1. US History Lesson 10

2. Presidential Reconstruction Reconstruction became a major issue between Presidents Lincoln and Johnson and the Radical Republicans The Radical Republicans wanted to punish the South while Lincoln and the moderates wanted to bring the South into the Union quickly In 1863 Lincoln proposed the Ten Percent Plan  a plan consisting of 3 parts in order to allow Southern states back into the Union 1. the state had to ratify the 13 th Amendment 2. the state had to repudiate secession 3. when 10% of the voters take an oath of allegiance, the state could be readmitted into the Union

3. Presidential Reconstruction Radical Republicans objected to the 10% Plan saying it was too lenient and it didn’t protect the rights of the newly freed slaves The Radical Republicans proposed the Wade-Davis Bill  called for ratification of the 13 th Amendment and 50% of all voters to denounce secession Southerners believed this was impossible and just a way for the North to dominate over the South Lincoln vetoed the Wade-Davis Bill but died before he could reintroduce a new bill

4. Presidential Reconstruction Lincoln’s successor, Andrew Johnson, had a similar plan for Reconstruction Johnson sought to rapidly reintegrate the South back into the Union The election of 1866 saw the Radical Republicans (wanted to punish the South) gain majority in Congress The Radical Republicans began pushing bills to punish the South  Johnson vetoed them one after another In response to the vetoes  the Radical Republicans impeached President Johnson but failed to remove him from office Weakened, Johnson and the moderates were unable to stop the next Congressional effort

5. Reconstruction Era Presidents President Abraham LincolnPresident Andrew Johnson

6. Congressional Reconstruction First Reconstruction Act 1867 Passed over President Johnson’s veto Divided the South into 5 military districts that were administered by military governors In order to be re admitted in the Union, Southern states had to 1. guarantee African-American suffrage 2. hold open elections for black and white representatives to the state constitutional convention 3. create new state constitutions that the three Reconstruction Amendments (13, 14, and 15) All Southern states had to be back in the Union by 1870 Federal troops remained in the South to enforce the new provisions and protect African-Americans from mob violence

7. Reconstruction Zones

8. “Forty Acres and a Mule” In 1865 General Sherman issued a special field order in order to do settle the large mass of freed slaves following his army through the South Each African-American family was to get 40 acres and a mule from confiscated lands in Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina Approximately 18,000 families were settled this way HOWEVER…before the program could be fully implemented, President Johnson rescinded the order and returned all confiscated lands to the former owners

9. “Forty Acres and a Mule”

10. The Freedmen’s Bureau In March of 1865 Congress created the Freedmen’s Bureau in order to assist freed slaves to transition from enslavement to freedom The Bureau’s responsibilities included: 1. introducing a system of free labor 2. overseeing around 3,000 schools for freed persons 3. settling disputes between the white landowners and the black labor force 4. securing justice for African-Americans in the court system

11. The Freedmen’s Bureau cont… The Bureau did help former slaves obtain land BUT Congress did not grant land nor the absolute right to own land to all freed slaves Without land and with few skills, newly freed slaves often entered into sharecropping, crop lein, or the tenant farming system  they often ended up working for their former slave owner with little change from slavery

12. The Freedmen’s Bureau cont… On it’s own, the Bureau had little power to enforce it’s rules  after federal troops left the South in white Southerners refused to follow the new rules The Freedmen’s Bureau ceased operation in 1872

14. Educational Success During the Reconstruction period African-Americans made progress in many areas 1. many AA children were able to attend free school for the first time 2. AA started newspapers, served in public office, and attended new colleges established just for them Morehouse College was founded in Atlanta in 1867 A former slave and two ministers founded MC in order to provide an education for AA in the fields of ministry and education

15. Resistance to Reconstruction In the South, resistance to Reconstruction took several forms 1. many white Southerners refused to participate politically 2. South states passed harsh laws that restricted economic and political rights of the freedmen 3. violence was used to intimidate the freedmen

16. Black Codes Black Codes were designed to regulate relations between whites and blacks in the South Legalized marriage, ownership of property, and limited access in the courts were some rights given to the freedmen in the South The Black Codes denied AA the right to testify against whites in court, to serve on juries or in state militias, to vote, and express legal concerns publicly The Black Codes enraged northern Congressmen who saw that they were just an attempt to re-introduce slavery

17. Ku Klux Klan The KKK was originally in Tennessee in 1866 as a Confederate veteran’s club but quickly became an organization linked to violence and intimidation The KKK began by scaring AA into compliance and keep them from voting When that failed, the KKK began to attack Northern whites who came to the South, South whites who aided Reconstruction, and AA who were educated and participated in the community Eventually the Klan began to attack anyone it didn’t like  attacks often included beatings and killings in front of family members

18. KKK at a Voting BoothKKK Sneak Attack

19. Ku Klux Klan cont… Resistance to the Klan was difficult because many AA’s didn’t have weapons and KKK sympathizers often held court positions Some states such as Arkansas, Tennessee, and Texas broke up the Klan with special police forces Eventually the federal government was able to get a handle on the Klan by using the Enforcement Acts By 1872 the Klan began to step down because Southern leaders wanted the federal troops to leave the South again

20. Impeachment President Andrew Johnson angered the Radical Republicans by vetoing several Congressional Reconstruction measures In an attempt to get rid of President Johnson the Radical Republicans passed the Tenure of Office Act  it forbade the President from removing important government officials without Congressional approval President Johnson fired Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton ( a Radical Republican) causing the House of Representatives to impeach President Johnson After a lengthy hearing Andrew Johnson was acquitted by one vote and remained in office

21. Relationship to Reconstruction Even though the impeachment failed…President Johnson’s days were numbered During the 1868 Presidential Election a Radical Republican supporter would be elected President  Ulysses S. Grant The election of 1868 allowed Congress to gain full control over Reconstruction

22. General Ulysses S GrantPresident Ulysses S Grant

23. Election of 1876 Democrats nominated Samuel J. Tilden Republicans nominated Rutherford B. Haynes After a bitter campaign, Tilden won the popular vote by 260,000 votes but failed to carry the majority of electoral votes A special Federal commission was appointed to award the electoral votes for Florida, Louisiana, Oregon, and South Carolina) The commission awarded Rutherford B. Haynes the Presidency  the Democrats were outraged Hayes met with Democratic leaders and ironed out a compromise

24. Compromise of 1877 The Compromise of 1877 was an agreement between Rutherford B. Haynes and Democratic leaders that awarded Haynes with the Presidency In return Haynes agreed to 1. Support internal improvements for the South 2. Appoint a Southerner to his Cabinet 3. And withdraw Federal troops from the South After his inauguration in March of 1877, Haynes withdrew the troops from the South  Republican dominated state governments collapsed and AA’s were slowly disenfranchised by state laws Reconstruction had come to an end