Reconstruction – Now that the Civil War is over…
http://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/reconstruction
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_freed.html
Background:
When the Civil War ended in April of 1865, the country was a mess. For four long years,
the Union and Confederacy fought over the issue of states’ rights. When the war ended,
the task of bringing the South back into the Union fell on the shoulders of Raleigh’s own,
Andrew Johnson…
 Andrew Johnson’s tenure as 17th President of the US was filled with problems.
Congress looked to Johnson to be harsh toward the South during Reconstruction.
 Johnson was a firm believer in states’ rights (each state should best decide its
own course of action) and that the US Government (Washington, D.C.) shouldn’t
control issues like voting requirements or labor laws.
 Before the Civil War ended, Congress had created the Freedman’s Bureau.
 It had 3 purposes/goals:
1. To assist former slaves and poor whites with creating a work program that
would pay them for their services.
2. To oversee the creation of 3,000 schools for freed people
3. To help former slaves that needed help when going to court to dispute “land
issues” with former owners.
 The Freedman’s Bureau was not a long term solution. It was intended to last 1
year to help African-Americans find work that they would be paid for.
 So In 1866, Andrew Johnson “vetoed” extending the Bureau. He felt by having
the US Government force this program, it was getting in the way of how a state
governed itself. Congress disagreed and overrode Johnson’s veto.
 Congress also passed the Reconstruction Act of 1867, over Pres. Johnson’s veto:
 It divided the South into 5 military “districts” (see map on first page)
 Created the 14th Amendment – gives African-Americans the right of citizenship
(to own property, protection of laws - 1866)
 Created the 15th Amendment – the right of citizens to be able to vote (men, not
women  - 1869)
 Congress and Johnson didn’t see eye to eye on most issues.
 Johnson intentionally waited for Congress to go on recess, before he fired the
Secretary of War Edwin Stanton. He didn’t have this authority…
 Johnson’s impeachment started when the House brought 11 charges in February
1868. The Senate heard the case and Johnson was found guilty in May of 1868.
 Because Johnson was seen as lenient in enforcing stricter discipline, the southern
leaders created “black codes” (aka Jim Crow laws). These were rules that were
intended to restore things back to the way they had been before the Civil War.
 Groups such as the Ku Klux Klan (started by Nathan Forest in Tennessee) began
and were used to enforce segregation through intimidation and violence.
 Even though African Americans gained a number of rights and freedoms, they
were still going to be treated as second class citizens (and sometimes worse) until
the Civil Rights Movement takes place during the 1950’s and 60’s…
1.