IntroductionWhen the Civil War ended in 1865,
Georgia, along with the rest of the south faced great challenges.
The southern states to which war weary Confederate soldiers returned home was not as they had left it.
Destruction1. Homes2. Factories3. Railroads4. Stores
IntroductionThere wasn’t enough food & many people were
starving.Confederate paper money was worthless, and
numbers of banks had closed their doors.Many of the adult white male population died
during the war, or returned home unable to work because of their injuries.
Some who had land sold it to raise cash badly needed for rebuilding.
Life was particularly hard in Georgia because of all of the destruction. People had to live in makeshift housing or in tents.
African AmericansFour million former slaves (freedmen)
faced even greater hardships.Examples
1. Homeless2. Uneducated 3. Few possessions, little clothing
African Americans drifted from place to place looking for food, shelter, work, and lost family members (spouses, children, and other family members or friends that had been sold away from them during slavery.
Social OrderWhen the Civil War broke the chains of slavery, it
also destroyed the old social order of master and slave.
A new relationship had to be forged between blacks and whites in the southern states.
Racial attitudes made that difficult.1. Blacks feared that their old masters would try to enslave them.2. Whites found it difficult to accept blacks as free persons and did not accept them as equals.
White fear of African American drifters, and rising crime rates in the black community (often a necessity to find food), caused southerners to create vigilante groups such as the Ku Klux Klan.
The Freedmen’s BureauIn response to the needs of struggling
whites and freedmen, the United States government established the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands in March 1865.
Its first commissioner was Union General Oliver O. Howard.
The original purpose of the agency was to help both blacks and whites cope with their everyday problems by offering them clothing, food, and other necessities.
The Freedmen’s BureauHowever, after a while, the bureau’s focus
changed so that it became concerned primarily with helping freedmen adjust to their new circumstances.
They tried to help African Americans by giving them1. The Right to Vote2. Land 3. An Education
Southern whites felt completely abandoned by the U.S. Federal Government.
The Birth of Modern RacismIt was in this social climate that modern racism was
born. Feeling abandoned by the Federal Government,
southern whites had a growing resentment for the African American community (who benefited from government policy).
Unable to lash out against the Federal Government, whites lashed out against the weaker black community.
Hate groups such as the Ku Klux Klan demonstrated their frustration toward Washington, D.C. by beating, and lynching African Americans, burning their homes, and houses of worship.
Reconstruction PlansLincoln’s Plan
10% Plan - lenient, state had to outlaw slavery, 10% of voters in each state must pledge allegiance to Union
Johnson’s PlanSimilar to Lincoln's, but he did not let former
Confederate officers and wealthy landowners vote; he also made states ratify the 13th Amendment (this amendment ended slavery)
Congressional ReconstructionHeaded by Radical Republicans; they created the
Freedmen’s Bureau; they passed the 14th and 15th Amendments to the Constitution and made the southern states ratify these amendments as well as the 13th; US military governed the southern states; Confederate officers were denied political power
Reconstruction Legislation13th Amendment: abolished slavery14th Amendment: makes blacks citizens (no
discrimination based in race)15th Amendment: gives blacks the right to
voteReconstruction Act: Congressional
Reconstruction (same thing)
Groups in ReconstructionRadical Republicans: Congressmen wanting
to destroy power of slaveholders and make changes (blacks can become citizens and vote)
Freedmen’s Bureau: agency to help former slaves and poor whites with clothes, food, and other necessities
Scalawags: Southern Republicans Carpetbaggers: Republicans who moved South
after the warKKK: secret organization to keep freedmen
from exercising rights through terrorSharecroppers: farmers who were given a few
acres of land, tools, seeds, etc. by the landowner in exchange for part of the crop
Tenant farmer: farmers who rented the land, only small profit, but better than sharecroppers
African-Americans in ReconstructionLooked for family membersTried to get an educationBegan new churchesBecame involved politically by voting or
running for officeHenry McNeal Turner--raised in South (free
black), AME preacher, served in Union army, elected state senator; he and 26 other black legislators were denied acceptance by the majority white General Assembly; after protest and US support, the legislators were able to participate in the 2nd legislative session
Reconstruction in GA Constitutional Convention of 1865: the
government of Georgia repealed secession and abolished slavery—they did this in order to reenter the Union
Constitutional Convention of 1868: move convention (and capital) to Atlanta, they passed the 14th amendment, whipping was abolished, and they set up the poll tax
End of ReconstructionBy mid-1870’s everyone tired of
Reconstruction due to: high taxes put South deeper in debt, whites gained power as troops withdrew, South fought against policies
Presidential Election of 1877 disputedDemocrats and Republicans agree to give
victory to Rutherford B. Hayes if Hayes will withdraw troops in South--marks the end of Reconstruction
Effects of ReconstructionPositiveRebuilt South and
restored the UnionStimulated economic
growthPassed 13th, 14th,
and 15th amendments
Freedmen’s Bureau helped
NegativeMost blacks still in
povertyBlacks denied rights with
KKK, poll tax, literacy test, grandfather clause
Racism continuedSouth bitter at
Republicans and federal government
South still not industrialized
Reconstruction News Article
Write a two-paragraph news article about Reconstruction. Include the following:
1. Overall effects, both positive and negative of Reconstruction2. Explanation of different groups that formed during Reconstruction3. A description of the three different Reconstruction plans