Transcript Reconstruction

Reconstruction of the South
The Civil War 1861-1865
 War between the North (Union) and South
(Confederacy)
 The South wanted:
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To preserve their way of life including slavery
Leave the Union (United States) and form their own country
 The North wanted:
 Higher tariffs or taxes
 To end slavery
 To preserve the Union (keep the country whole)
The Civil War 1861-1865
 The Southern states won early battles
 Later the tide of the war turned to favor the North:
 The Battle of Gettysburg (Pennsylvania)
The Union stopped General Lee’s advancement to the North
 He and his troops went back to Virginia
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The Battle of Vicksburg (Virginia)
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General Grant won the Battle of Vicksburg, cutting the South in
two.
General Lee surrendered to General Grant at Appomattox
Court House in Virginia on April9, 1865.
Reconstruction
 Reconstruction means to build something again.
 After the war, the South needed to be rebuilt.
 There were two plans for Reconstruction:
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President Lincoln’s plan
Congress’ plan
Lincoln’s Plan
 President Lincoln’s plan:
 Ended slavery throughout the country by passing the 13th
amendment to the Constitution
 Allowed Southern states to reenter the Union if
They formed new state governments
 They promised to treat former slaves fairly
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 President Lincoln was assassinated before
Reconstruction began so President Johnson had to
enact his plan.
Reconstruction under Congress
 Congress passed the first Reconstruction Acts in
1867.
 They divided the South into military zones.
 They required that Southern states rewrite their state
constitutions to allow African American men the
right to vote.
 They prevented former Confederate leaders and
military officers from holding public office.
Problems with Johnson’s plan
 Under this plan, Southern states were free to pass laws
called Black Codes.
 Black codes
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Denied African American men the right to vote
Limited jobs
Denied the right to own land or guns
The result was that life for African Americans was much the same as
it was under slavery.
 Black codes angered Congress and they came up with
their own plan for Reconstruction.
Reconstruction Under Congress
 The Freedmen’s Bureau was formed
 Helped the 4 million slaves freed by the war
 Built hospitals and schools for blacks
 Resistance to Reconstruction
 Southern whites resented the new state governments
 They had a hard time paying new taxes as they tried to rebuild
their businesses and farms
 They resented new rights given to African Americans

Some formed the Ku Klux Klan that burned African American
schools and homes and attacked blacks for trying to vote.
Reconstruction Under Congress
 Carpetbaggers:
 Northerners who went down South to start businesses
 Scalawags:
 Southerners who supported Reconstruction
Reconstruction Under Congress
 In order to be readmitted to the Union, Southern
states had to accept two new amendments.
 The 14th Amendment:
 Gave citizenship to African Americans
 Stated that they could not be denied equal rights under the
law.
 The 15th Amendment:
 Granted the right to vote to all male citizens
Reconstruction Ends
 By 1870, all former Confederate states met the
requirements of Reconstruction.
 After Reconstruction, white Southern Democrats
quickly regained power in state governments.
 New laws were passed that again restricted the rights
of former slaves.

Tried to prevent African Americans from voting
Moved voting booths without notice
 Imposed poll taxes many blacks could not pay
 Grandfather clause that said they could only vote if their father or
grandfather had voted before 1867.

Reconstruction Ends
 Jim Crow Laws were also passed.
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Enforces segregation or separation of blacks and whites
Blacks could not sit with whites on trains or stay in certain
hotels.
They could not eat in certain restaurants or attend certain
theaters, schools or parks.
Reconstruction Ends
 Many former slaves were forced to return to
plantations because they could not find jobs.
 Sharecropping became a way of life for blacks and
poor whites.
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They rented land from landowners
Paid their rent with crops
Used the money from the rest of their crops to pay for clothes
and food
Usually didn’t make enough money
After War and Reconstruction
 Slavery was over.
 The federal government had established its power
over the states.
 The 14th and 15th amendments provided for equal
rights although it would be a very long time before
these rights were recognized.