Reconstruction Flashcards
The period following the Civil War was known as ________.
Reconstruction
What did Congress want to do during Reconstruction?
Congress wanted to rebuild the United States and bring the southern states back into the Union.
During Reconstruction, what did hundreds of thousands of freed African Americans need?
housing, education, clothing, food, and jobs
What was the problem with money and banks in Virginia after the Civil War?
Money had no value and banks were closed.
How were Virginia’s cities and land affected by the Civil War?
Railroads, bridges, plantations, and crops were destroyed. Businesses needed to be rebuilt.
What did African Americans in Virginia experience as soon as slavery ended?
increased violence, injustice, and discriminstion
What was the Freedmen’s Bureau?
a federal government agency established during Reconstruction to help freed African Americans and others in Virginia
What three things did the Freedmen’s Bureau provide for people who needed them?
food, public schools, and medical care
How did the system of sharecropping work?
Freedmen and poor white farmers rented land from landowners by promising to pay the owners with a share of the crops.
Sharecropping was common in Virginia after the Civil War. What was wrong with this system?
it had unfair practices that kept people in poverty.
During Reconstruction, African Americans pushed for their kids to be educated. What did this lead to?
Freedom’s First Generation (some of whom became doctors, lawyers, and teachers)
What word means the separation of people (usually based on race or religion)?
segregation
____________ means an unfair difference in the treatment of people.
discrimination
Who led the fight to have the first public school system in Virginia?
Black Virginians
Who was allowed to vote and hold public office during Reconstruction?
black and white men
What laws negatively impacted African Americans and American Indians after Reconstruction?
the “Jim Crow” laws
What did the “Jim Crow” laws legally establish in the southern states?
segregation
What were two ways that the “Jim Crow” laws kept African Americans and American Indians from voting?
unfair poll taxes and voting tests
African Americans and American Indians in southern states were forced to use separate, poor-quality facilities and services. What are some examples?
drinking fountains, restrooms, and restaurants
How were African American and American Indian children affected by the “Jim Crow” laws?
They had to attend separate schools than white students.
Name something that was impacted by segregation and discrimination.
housing, employment, health care, political representation, and education
What form of transportation helped Virginia’s small towns grow into cities after the Civil War and Reconstruction?
trains and railroads
How did Virginia’s cities change after the Civil War?
They grew with people, businesses, and factories
What mineral was mined in the Appalachian Plateau, helping that area of Virginia to grow?
coal
Why were more (and better) roads needed after the Civil War and Reconstruction?
Roads were needed to move people and products from place to place as Virginia’s cities and economy grew.
What two industries became important in Virginia after the Civil War?
tobacco farming and the manufacture of tobacco products
