Reconstruction

• 1862, Lincon issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all slaves by 1863. However, racism continued in the south until 1865.
• • 1865, 13th Ammendment made it illegal to own a slave.
  • 1866, the Civil Rights Act made sure all citizens were protected by law.
  • 1868, 14th Ammendment guaranteed citizenship to freed slaves.
  • 1870, Civil Rights Act guaranteed citizens access to accomodations.
  • 1870, 15th Ammendment protected black voting rights.
• The south after the war had extreme destruction and poverty. Many freed slaves went back to plantations to work as sharecroppers, where they were paid very little in shares.
• 1865, Congress set up the Freedman's Bureau to help former slaves. It aimed to provide education and employment however, was resented by Southeners, specifically orginisations like the KKK. It became shut down in 1872.
• President Andrew Johnson was a Southener and became president after Licoln's assassination. He established Black Codes, which were state laws passed in the south that restricted freedom for freed slaves.
• By 1876, all states were part of the Union again.
• 1869, Transcontinental Railroad:

  • after the Civil War, the Pacific Railroad Act, 1862, allowed private companies to build the first transcontinental railroad
  • the federal government gave lots of money to support this