Why did the abandonment by the North cause
reconstruction to fail?
By: Maddie Tishman, Caroline Bradley, and Grayson
Moran
Claim: Reconstruction failed because the North
abandoned it in an effort to solve problems within the
Union.
Grantism: Corruption in government
● President Grant had no political experience
● When making political appointments he selected friends
rather than people with proven ability
● Internal revenue collectors accepted bribes from whiskey
distillers who wanted to avoid paying taxes this defrauded the
federal gov. of millions of dollars- Grant’s private secretary
was involved
● a company had skimmed off large profits from a gov. contract
this was called the crédit mobilier affair exposed several
leading republicans and Grant’s vice president 1
1
1 Danzer, , Klor De Alva, Krieger, Wilson, and Woloch. The Americans. Houghtin Mifflin Company, 2005.
•
Panic of 1873
In Grant’s speech to the Senete and HOR, he declares:
o
•
•
•
“In the midst of great national prosperity a financial crisis has
occurred that has brought low fortunes of gigantic proportions”2
The country plunged into severe economic depression
“Unbridled expansion of factories, railroads, and farms
and contraction of the money supply through the
withdrawal of greenbacks helped trigger the Panic of
1873”3
The economic problems distracted northern
republicans from the south forcing them to abandon
reconstruction altogether and focus on how to relieve
themselves
from their economic distress
2. American Government, s.v. "Ulysses S. Grant: annual message (1873)," accessed
October 14, 2013. http://americangovernment.abc-clio.com/.
3. Study Notes, inc. "AP US History." Ap Study Guide.
Concern over westward expansion and Indian Wars
•
•
•
•
The US began to create railroads (including the
transcendental railway) which intruded on Indian
land
Indians lost people, land and food sources
because of the US building a railways
Indians thus started war with the US
The government became focused on Westward
expansion and fighting off the Indians they
became distracted from Reconstruction,
ultimately abandoning it
The election of 1876
● Hayes (Republican) vs. Tilden (Democrat)
● Tilden won popular vote, Hayes won electoral vote
● Congress appointed a commission to deal with problem
● Commission was republican, thus appointed Hayes as president
● House of Representatives was democrats (approves all election results)
● HOR agreed to let Hayes be president as in return for a few demands
○ First demand: withdrawl of troops from Louisiana and south carolina
(2 of the 3 southern states still governed)
○ Second demand: withdrawl of troops from Louisiana and south
carolina (2 of the 3 southern states still governed)
○ Third demand: withdrawl of troops from Louisiana and south carolina
(2 of the 3 southern states still governed)4
4. Danzer, Klor de Alva, Krieger, Wilson, and Woloch, The Americans, (Houghton
Mifflin Company, 2005), 399.
Bibliography
Danzer, Klor de Alva, Krieger, Wilson, and Woloch, The Americans, (Houghton Mifflin Company,
2005), 399.
(The election of 1876)
Encyclopedia of Emancipation and Abolition in the Transatlantic World, s.v. "Reconstruction,"
accessed October 10, 2013,
http://welproxy.minlib.net/login?qurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.credoreference.com/entry/sharpeeman/re
construction
Reconstruction and Westward Expansion. Last modified April 18, 2006.
http://www.jamestownpublicschools.org/persell/index.php/
Reconstruction%20and%20Westward%20Expansion.
Study Notes, inc. "AP US History." Ap Study Guide. Last modified 2006. Accessed
October 10, 2013. http://www.apstudynotes.org/us-history/topics/
the-end-of-reconstruction/.
Da