US History Unit 6 Reconstruction Era USHS10

Compromise of 1850

A package of five bills passed in 1850 that temporarily eased tensions between slave and free states.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

A law passed in 1854 allowing territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide slavery by popular sovereignty.

Popular Sovereignty

The principle that settlers in a territory have the right to decide whether to allow slavery.

Dred Scott

An enslaved African American who sued for his freedom, leading to a landmark Supreme Court case.

Scott v. Sandford (1857)

A Supreme Court decision stating that African Americans could not be citizens and Congress could not regulate slavery in territories.

John Brown

A radical abolitionist known for his raid on Harpers Ferry to incite a slave revolt.

Harpers Ferry

The site of John Brown's 1859 raid aiming to start an armed slave rebellion.

Abraham Lincoln

The 16th President of the United States credited with leading the Union through the Civil War and abolishing slavery.

Election of 1860

The election in which Abraham Lincoln was elected President, leading to Southern secession.

Writ of Habeas Corpus

A legal request to determine if someone is lawfully detained; suspended by Lincoln during the Civil War.

Jefferson Davis

President of the Confederate States during the Civil War, representing the Southern cause.

Fort Sumter

The location of the first shots fired in the Civil War on April 12, 1861.

Robert E. Lee

Confederate general known for commanding the Army of Northern Virginia.

Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson

A Confederate general known for his firm stand at First Bull Run and brilliant tactical maneuvers.

Emancipation Proclamation

Lincoln's 1863 declaration freeing all enslaved people in Confederate states.

Battle of Gettysburg

A decisive Union victory in July 1863, considered the turning point of the Civil War.

Gettysburg Address

Lincoln's speech redefining the purpose of the Civil War, emphasizing liberty and equality.

Vicksburg

A strategic Confederate stronghold captured by Union forces in 1863, splitting the Confederacy.

Ulysses S. Grant

Union general who led the U.S. to victory in the Civil War and later became the 18th President.

William T. Sherman

Union general known for his total war strategy, particularly his March to the Sea.

Sherman's March to the Sea

A military campaign that aimed to destroy the South's will to fight through total war tactics.

Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address

A speech emphasizing reconciliation and healing, given as the Civil War was drawing to a close.

Freedmen’s Bureau

A federal agency set up to assist freed slaves and impoverished whites in the South after the Civil War.

13th Amendment

An amendment abolishing slavery in the United States, ratified in December 1865.

Assassination

Refers chiefly to Lincoln's assassination by John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865.

Black Codes

Laws enacted in the South aimed at controlling freed African Americans and maintaining white supremacy.

14th Amendment

An amendment granting citizenship and equal protection under the law to all persons born in the U.S.

15th Amendment

An amendment prohibiting the denial of voting rights based on race, ratified in 1870.

Presidential Reconstruction

The initial phase of Reconstruction led by Lincoln and Johnson, characterized by leniency towards the South.

Congressional Reconstruction

The more rigorous phase of Reconstruction led by Congress, aimed at protecting freedmen's rights.

Radical Republicans

A faction advocating for harsh measures against the South and protection of freedmen's rights during Reconstruction.

Martial Law

Military control imposed to maintain order during emergencies, used during the Civil War and Reconstruction.

Impeachment

A formal charge against a public official; refers to Andrew Johnson's impeachment by Congress in 1868.

Sharecropper

A tenant farmer who farms land owned by another and pays rent with a share of the crops.

Ku Klux Klan

A white supremacist group established after the Civil War to terrorize African Americans and suppress their rights.

Compromise of 1877

An agreement that resolved the disputed 1876 election and ended Reconstruction, allowing Southern Democrats to regain control.