Reconstruction Era Lecture Notes

Overview of Reconstruction

• Ambitious Goals vs. Limited Changes: Reconstruction aimed high but achieved limited on-the-ground changes.
• Power Dynamics: Success depended on who controlled power; by the 1870s, old white power regained control in the South.

Abraham Lincoln's Evolution

• Initial Goal: Preserve the Union.
• Shift in Focus: During his presidency, Lincoln also aimed to end slavery and integrate Southern states.

Potential Changes Post-Civil War

• Illegalization of Slavery: Slavery abolished by 1865.
• Freedmen's Rights: Question of whether freedmen would have public voice, economic autonomy, and social integration.

Key Figures in Reconstruction

• Frederick Douglass: Central figure.
• Hiram Revels: First African American senator, Mississippi.
• Blanche Bruce: Elected senator, Mississippi.

Freedmen's Bureau

• Founded March 1865: Emphasized relief, education, and legal support for former slaves.
• Education: Established 4,000 schools, serving 200,000 students.

Andrew Johnson's Reconstruction Plan

• Generous to the South: Allowed quick re-entry for Southern states.
• Black Codes: Harsh laws restricting newly freed slaves, leading to Congressional intervention.

Radical Reconstruction

• Congressional Control: Passed 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments.
• Military Districts: South divided into five districts to enforce amendments.

Sharecropping System

• Labor Contracts: Freed slaves worked land for a share of crops but remained economically tied to landowners.

Resistance and Vigilantism

• Black Codes & Vigilante Groups: Laws and secret groups aimed to suppress freed slaves.
• Lynching & Intimidation: Extra-legal actions to maintain white supremacy.

End of Reconstruction

• Presidential Election of 1876: Compromise led to withdrawal of troops from the South, effectively ending Reconstruction.

Post-Reconstruction

• Disenfranchisement and Segregation: White Democrats regained control, leading to Jim Crow laws.
• Plessy v. Ferguson: Upheld "separate but equal" doctrine until 1954.

Legacy

• Limited Immediate Success: Reconstruction laid groundwork for later civil rights advancements but saw many setbacks in the late 19th century.