The Brooks-Baxter War

Question 1

A

Answer 1

Occurred during April and May 1874, was an armed conflict between the supporters of two rivals for the governorship—Joseph Brooks and Elisha Baxter

Question 2

B

Answer 2

Candidate: Elisha Baxter-Arkansas last Republican governor during reconstruction. He was also known to be a Unionist leader.

Question 3

C

Answer 3

Candidate: Joseph Brooks-A Methodist minister who moved to Arkansas. He was important in post-war Republican politics.

Question 4

D

Answer 4

Questions concerning the results of the state’s 1872 gubernatorial election brought about the Brooks-Baxter War.

Question 5

E

Answer 5

It erupted over who was the rightfully elected governor in Arkansas: Joseph Brooks or Elisha Baxter.

Question 6

F

Answer 6

In that election, Joseph Brooks—a carpetbagger with a radical reputation and the leader of the party faction known as the “Brindletails”—ran as a Reform Republican, supporting the national Liberal Republican movement, including Horace Greeley for president, and advancing a local plan to end the disfranchisement of former Confederates, reduce taxes, cut government expenses, and limit the power of the governor. His program attracted conservative Republicans and Democrats, who saw his programs as the best way for them to recapture power and backed him despite his radical past.

Question 7

G

Answer 7

Republican regulars, often called “Minstrels,” backed Elisha Baxter, a scalawag who ran on a platform promising many of the same reforms proposed by Brooks. Central to the campaign was the issue of disenfranchisement and the ability of the Minstrels to maintain control of the state government.

Question 8

H

Answer 8

President Ulysses Grant declared Baxter the official governor of Arkansas.

Question 9

I

Answer 9

The chaos of the Brooks-Baxter War led Arkansans in 1874 to, reject Republican rule, put power in the hands of the Redeemers, vote to write a new state constitution.