Reconstruction's End and the Road to 1876

• Lincoln's Vision (Pre-Assassination)

  • "Lenient, Conservative, and Short-Lived" approach for Southern reintegration.

  • Ended by his assassination ($1865$).

• Thirteenth Amendment (December 18, 1865)

  • Officially abolished slavery nationwide.

• Presidential Reconstruction (Andrew Johnson)

  • Required Confederate states to void secession, repudiate war debts, and ratify the 13th Amendment.

  • Johnson issued many pardons, allowing former Confederates to regain political power.

  • His conflicts with Congress led to impeachment (acquitted by one vote).

  • Southern Response: Black Codes

    • Laws enacted by Southern states to restrict the freedom and opportunities of newly freed African Americans.

    • Examples: Prohibiting Black jury service/testimony against whites, forced apprenticeships, vagrancy laws.

• Congressional Response (Key Amendments)

  • Fourteenth Amendment (July 9, 1868):

    • Defined national citizenship.

    • Guaranteed privileges or immunities, due process, and equal protection for all citizens.

    • Aimed to counter Black Codes.

  • Fifteenth Amendment (February 3, 1870):

    • Secured voting rights for African American men.

• Election of 1868

  • Ulysses S. Grant (Republican) won, cementing support for Congressional Reconstruction.

• Congressional Reconstruction in the South

  • Successes:

    • First Reconstruction Act ($1867$): Divided South into military districts, required 14th Amendment ratification, and granted Black men suffrage for readmission.

    • Development of public education and Black institutions/churches.

    • Emergence of African American political leaders (e.g., Hiram Revels, Blanche K. Bruce).

    • Freedman’s Bureau provided aid to former slaves and poor whites.

  • Failures & Missed Opportunities:

    • Rescinded Special Field Order #15 (denying $40$ acres and a mule).

    • Freedman’s Bureau limitations (funding, political support).

    • American Equal Rights Association fractured over suffrage priorities.

    • Rise of Ku Klux Klan and other white supremacist violence, often circumventing Enforcement Acts.

    • United States v. Cruikshank ($1876$): Weakened federal protection of civil rights by limiting 14th Amendment's application to state actions, not private individuals.

• End of Reconstruction

  • The Panic of 1873 / "Long Depression" (1873-1879):

    • Diverted public attention and federal resources away from Reconstruction.

  • The Election of 1876:

    • Disputed election between Rutherford B. Hayes (Republican) and Samuel J. Tilden (Democrat).

    • Resolved by the Compromise of 1877.

    • Democrats conceded presidency to Hayes in exchange for withdrawal of federal troops from the South.

    • Signified the formal end of Reconstruction, leading to Jim Crow laws and widespread disenfranchisement of African Americans.

Key Things to Remember

• Three Phases of Reconstruction: Lincoln's lenient vision, Presidential Reconstruction (Johnson), and Congressional Reconstruction. Each had distinct goals and outcomes.

• Constitutional Amendments: The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments are the foundational legal achievements of Reconstruction, designed to abolish slavery, define citizenship/rights, and secure voting rights, respectively.

• Black Codes vs. Amendments: Black Codes demonstrated Southern resistance to Black freedom; the 14th and 15th Amendments were direct federal responses to this resistance.

• Successes and Failures: Reconstruction brought initial political gains and social infrastructure (education) for African Americans but ultimately failed to secure long-term racial equality and economic independence.

• Economic Downturn and Political Compromise: The Panic of $1873$ and the Compromise of $1877$ were critical factors that led to the official end of Reconstruction, abandoning federal oversight in the South.