AMH2020 Course Introduction: Why 1877 - Vocabulary Flashcards

The United States in $1877$ was roughly $101$ years old (independence declared in $1776$ ; by $1877$ , about $101$ years).
The era that came to an end in $1877$ was Reconstruction, which spanned roughly from $1865$ (end of the Civil War) to $1877$ .

Question: Which amendment abolished the practice of slavery?
- Answer: C) $13th$ Amendment.
- Significance: Abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime; ratified in $1865$ .
Question: Women were not included in the $15th$ Amendment and so still could not vote in the United States.
- Answer: A) True.
- Context: The $15th$ Amendment (ratified in $1870$ ) prohibited denying the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude, but it did not address sex; women largely remained without universal suffrage at this time.
Related context for broader understanding: The $14th$ Amendment (ratified in $1868$ ) defines citizenship and guarantees equal protection under the law; the combination of amendments shaped Reconstruction-era citizenship and voting rights debates.

Question: During the Grant Administration, there were a series of scandals that involved government officials closely associated with the president.
- Answer: A) True.
- Examples from the period include the Whiskey Ring and various other corruption cases; these scandals highlighted conflicts of interest and corruption in federal administration during $1869-1877$ .
- Significance: Contributed to growing public skepticism about Reconstruction policies and the effectiveness of federal oversight.

Question: Thomas Nast, a political cartoonist, came up with the image of an elephant and donkey to represent the political parties and the image has become part of their identities.
- Answer: A) True.
- Details: Nast popularized the donkey as a symbol for the Democratic Party and the elephant for the Republican Party; these symbols have endured into modern political branding.
- Significance: Demonstrates the power of visual rhetoric in shaping party perceptions and political culture.

Question: Who won the popular vote in the election of $1876$ ?
- Answer: C) Democrat Samuel Tilden.
- Context: Tilden won the national popular vote, but the electoral votes were disputed in several states.
Question: An electoral commission decided the $1876$ election and chose Republican Samuel Hayes as president.
- Answer: B) False.
- Correct outcome: An electoral commission ultimately awarded the presidency to Rutherford B. Hayes (the Republican) after resolving disputed electoral votes; this followed a controversial process that effectively overturned the Tilden victory in the Electoral College.
- Note on numbers: Before resolution, Tilden led in the popular vote; the commission’s decision shifted the electoral outcome to Hayes.

Question: The Republicans agreed to do what in return for the Democrats accepting Rutherford Hayes' presidency in the Compromise of $1877$ ?
- Answer: B) the end of Reconstruction.
- Details of the Compromise: In exchange for recognizing Hayes as president, Republicans promised to withdraw federal troops from the Southern states, effectively ending Reconstruction and allowing Southern white Democrats to regain political control.
- Significance: Marked a turning point in U.S. history, leading to the rapid rollback of Reconstruction-era protections for formerly enslaved people and the rise of Jim Crow laws in many Southern states.

End of Reconstruction ( $1877$ ) had long-term implications for civil rights, voting laws, and race relations in the United States; it set the stage for nearly a century of limited federal enforcement of civil rights in the South.
The era under Grant (post-C Civil War) was characterized by rapid expansion and modernization, but also by widespread corruption and political scandals that affected public trust in government.
The use of political cartoons (Nast) shows how media and imagery can crystallize party identities and influence public perception during transformative periods.
The 1876–1877 events illustrate the tension between popular sovereignty (the popular vote) and the realities of the Electoral College, as well as the complexities of political compromise in crisis situations.

$1776$ : American independence declared; start of the United States as a republic.
$1865$ : End of the Civil War; beginning of Reconstruction.
$1868$ : Fourteenth Amendment ratified (citizenship and equal protection under the law).
$1869-1877$ : Grant Presidency with notable corruption scandals.
$1870$ : Fifteenth Amendment ratified (voting rights not denied based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude).
$1876$ : Presidential election contested; Tilden wins popular vote, Hayes wins electoral votes after a commission decision.
$1877$ : End of Reconstruction following the Compromise of $1877$ ; federal troops withdrawn from the South.