Reconstruction & Gilded age 1865-1890 Flashcards
1
Q
Reconstruction: Background
A
- Civil war: 1861-1865
- 650,000 deaths
- Agriculture, trade and overseas markets had been affected badly
- North & South divide
- Republicans: favoured wealth, business and reduced gov role
- Democrats: tended to have a wider base of support, more gov involvement (esp. social issues)
2
Q
Differences between N&S 1861-65
A
Economic: 1860 population (N= 18.65m S=10.5m), N - 5 million immigrates 1830-60
N- growth of industrial e.g. engineering and textiles. S - produced 10% of nations manufactured good, replied on sale of cotton
Cultural: N - free labour, liberty and puritanical Christianity, open to change
S - Slavery, honour, strong Christian faith, resented change
Political: N - less hostile to growth in gov power, less supportive of rights of individual states
S - less gov power and stop legislation that affected slavery
Social: N - against slavery
S - supported slavery
3
Q
Effects of civil war
A
- 650,000 deaths
- $2.3 billion spent on war efforts
- emancipation of 3.5 million slaves 1863
4
Q
Reconstruction under Lincoln
A
- April 1864, Ten Percent Plan - rebel states would be admitted if 10% of electorate agreed on an oath of future allegiance to the USA (support all existing acts of congress regarding slavery)
- Wade-Davis Bill 1865 - 50% needed not 10%, Lincoln voted the bill
- 13th Amendment - Nov 1864 freed all slaves
- Freedmen’s Bureau - March 1865 - set up for a year to help former slaves (educate, employment)
5
Q
Reconstruction under President Johnson 1865-68
A
- Johnson was put in as the 17th president of the US after Lincolns assassination
- He favoured quick restoration of the seceded states to the union
- His plans of restoration did not give protection to former slaves
- He wanted to restore S states quickly
- He accepted the Wade-Davis Bill 1865
- He was the first president to be impeached by the House of Representatives but what acquitted by the senate with one vote
6
Q
Problems Johnson faced/ opposition
A
- Some Southern seceded states did not want to return to the union as they were disillusioned with the US and freedom and democracy
- There were Southern and some northern states where freed slaves were still not accepted and now had no housing or employment. There was also the emergence of the ‘Black Codes’
- Racism and racial discrimination, intimidation and violence against freed slaves was common
- Civil Rights Bill 1866 - minimum rights to African Americans - Johnson vetoed - Congress overturned veto
- Radical reconstruction: Military reconstruction Bill 1967 - military rule on S. Tenure of Office Act - prevented Johnson from removing a host of office holders.
+ Johnson ignored Tenure of Office Act and got himself impeached
7
Q
Reconstruction
A
-13th Amendment- abolished slavery and involuntary servitude except as punishment for a crime. In congress, it was passed by the senate in 1864 and ratified in 1865
- 14th Amendment- adopted in 1868 as one of the Reconstruction Amendments. Addresses citizenship rights and equal protection of the laws, and was proposed in response to issues related to former slaves
- 15th Amendment- prohibits the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote based on “race, colour or previous condition of servitude”
8
Q
Ulysses S Grant
A
- Was an American general and the 18th president of the United states (1869-1877)
- Grant presided over the last half of reconstruction
- He supported amnesty for confederate soldiers and the protection of civil rights for African Americans
- He favoured a limited number of troops to be stationed in the south to protect the rights of Southern blacks, and suppress the violent tactics of the KKK
9
Q
Reconstruction under Grant
A
- Favour firm treatment of the S
- 15th amendment - right to vote no matter race
- Scandals: A group of speculators attempted to influence the go and miniplate gold market - plot failed and it resulted in a financial panic 1869. Grants reputation suffered
- Whiskey Ring scandal 1875 - distillers, distributors and public officials conspired to defraud the federal gov. Grant was not involved but many of his administration were involved e.g. Grants secretary of war took bribes. - End of reconstruction 1876-77 - Hayes won election
10
Q
Congressional reconstruction
A
- Johnsons use of the presidential veto
1. Renewal of the Freedman’s Bureau (created in 1865)
2. Civil Rights Act= 1866
3. Freedman’s Bureau Act= 1867
4. Reconstruction Act= 1867 - All previous attempts to reintegrate the south declared void
- Ex-confederate states (apart from Tennessee) were placed under military rule
- This was until a new state constitution was agreed to ensure voting rights for blacks
- Thaddeus Stevens= wanted to confiscate estates to distribute to the freedmen
- 1865= confederate ex-soldiers form a group called the KKK (Ku Klux Klan)
11
Q
Radical reconstruction
A
- All Radical Reconstruction polices were dependent on the US Army in the South
- 15th Amendment= “Vote cannot be denied on the grounds of race or colour”
- Policies were carried out by the federal governments, Republican state governments and organisations such as the Freedman’s Bureau
- Violent resistance in the South= KKK
- Enforcement Acts in 1870 and 1871= to strengthen the 14th and 15th Amendments and to limit discrimination
- Civil Rights Act in 1875
12
Q
Political effects of reconstruction
A
- S did temporarily lose control of their states
13
Q
Economic effects of reconstruction
A
- Developed industrial power - railroads build and textiles expanded
- 1867-73 S benefited from general US prosperity from high cotton prices
14
Q
Social effect of reconstruction (AA)
A
- emancipated around 4m slaves
- Vote: S - 2 black senators and 20 representatives were elected to Congress from Carolina and Mississippi
- Employment: most became Sharecroppers
- Jim Crow laws - segregation between White and Black - schools, public facilities, etc.
- KKK - violent resistance towards AA. Colfax massacre (1872, 60-100 AA killed)
15
Q
£ - Reasons for industrial growth
A
- Impact of the Civil war - stimulated a demand for manufactured goods (guns, clothing, transport), due to more money in circulation they gov set up a banking system to be able to deal with the more money in circulation
- Availability of land - westward expansion, stimulated a market for manufactured good and railroads, fertile land = mass production of wheat = plenty of food
- Population growth - 1860 - 31.5m 1880 - 50m - 2.8m immigrates
- Transport - railroads 1868-73 53,000km laid (1m workers by 1900) - Increase manufacturing of steel
- Availability of capital - 1865 annual turnover of stock was over $6b +
- Role of gov - minimal gov interference, business did not have to deal with trade unions
- Corporations and trust - new business methods emerged due to lack of regulation, creation of trustees - allowed Rockefeller to create and expand Standard Oil Company
- Technological innovation - Carnegie produced cheap steal through the Bessemer Converter
16
Q
Impact of industrial Growth
A
- Depression of 1873 - poor banking system, NY stock exchange shut for 10 days, credit dried up, 1/4 labours laid off
- Urbanisation - Chicago: 1850 - 30,000 1880 - 1m +
- Living conditions - spread of slums and corruption, disease, BOSS - exploited broken system
- Agriculture - farmers had lots of debt, over dependent of oversea markets, agri-businesses killed small farmers, bushel - 1866 - $1.45 to 76 cents in 1869
17
Q
reason for westward expansion
A
- some belive:
1. Westward expansion was apart of a special mission to bring the benefits of the American way of life as well as democracy and freedom (manifest destiny)
2. result of simple demography
3. deliberate policy by the fed gov
18
Q
Westward expansion before the Civil war
A
- Many settlers had begun to move to the W in the 1840s (partly due to Mormons escaping the E), or to avoid taxes and overpopulation
- land was cheap and fertile
- gold discovery in California 1848 bought 300,00 people
19
Q
Manifest defintiny
A
- belief held by many Americans that God had chosen them to populate the lands from the Atlantic seaboard to the Pacific Ocean
- radical doctrine of white supremacy
20
Q
W expansion - federal territories
A
- During the CW the fed gov was determined to control lands west of Mississippi
- they did this by creating federal territories governed by officials
21
Q
W expansion - Homestead act 1862
A
- To encourage settlements in these areas, they introduced HOMESTEAD ACT 1862
- this released 160 acre plots for free to farmers on the basis that they would farm there for 5 yrs
1865 - 20,000 homesteaders had settled - this expansion was at the expense of Native Americans
- pull factors 0 free/cheap land, new start
- push factors - Migration, escape poverty and unemployment in E, escape religous persecution
22
Q
W expansion - Railroads
A
- Pacific Railroad Act - allowed the build of Transcontinental railroad
- 1870 - 15,000 passengers
- 1882 - 1m+ passengers
23
Q
W expansion - 2nd gold rush
A
- Began in the Black Hills of Daktoa mid 1870s
- Large deposits of gold in Deadwood
- Treay of Laramie 1868 - was broken by us gov as Black Hills was a NA territory
