Reconstruction Era Quizlet Notes (Q&A Flashcards)

A comprehensive set of Quizlet-style Q&A flashcards covering Manifest Destiny, Civil War, Reconstruction, key amendments, organizations, and the Reconstruction era legacy.

What is Manifest Destiny?

Belief that the United States should expand coast to coast

justified taking land from the Natives and Mexico

led to conflicts like wars and forced removals.

Name two examples of Manifest Destiny conflicts.

Trail of Tears

Mexican-American War

When was the Civil War?

1861–1865

War between North and South

Deadliest war in U.S. history

Why did the North and South fight?

North: End slavery, preserve the Union.

South: States’ rights to keep slavery. Decided if the U.S. would stay one nation.

Who won the Civil War?

The North (Union); South surrendered in 1865; U.S. stayed one country.

What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?

Freed enslaved people in Confederate states

did not free slaves in border states

Made war about ending slavery.

Who became president after Lincoln was assassinated?

Andrew Johnson Lincoln’s VP Took over after Lincoln’s death in 1865.

What was Reconstruction?

1865–1877; Rebuild South after Civil War

Bring Confederate states back into Union

Help freedmen adjust to freedom.

What did the 13th Amendment do?

Abolished slavery.

What did the 14th Amendment do?

Made everyone born in the U.S. a citizen and gave equal protection under law.

What did the 15th Amendment do?

Gave African American men the right to vote.

What was the Freedmen’s Bureau?

Government agency

Gave food & housing to freedmen

Built schools & provided education

Helped find jobs & create labor contracts.

Who were Carpetbaggers?

Northerners who moved South after war

Some wanted to help rebuild

Others wanted money & power.

Who were Scalawags?

White Southerners who supported Reconstruction Worked with Republicans

Seen as traitors by other Southerners.

Who were Redeemers?

Southern Democrats

Wanted to 'redeem' the South from Republican control

Used violence & intimidation

Took back power after 1877.

What was the KKK’s goal?

White supremacist group

Used terror (lynching, raids)

Wanted to stop Black voting & rights

Fought against Reconstruction.

What was Andrew Johnson’s Reconstruction plan?

Let South rejoin quickly

Gave pardons to many Confederates

Allowed Black Codes

Led to his impeachment.

What was sharecropping?

Farming system after slavery

Freedmen worked land for a share of crops

Kept many poor & in debt.

What ended Reconstruction?

Compromise of 1877

Rutherford B. Hayes became president

Federal troops left South

Democrats regained control.

What is the legacy of Reconstruction?

13th–15th Amendments gave legal rights

Jim Crow laws later took many rights away

Set stage for Civil Rights Movement in the 1900s.