederate military leaders and officers- not allowed to take oath A new constitution was to be written by each state including the banning of slavery Representatives could be seated in Congress, vote on state government, status as state returned

 Lincoln is assassinated-1865  Andrew Johnson becomes President  Johnson’s plan- similar, but with added requirements:  Ratify 13 th amendment  Cancel Ordinance of Secession  Cancel all wartime debts  Still need to write new constitution that includes abolishing slavery  Georgia follows the regulations

 Radical Republicans-  South needed to be punished  Too lenient  Pardons- too easy to earn  Said Johnson didn’t have authority to do this without Congressional approval

 Created by Congress to help the freedmen and poor whites obtain food, shelter, and clothing  Education was an important focus  Help the newly freed black become citizens

Black Codes- restricted freedmen’s rights Prohibited interracial marriage No serving on juries No testifying against whites Disorderly behavior or unemployment meant jail time Whipping is allowed for minor crimes Hours and duties of workers are regulated Can be fired without receiving money owed

The Civil Rights Act of 1866 Guaranteed the rights of freedmen Blocked the South’s black codes Freedmen’s Bureau time limit is extended Congress passes the 14 th Amendment Guarantees citizenship and equal rights to ALL persons born in the U.S. except Native Americans “ All persons born or naturalized in the Unites States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges of immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws”. Southern states are required to ratify the 14 th President Johnson says to reject it Georgia’s legislature does reject it

Military Reconstruction Acts South is divided into military districts South is placed under military rule Former Confederate officeholders were not allowed to vote or run for office

 States- write new constitutions (again!)  Guarantee Black males over 21 right to vote  Approve the 14 th amendment  Confederate officers- not allowed to vote or hold office

Georgia was placed under military rule. Blacks were registered to vote and even ran for office Major General John Pope is in charge of GA  A constitutional convention was to be held in Milledgeville, the state capital, but the hotels wouldn’t rent rooms to the black delegates The capital is moved to Atlanta, as is the convention

Voting rights given to all adult males Prohibition of slavery Support of free public education Whipping abolished as a punishment Poll tax is established Capital officially moved to Atlanta

Henry McNeal Turner He had been raised free in the south Licensed preacher After the war started the first African American church in Marietta Elected to the state legislature-Bibb County He promoted land ownership, education and voting rights for blacks

 NORTHERN ABOLITIONIST  BECAME MILITARY GOVERNOR OF ISLANDS- ST CATHERINES, OSSABAW, AND SAPELO during Reconstruction  GA SENATOR  OUTSPOKEN  CRITICIZED WHITE EFFORTS TO LIMIT VOTING RIGHTS  SON- STATE LEGISLATOR FROM MCINTOSH CO.

 Born a slave  Become a tailor in Macon  Elected to the House of Representatives  Worked for a bill to keep former Confederate officers from holding public office

September- White GA Democrats removed the black members of the state legislature  They stated that the constitution did not say that blacks could hold office  Just because they could vote and be citizens did not mean they could be elected officials

Ku Klux Klan Started in Tennessee as a social and political organization for Civil War Veterans-1866 Became a growing problem in Ga in 1868 Goes astray and starts using violence and terror to oppress the freedmen No voting, holding office, or exercising their rights Used lynching and other attacks such as burning crosses

 Congressional hearings on violence in the south  Governor of Ga asked for help due to violence  Federal troops return in December  Put black members back in Congress and the General Assembly

Congress passes the 15 th Amendment Guarantees all men the right to vote “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” GA and 3 other states had to ratify this amendment before they could reenter the Union Georgia ratifies the 15 th Amendment GA is re-admitted to the Union GA citizens elect a Democratic governor (1872) There are no Republican governors until Sonny Perdue in 2003 Federal troops leave GA and Reconstruction ends