Name: ________________________
Date: ________________
Directions: Read the questions at the end of the passage. As you begin to read underline any
information that helps you to complete the passage. After you have read the entire passage,
complete the questions.
Who Was Andrew Johnson?
(Adapted from Joy Hakim, “A History of US”)
It was an actor’s bullet that gave the country a new president. Now
everyone was asking what kind of man he was. People didn’t know quite what to
expect of President Andrew Johnson.
He was almost exactly the same age as Abraham Lincoln, and like Lincoln,
he’d been a poor boy who had made his own way in life. Johnson had once been a
tailor, but when he got up at a political meeting and began speaking, he found he
had a talent. He could captivate and hold an audience.
Andy Johnson didn’t have much education, but he was smart and he soon
became wealthy. His wife helped smooth his rough edges and taught him some
book learning, too. He was a Democrat and a slave owner.
In his home state, Tennessee, he became governor, congressman, and
senator. He was in the Senate when the Southern states, including Tennessee,
seceded. He stuck with the Union. When Union forces captured Tennessee,
President Lincoln made him military governor. He held the post during the war.
He was often in danger. But Andrew Johnson was courageous. He was a good
man for the job.
Even though Johnson was a Democrat, and Lincoln a Republican, Abraham
Lincoln asked Johnson to be Vice President.
Now the awful war was over. It was time for healing. Most people were
encouraged. Johnson seemed the perfect person to bring the South and North
together again. After all, Johnson was a Southerner who had the courage to stay
with the Union. Both Democrats and Republicans supported him. Perhaps it was
all for the best.
But those who knew Johnson weren’t so sure. Yes he had courage, no doubt
about that. But he was also stubborn. He didn’t ask for advice, or listen when it
was given. Lincoln asked questions, listened, and changed his mind when he
thought it needed changing. He knew how to compromise. Andy Johnson was
uncompromising. He was very rigid.
Name: ________________________
Date: ________________
Questions: Complete the questions below in complete sentences.
1. In what state was Andrew Johnson born?
2. Andrew Johnson was a member of which political party?
3. What strengths did Andrew Johnson bring to the political office?
4. What weaknesses did Andrew Johnson bring to the political office?
5. Using the reading above and your previous knowledge, predict what type of
plan Andrew Jackson might have to reconstruct the Union.