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"Jim Crow" Enters the American Cultural Language
Jim CrowOne of the first sightings of the phrase "Jim Crow" appeared in caricatures drawn by Thomas Rice, a white actor that used these pictures to harass Andrew Johnson and to make satire involving his policies. "Jim Crow" came to be synonomous with "Negro" during the Reconstruction period and was used in the name for the Jim Crow Laws, which segregated blacks and whites, which started in 1876. -
Abraham Lincoln Announces Plans for Reconstruction
ProclamationLincoln set forth his plan to reconstruct in his Proclamation of Amnesty adn Reconstruction on this day. It basically starts giving every citizen protection and more rights. His proclamation encourages voting, and equal protection under a reborn republic government. It was important because he set the snowball rolling in his effort to help the ex-slaves back into society. -
Ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment
Thirteenth AmendmentThe Thirteenth Amendment, or the Amendment that abolishes slavery and involuntary servitude, was passed by the Senate on this day. It was passed in the House of Reps in January and finally put into action on December 6, 1865. Lincoln wanted this Amendment to pass because he felt as though the Emancipation Proclamation was not sufficient enough, and it also did not free the slaves in the middle states. -
Wade- Davis Bill Receives Pocket Veto
Wade- Davis BillThe bill was written by two Radical Republicans, Benjamin Wade and Henry Davis. It called for appointment of military officials in the states hat seceded. Their bill made it much more difficult for the South to rejoin the Union, and Wade adn Davis were furious when Lincoln vetoed it. When the majority of the white Southerners in each state pledged allegiance to the Union, a constitution convention would have to be held to readmit them. -
Lincoln Re-Elected President
Lincoln Re-ElectedWhen Lincoln was elected, America was facing its fourth year in war. It was rare that the election even happened. Usually, nations do not undergo campaigning for a new president in a state of emergency or war, but Lincoln insisted on an election to keep the government alive. Electoral votes were not counted in any of the 11 Southern states, but elections were held in the states that the Union was occupying, which were Louisiana and Tennessee. -
Black Codes Created in Mississippi
Black CodesThe Black Codes were laws made to take away rights and liberties of ex-slaves. The Constitution could be seen as promoting slavery in the United States, but the "Black Codes" specifically were the laws that restricted blacks as citizens. They encouraged cheap labor and segregation at the closing of the Civil War. -
Formation of the Freedman's Bureau
Freedman's BureauThis was an important day in history. This formation was an action of the Congress as a division of the Army. It was created to help the blacks transition from slaves to freedmen. There were not enough volunteers to form the Bureau, so it was not as successful as was originally anticipated. Even though they did the best that they could to help the Amrican Americans, it was eventually disbanded in 1869. -
Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
The AssassinationThe Civil War was finally drawing to a close when John Wilkes Booth, a well known actor of the time, snuck into the play "Our American Cousin" that Lincoln was attending at Ford's Theater in Washington, D.C. and shot him below the left ear. Lincoln died early the next morning. -
President Andrew Johnson Announces Plans for Reconstruction
Andrew JohnsonOn this day, Andrew Johnson announces his plan for reconstruction the South. His plan was like that of Lincoln's. He did not want to be as harsh on the South as many Radical Republicans wanted. He instead set forth the Amnesty Proclamation, that made the seceded states swear to loyalty and then resulted in a pardon and the returning of their property. The Proclamation did not apply to those officials and generals that surrendered their position for the Confederate army. -
Ku Klux Klan Created
The KKKSix well-educated white men created the Klan on this day. They were Confederate war veterans. These men created the first American terrorist group. They targeted black families because the KKK did not want equal treatment for the blacks and whites. They thought that terrifying the blacks would stop them from trying to desegregate society. -
Civil Rights Act (1866) Enacted
Civil Rights ActThis act was passed with the intention to protect the civil rights of African Americans following the Civil War. It was passed by the Congress in 1865 but President Andrew Johnson vetoed it. Congress passed it again in April of 1866, but Johnson vetoed again. The Congress overcame the veto by a vote of two-thirds in each house and the act became law. -
Reconstruction Acts Enacted
First Reconstruction ActDepite President Andrew Johnson's veto, the Congress overrode and passed the first Reconstruction Act on this day. The purpose of the act was to help the Rebel States in their condition and to rebuild their government. The Acts also created five military districts in the South, which commenced the occupation of the South, and created a form of government there. -
President Andrew Johnson Impeached
ImpeachmentThe impeachment of President Johnson was the first impeachment of a president in American history and the most dramatic event of Reconstruction. Basically, Johnson was removed because he violated the Tenure of Office Act by removing the Secretary of War and replaced him with the general of his choice. The House of Representatives had 11 articles against Johnson. The impeachment was ultimately the result of a large disagreement between Johnson and the Radical Republics. -
Ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment
Fourteenth AmendmentOn this day, this Amendment was passed as part of the Reconstruction Amendments. it overruled the statement that blacks could not be citizens, it secures the right to life, liberty, and property to all, it provides equal protection by the law, and it also deals with the Confederacy and ways to handle them -
Ulysses S. Grant Elected President
Ulysses S. Grant ElectedThe election of 1868 was held on this day. It was the first election that was held after the Civil War had ended. The election was held in the time of Reconstruction. The great advantage went to his party the Republicans, who were favored in the North and also by the newly freedman that were allowed a vote. Grant was the first president to win with the whites' popular vote is a minority. -
Ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment
Fifteenth Amendment This Amendment, that granted the right to vote to African-American men is finally adopted on this day. It gave the right to all men regardless of race or forced servitude in the past. It was a big moment in American history. -
Hiram Revels elected to Senate
Hiram RevelsOn this day, the first African American was elected to Senate. Hiram Revels was elected with a vote of 81 to 15. His main reason for being elected to senate was the result of the Dred Scott Case, which declared African Americans humans and citizens, and could therefore snowball to being involved in the U.S. government, -
Ku Klux Klan Act Enacted
Ku Klux Klan Act The Ku Klux Klan Act, or the Civil Rights Act, was enacted on this day. It was passed to give people the opportunity to sue the federal court. The act also gave the President the right to suspend habeas corpus. The purpose of putting this plan into action was to try to stop the Ku Klux Klan. Parts of the act are still in use today. -
Freedman's Bureau Abolished
Freedman's BureauThe Bureau was extremely disliked among the people during Reconstruction, and its popularity declined considerably until finally it was abolished. -
Civil Rights Act (1875) Passed
Civil Rights Act The Civil Rights Act was passed in the Senate on this day. The Act was sometimes called the Enforcement Act, or Force Act. During the Reconstruction, blacks were never treated equally. This act guaranteed equal rights to all African Americans in pulic places and it guaranteed to not exclude them from the jury. It was an extremely unpopular Act amongst many Americans in the South. -
Rutherford B. Hayes Elected President
Rutherford HayesOn this day, Hayes became the 19th president of the United States. He was the leader during the end of Reconstruction and also the Second Industrial Revolution. Hayes was a strong believer in equality regardless to race, and he was a part of unoccupying the South. -
Last National Troops Leave South Carolina
The Great BetrayalThanks to the Compromise of 1877, or the Great Betrayal, Hayes gained Presidency in exchange for the removal of troops from the South. By removing th efederal troops, he was also removing the only stable part of the Republican government remaining in South Carolina. When the troops left, many Republicans left as well and Democrats known as "Redeemers" took over. What exactly happened at this point in history is a little shady. -
Florida Requires Segregation in Places of Public Accomodation
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Civil Rights Act Overturned (1883)
Civil Rights Act OverturnedThe Civil Rights Act was overturned on this day because after much consideration, it was declared unconstitutional. In the 14th Amendment, there are statements made guaranteeing the equality of blacks and whites. The federal government does not have the power to control that power of small business owners or any provate situation. There were many ways that people took advantage of the laws and got around the Amendment until it was overturned. -
Florida Requires Segregation in Places of Public Accomodation
Segregation LawsFlorida was the first state to require segregation in public places. They required many tests in order to vote, most of which proved impossible for freedmen. Among these were literary tests. Freedmen, on average, could not read, so this disability turned them away from voting and having a say in the government. Another test was the Grandfather Test, which said that if your grandfather could vote then you could vote. Most of the freedmen's grandfathers were slaves at the time so they couldnt vote -
Case of Plessey v. Ferguson
Plessey The Case of Plessey v. Ferguson was similar to the story of Rosa Parks. The prosecutor, Plessey, was charged for sitting in an all- white car on a train and refusing to move to the colored car. He was arrested and was found guilty. He lost the case against Ferguson who defended the segregation rules.
