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Freedmen's Bureau established by Congress
This agency was created to aid former slaves by providing relief, education, legal help and assistance in obtaining land or employment. -
Ku Klux Klan first organized
This secret terrorist organization was founded in Tennessee. Its goals were to disfranchise African Americans, stop Reconstruction, and restore prewar social order of the South. -
Civil Rights Act Passed by Congress
This bill nullfied the Black Codes and guaranteed to freemen "full and equal benfit of all laws and proceedings for the secutiry of person and property as enjoyed by white citizens." President Andrew Johnson vetoed it, but the Act had 2/3 majority, which overrode the President's veto. -
Military Reconstruction Act
This Act divided the Conferederate states into 5 districts:
Virginia: first district, North Carolina and South Carolina: second district, Georgia, Alabama, and Florida: third district, Mississippi and Arkansas: fourth district, and Louisiana and Texas: fifth district. With army supervision, new elections would be held, where blacks and whites would elect new governments, select new national officials, and write new state constitutions. Congress overrode Johnson's veto of this Act. -
House Votes to Impeach Andrew Johnson
House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to impeach Johnson and he was placed on trial before the Senate. Johnson was ultimatley acquitted by one vote. Congress was frustrated by Johnson objections to Reconstruction legislation. What caused impeachment charges to be brought up was his dismissal of Edward Stanton as Secretary of War. -
Fourteenth Amendment is Ratified
This amendment provided citizenship to ex-slaves after the Civil War and constitutionally protected equal rights under the law for all citizens. -
Fifteenth Amendment is Ratified
This amendment prohibited any state from denying male citizens the right to vote because of race color, or previous condition of servitude. -
Mississippi Plan
Believing that the federal government would no longer interfere in the South, Democrats launched a campaign to regain control of the state government. They made crude appeals to white supremacy. They intimidated African American Republicans. White Leagues organized campaigns of violence and intimidate to keep African Americans away from the polls. Republican were beaten, forced to flee the state and even murdered. In the end, African Americans were kept from the polls. -
Civil Rights Act of 1875
Originally introduced by Charles Sumner, but the bill only passed after being watered-down. It was an attempt to respond to blacks' deteriorating status in the South. This act prohibited discrimination against African Americans in public accommodations, such as theaters, parks and trains and guaranteed the right to serve on juries. Most judges, however either interpreted narrowly or declared it unconstitutional. The Supreme Court overturned it in 1883.
