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The nation divided
The North and South had different economies.The South was based on farming which depended on slaves. The North was based on using factories. -
Slavery
The North didn't support slavery but the South wanted slavery. Over time the Northerners thought that slavery was wrong and wanted to abolish it. This scared the Southerners. -
Abraham Lincoln's Election
Lincoln's election caused southern states-South Carolina,Mississippi, Florida,Alabama,Georgia,Louisiana and Texas to secede from the United States. The Southerners were afraid that Lincoln would abolish slavery because most of the south depended on slaves. -
First Battle of Bull Run
Confederate soldiers forced a large number of Union forces to retreat towards Washington D.C. This battle became clear to the Union and Confederates that there were to be more wars. -
Emancipation Proclamation
Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation which freed all enslaved people. This enraged the Confederates. -
Abraham Lincoln's assassination
The president was murdered by John Wilkes Booth. His murderer killed Lincoln because he thought that it would save the Confederacy. The Vice President Andrew Johnson had the task to heal the nation. -
Reconstruction
Vice President Andrew Johnson had to find a way to rebuild the south and bring back the southern states so that the states can return to the Union. In May, he announced his Reconstruction plan. A former Confederate state could rejoin the Union once they had written a new state constitution and abolished slavery. -
Slavery is abolished
Freedmen were former slaves who were free.Most freedmen wanted to test freedom by getting married,choosing a new name,life and reuniting with their family. Most freedmen started their free life with nothing and were left to fend for themselves. -
The black codes pt.2
If freedmen didn't work then they could be arrested.The third code was to keep freemen at the bottom of the social order in the South.This meant segregation between blacks and whites. -
The black codes pt.1
New state governments took power in the south and in office they began passing laws called black codes to control their former slaves.The first code was the rights of freedom meaning they couldn't vote or serve juries in the South. The second code was to help planters find workers to replace their former slaves. This meant that the code required freemen to work and those without a job were hired to planters. -
The Fifteenth Amendment
Congress passed the Fifteenth Amendment which was an amendment that a citizen has the right to vote and shouldn't be denied because of their color. This amendment protected the rights of African American men to vote. So they were finally treated equal with politics.