1. Reconstruction

2. Reconstruction Begins
Union General Gordon Granger took command of Texas
He issued a decree on June 19, 1865 – African Americans called this day Juneteenth
“The People of Texas are informed that…all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves…The freedmen are advised to remain at their present home and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts, and that they will not be supported in idleness (inactivity), either there or elsewhere.”

3. Juneteenth Celebration

4. Reconstruction Begins
The war ended but the United States remained divided
Reconstruction – the U.S. government’s plan to restore the South to the Union after the Civil War
Lincoln wanted to reunite the country and restore the South to the Union
He died before he could put his plan into action
The task fell to Andrew Johnson

5. Andrew Johnson’s Plan Johnson wanted to carry out Lincoln’s plan
Government would not punish the South but they had to meet certain conditions to re-enter Union
Texas and other southern states had to:
1. set up temporary governments
2. end slavery
3. declare secession illegal
4. all adult white males had to take an oath of loyalty to the U.S.

6. Struggle for African American Rights
Texas government declared the end of slavery
New government made a set of laws called “black codes” to limit the rights of African Americans
Black codes prevented African Americans from serving on juries or holding public office
Black codes forced them to work

7. Black Codes

8. Freedman’s Bureau
Freedman’s Bureau established in 1865 as outside help for African Americans:
1. protected freedmen from violence and black codes
2. provided food and health care
3. helped adults obtain jobs
4. set up schools for their children
Some whites resented the bureau and attacked and killed some bureau officials

9. Freedman’s Bureau

10. Congressional Plan for Reconstruction
Republicans disliked the course of Reconstruction – too lenient on South
Texas had elected former Confederate leaders into high offices
Texas had not approved two amendments to the U.S. Constitution
Amendment – a formal change
Texas did not ratify the 13th or 14th amendments

11. Congressional Plan for Reconstruction
Civil War Amendments:
13th Amendment – banned slavery (1865)
14th Amendment – gave citizenship to African Americans (1865/1868)
15th Amendment – allowed African American males to vote (1869)

12. Civil War Amendments

13. Congressional Plan for Reconstruction
Congress placed the South under the control of the army
The state’s elected officials left office
All white males had to take an “ironclad oath” in order to vote in election
White Texans resented actions by Congress
Secret societies formed, Ku Klux Klan, who terrorized African American voters

14. Ku Klux Klan Late 1860’s

15. Constitution of 1869
Texans elected delegates to a convention to write a new state constitution
It gave Texas a strong central government
African Americans and former Confederates could now vote
Governor could appoint judges/officials
Required all children to attend school
Edmund Davis became governor of Texas
President Grant readmitted Texas to the Union on March 30, 1870

16. End of Reconstruction
Many Texans criticized Governor Edmund Davis – accused him of stealing election
Governor Davis created a state police force to capture outlaws
He postponed elections and raised taxes
New taxes were used to build roads and schools and defend frontier
He encouraged more settlement in Texas
Lost the governor election to Richard Coke
Davis had a hard time accepting defeat

17. Edmund Davis
Richard Coke

18. End of Reconstruction
Texans raised more cotton than ever by the end of Reconstruction
Production of wheat and corn increased due to railroad expansion
By 1873, 1,500 miles of track that joined Texas to other parts of the U.S.
Texans developed more industries
A few factories produced textiles and iron
Wool and cotton mills opened
Most of Texas was still small farms

19. End of Reconstruction The system of slave labor ended with Civil War
The sharecropper system replaced slavery
Sharecroppers were farm workers who worked someone else’s land and gave ½ the value of the crops to the landowner
In 1873, about 100,000 immigrants moved to Texas from southern states in search of cheap land and a new beginning

20. Constitution of 1876
Texans did not trust the strong central government and resented the Constitution of 1869
In 1875, Texans held a convention to write a new constitution which:
1. cut the governor’s power to appoint officers
2. limited elected leaders to 2-yr terms
3. all males received the right to vote
Constitution of 1876 approved and remains in effect today in Texas