CHAPTER 14: RECONSTRUCTION
NAME: ______________________________________
PD: _____________
VOCABULARY
Reconstruction—the reorganization and rebuilding of the former Confederate
States after the Civil War—(1865-1877)
Amnesty—the granting of pardon to a large number of persons
Freedmen—a person freed from slavery
Black Codes—laws passed in the South just after the Civil War aimed at
controlling freedmen and enabling plantation owners to exploit black workers
Override—to overturn or defeat, as a bill proposed in Congress
Impeach—to formally charge a public official with misconduct in office
Scalawag—name given by former Confederates to Southern whites who
supported Republican Reconstruction in the South
Carpetbagger—name given to Northern whites who moved South after the Civil
War and supported the Republicans
Corruption—dishonest of illegal actions
Sharecropping—system of farming in which a farmer works land for an owner
who provides equipment and seeds and receives a share of the crop
Poll Tax—a tax of a fixed amount per person that had to be paid before the
person could vote
Literacy Test—a method used to prevent African-Americans from voting by
requiring prospective voters to read & write a specified level
Grandfather Clause—a clause that allowed individuals who didn’t pass a literacy
test to vote if their fathers/grandfathers had voted before Reconstruction began
Segregation—the separation or isolation of a race, class, or group
Lynching—putting to death a person by the illegal action of a mob
CHAPTER 14: RECONSTRUCTION
PEOPLE
Thaddeus Stevens—leading Radical Republican in Congress during
Reconstruction; from PA
Andrew Johnson—Republican president from TN; Restoration & Impeachment
Edwin Stanton—Secretary of War; suspended & removed by Johnson
Ulysses S. Grant—Republican elected President in 1868 & 1872
Hiram Revels—1st African American Senator; Rev. from MS; Union Chaplain
Horace Greeley—NY Newspaper editor; Dem. Candidate for Pres 1872
CONCEPTS
Explain differences between Presidential Reconstruction & Radical Reconstruction.
Lincoln’s 10% Plan—Dec. 1863; 10% swear loyalty; ban slavery; amnesty
Wade-Davis Bill—July 1864—50% swear loyalty, ban slavery, no Confederates
can hold office; only those who swore they didn’t fight Union could vote
Johnson—“Restoration”—May 1865--most Southerners granted amnesty once
swore loyalty; Confederates officials & landowners could be pardoned by the Pres;
only loyal could vote; ratify 13th Amendment
Describe the functions of the Freedmen’s Bureau.
1865—government agency set up to help freedmen; distributed food, clothing,
medicine; set up schools & gave aid to new African-American colleges; helped
people acquire land & work; set up courts to protect freedmen’s rights
Identify how the Black Codes blocked rights of African Americans.
Permitted plantation owners to exploit freedmen workers & allowed officials to
arrest & fine jobless freedmen; banned freedmen from owning or renting farms;
What was the KKK?—Klu Klux Klan—secret society that used fear & violence to
deprive African Americas of their rights & advocate white supremacy
CHAPTER 14: RECONSTRUCTION
Outline the process of Pres. Andrew Johnson’s impeachment.
Johnson violated the Tenure of Office Act by suspending Sec. of War-Stanton
without Senate approvalthe House voted to impeach Johnson for
misconductthe trial in the Senate must have 2/3 vote for convictionJohnson
survived impeachment by 1 vote 35-19; many believed impeachment was
politically motivated & that Pres. Shouldn’t be removed due to political differences
How was the South socially & politically rebuilt?
Reconstruction Act of 1867—South divided into 5 military districts & placed
under authority of military commander; freedmen get right to vote in state
elections; prevented former Confederate leaders from holding office; to rejoin
states had to ratify the 14th Amendment
Republicans dominate Southern politics through African-Americans, scalawags &
carpetbaggers
How did Democrats regain control of Southern state governments?
Northerners lost interest in Reconstruction—South should solve its own problems;
Radical leaders faded away; corruption in Grant’s administration; South protested
“bayonet rule”; Amnesty Act of 1872—nearly all white Southerners can vote & hold
office again
13th Amendment—1865—Abolished Slavery in the United States
14th Amendment—1868—granted full citizenship to those born in the US;
required states to grant citizens equal protection of the laws; most cited
Amendment in the Supreme Court
15th Amendment—1870—prohibited the state & federal governments from
denying the right to vote to any male citizen because of “race, color, or previous
condition of servitude”
Describe the Election of 1876 & the Compromise of 1877.
Republican-Rutherford B. Hayes vs. Democrat—Samuel Tilden
Tilden wins popular vote but electoral votes disputed
Congress creates special commission to review the votes (8 Rep/7 Dem)
Vote 8-7 to give all 20 votes to Hayes
Compromise of 1877—Dem. Accept Hayes; aid to South & remove federal
troops; Dems promise to protect African-American rights; Reconstruction is over