Reconstruction was a very dark period in the history of the United States of America. The military occupation of the South created a lingering hostility toward the federal government, executive power and Northern business interests. Even today, the term "carpetbagger" is used in a derisive way. The conflicts of Reconstruction still echo today in Florida, which was under military Reconstruction longer than any other state.
1860 Leon County census
· Leon County population: 12,343
· Whites: 3,194
· Slaves: 9,089
· Free blacks: 60
· Cotton: 16,686 bales per year
Emancipation
· May 20, 1865: Emancipation Proclamation was read on the steps of the Knott House on Park Avenue.
· Leon County planters lost $4,469,440.
· 90% of Leon County slaves stayed on the plantation, where they were guaranteed shelter and food.
Freedman's Bureau
· established in March, 1865
· symbolized the widespread belief among Republicans that the federal government must shoulder the responsibility for emancipated slaves
· empowered to distribute clothing, food and fuel to newly emancipated slaves
Leon County's Freedman's Bureau
· established in September, 1865
· Agents were instructed to "use their influence to induce and assist persons desiring to employ laborers and freedmen as speedily as possible to make contacts for labor, to disabuse the minds of freedmen of any erroneous ideas they may have acquired resulting from their new relation to the proprietors of the soil, and also to instruct them that the only proper means to obtain a livelihood is by honest industry, and also that the Government will not support them in idleness."
New Labor contracts
· 1865: Labor contracts in Leon County were successful because of an unexpectedly good cotton crop
· Freedman's Bureau got a copy of every labor contract.
· The federal government stipulated that ex-slaves "ought to provide for comfortable quarters and sufficient food, which in no case should be less for each laborer than a peck of meal and four pounds of bacon each week, or its equivalent."
New wage system
· Freedman's Bureau made no stipulation about wages, which were supposed to be decided by the law of supply and demand.
· Wages averaged $140-$150 per year.
· Unexpectedly good cotton crop of 1865 helped to establish the new wage system under the eyes of the Freedman's Bureau.
· But a series of bad years after 1865 helped to wreck it.
Decline of the wage system
· shortage of cash
· declining cotton prices
· planters weren't able to maintain paying cash to employees
The tenant system
· Freedman lived on 40-acre tracts of land, where they were tenants.
· Tenants were paid one third of the value of the cotton produced every year.
· Tenants who were unable to provide their own tools went into debt, frequently to the landowner.
· Individual families signed contracts with the landowner and became responsible for a specified piece of land.
Fear and resentment of freedmen
· May 20 became an annual celebration of Emancipation Day by Tallahassee blacks.
· Every year, blacks would gather at Bull Pond (Lake Ella) to celebrate.
· 1867: 2,000 freedmen gathered at Bull Pond for an all-day picnic and political rally
· White planters became dissatisfied by what they viewed as idleness, thievery and irresponsible behavior.
Freedmen were unhappy
· resented having yearly contracts forced upon them
· found the wages inadequate
· labored irregularly
· devoted much of their time to garden plots often refused to follow orders
Planters were unhappy
· believed the ban on corporal punishment made the entire system useless
· believed that blacks would never labor efficiently without coercive discipline
On the Bradford plantation
· The family cook told Mrs. Bradford "if she want any dinner she kin cook it herself."
· Former slaves left the plantation to meet with the Freedmen's Bureau.
· Susan Bradford Eppes: "Never before had I a word of impudence from any of our black folk. But they are not ours any longer."
Black Codes
· Created by provisional legislatures; recreated discipline of slavery
· All blacks were required to possess, each January, written evidence of employment for the coming year.
Crimes under the Black Codes
· voting
· serving on juries
· testifying against whites in court
· marrying a white person
· idle or disorderly behavior
· insulting gestures or language
· preaching the Gospel without a license
Andrew Johnson's plan for Reconstruction
· very lenient on former Confederates
· the provisional legislatures he created wrote the Black Codes
· advocated a quick, painless re-entry of former Confederate states into the Union
· insisted that Confederate states ratify the 13th Amendment, but failed to demand any civil rights for blacks
Radical Republicans; plan
· Radicals were led by Rep. Thaddeus Stevens
· seize 400 million acres belonging to the wealthiest 10 percent of Southerners
· civil equality
· black suffrage
Johnson versus the Radicals
· Johnson hated the Radicals; the Radicals hated Johnson
· The president vetoed 29 Reconstruction bills; Congress overrode 15
· Congress passed the Military Reconstruction Act, the Civil Rights Bill and the Tenure of Office Act
Edwin Stanton
· first lawyer to ever successfully use "temporary insanity" as a defense
· Lincoln's secretary of war; Johnson kept him in the Cabinet
· Eventually, Stanton sided with the Radicals
· Johnson wanted to fire Stanton
Gen. Lorenzo Thomas
· a graduate of West Point
· Johnson wanted Thomas to replace Stanton in Cabinet
· Thomas personally served Stanton the order
· Stanton locked himself in his office and refused to accept the order
· Thomas was arrested.
The Impeachment of Andrew Johnson
· House voted 126 to 47 to impeach Johnson
· Johnson asked for 40 days to prepare for the trial; he was granted 10
· Johnson was tried for violating the Tenure of Office Act
· He was acquitted by one vote
Republican Rule in the South
· Republicans dominated federal and state politics
· Carpetbaggers: Northern Republicans who came South
· Scalawags: Southern Republicans, who were viewed as traitors
Achievement for blacks
· equality before the law
· the right to own property
· the right to own a business
· the ability to enter professions
· the right to attend schools
· the right to learn to read and write
The Ku Klux Klan
· began as a social club in Pulaski, Tennessee
· Quickly became a violent force to oppose Republican rule
· used terror and intimidation to prevent blacks from exercising civil liberties
Conservative resurgence
· Northern Radicals grew weary of trying to fix deeply
· entrenched racial problems in the South
Many other factors distracted from racial progress:
· Western expansion, Indian wars, economic development,
· debates about currency, the 1874 depression
· Slowly, the Republican Party lost its grasp on all the Southern states
Ulysses Grant
· campaign slogan: "Let us have peace"
· Scandal after scandal
· dazzled by men of wealth
· loyal to greedy friends
· his presidency was a failure
Rutherford B. Hayes
· Republican candidate in 1876
· Three-term governor of Ohio
· His chief virtue, claimed Henry Adams was that "he was obnoxious to no one."
Samuel Tilden
· Democratic candidate in 1876
· Millionaire corporate lawyer
· Reform governor of New York
Disputed election of 1876
· Both Republicans and Democrats claimed victory
· a special commission was created to decide who won
Compromise of 1877
· deal was struck: Republicans would win presidency if military occupation of the South (and, therefore, enforcement of civil rights) would end
