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Lincoln sets forth ten percent Reconstruction plan
This plan decreed that a state could be reintegrated into the Union when 10 percent of voters had taken an oath of allegiance to the U.S. and promised to emancipate all slaves. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://z.about.com/d/americanhistory/1/0/l/9/16_lincoln_1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://americanhistory.about.com/od/uspresidents/ig/Images-of-US-Presidents/Abraham-Lincoln.htm&usg=__7I9kYUdu-_UMBh8DlFWbvkTFrQs=&h=359&w=300&sz=16&hl=en&start=7&um=1&tbnid=S1dyJkHWNvBPVM:&tbnh=121&tbnw=101&pre -
Wade-Davis Bill passes Congress but is pocket-vetoed by Lincoln
The Wade-Davis Bill was written by Senator Benjamin Wade of Ohio and Representative Henry Winter Davis of Maryland. This plan was much stricter than President Abraham Lincoln's Ten Percent Plan. To be re-admitted to the Union, southern states were required to pledge an oath stating they had never supported the Confederacy. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/images/1061.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/image.php?rec=2083&img=1061&usg= -
Johnson moves to reconstruct the South on his own initiative
Johnson's Reconstruction Policy created some uneasiness among radicals; however, most Republicans decided to give the plan a chance. Among other things, Johnson called for governors to repudiate the Confederate debt and ratify the Thirteenth Amendment. http://z.about.com/d/civilliberty/1/0/o/8/-/-/aj500.jpg -
Congress refuses to seat representatives and senators elected from states reestablished under presidential plan
Instead of endorsing Johnson's plan and recognising the state governments, Congress established a joint committee, chaired by Senator William Pitt Fessenden. This committee was designed to review Johnson's Reconstruction policy and set further condiitons for southern states' re-admittance to the Union. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.atwoodvacations.com/images/Southern-States2.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.atwoodvacations.com/directions.htm&usg=__nh_IdthfJ1dpww6mVEeGBpSw7TQ=&h=32 -
Republicans increase their congressional majority in the fall elections
In the fall elections of 1866, Republicans win majorities in every northern legislature and a two-thirds majority in both houses of Congress. This assured the party the power to override any presidential veto. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://crittercollectibles.com/blog2/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/GOP- -
Johnson vetoes Freedman's Bureau Bill
The Freedman's Bureau was a temporary agency designed to aid former slaves by providing relief, education, legal help, and assistance in finding employment. This bill was passed with overwhelming Republican support; however, was vetoted by Johnson. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Rb21OZGHekY/SUiUeQvn2pI/AAAAAAAAAMU/o5k3XQpTMVA/s400/unemployment.jpg -
Johnson vetoes the Civil Rights Act; it passes over his veto
The Civil Rights Act won the two-thirds majority necessary to override President Johnson's veto. This was the first time that Congress had overridden a presidential veto. Johnson was now hopelessly had odds with the majority of his party. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://cdn.dipity.com/uploads/events/4cb16870f6bdd7a89bd85b8f9c093a5b.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.dipity.com/lloyd -
Congress passes the Fourteenth Amendment
Congress passes the 14th Amendment, which guarantees the citizenship of African Americans. In addition, it cancels all Confederate debts, prohibits any government from providing compensation for the loss of slaves, and prohibits former Confederate officeholders from holding public office. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://media.nowpublic.net/images//83/f/83fe63baa6d3d584e47d392c58a686fe.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.nowpublic.com/world/amendment&usg=__e9tZwPFNSTdYWgWjK4Egpe9fsrU=&h=250& -
First Reconstruction Act is passed over Johnson's veto
This act organized the South into five different military districts and placed them in the army's control. This military rule only lasted a short time; later acts of 1867 would reform these policies. http://www.jeffstarkbooks.com/files/reconstruction%20act.jpg -
Southern blacks vote and serve in constitutional conventions
The small number of African- Americans elected to an office were generally more honest and competent than their white counterparts. Most were free blacks before the war and were fairly well-educated. http://wwwtc.pbs.org/wnet/historyofus/web07/features/see_it_now/images/1860.0084.jpg -
Grant wins presidential election, defeating Haratio Seymour
Grant, a Republican candidate, won the election of 1868 with 214 electoral votes. Later on, Grant's presidency would be characterized by corruption and failed southern policy, http://myhero.com/images/guest/g205475/hero49547/g205475_u54964_ulysses-s-grant-national-historic-site-2.jpg -
Johnson is impeached; he avoids conviction by one vote
In 1867, Johnson removes Secretary of War Edwin Stanton; therefore violating a recently passed congressional law. In February 1868, the House votes to impeach Johnson by a vote of 126-47. In May, 35 senators vote for conviction and 19 against, one vote short of removing Johnson from office. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://library.thinkquest.org/25185/media/johnson.gif&imgrefurl=http://library.thinkquest.org/25185 -
Congress passes the Fifteenth Amendment, granting African-Americans the right to vote
The 15th Amendment forbids states from depriving a male citizen voting rights because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. This Amendment was passed by Congress in 1869 and ratified by the states in March 1870. http://aakulturezone.com/kidz/images/graphics/votingbox.gif -
Congress passes Ku Klux Klan Acts to protect black voting rights in the South
The Klan was first organized in Tennessee in 1866. This secret, white supremacist organization terrorized African-Americans and actice Republicans to discourage them from voting. http://www.nickryan.net/images/kkk.jpg -
Grant re-elected president, defeating Horace Greeley, candidate of Liberal Republicans and Democrats
Grant won the election of 1872 with 56% of the popular vote. This waw the highest percentage won by any candidate between Andrew Jackson and Theodore Roosevelt. http://ck122.k12.sd.us/civilwar/grant.jpg -
Financial panic plunges nation into depression
A worldwide depression of cotton prices in addition to a poor credit system caused many white farmers to lose their homesteads. As economic conditions worsened, farmers becamse buried in debt and were often reduced to tenancy or sharecropping. http://stockbreakthroughs.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/istock-man-on-down-chart2.jpg -
"Whiskey Ring" scandal exposed
The Whiskey Ring scandal involved the diversion of tax revenues in a conspiracy among politicians, whiskey distillers, and distributors. The Whiskey Ring began in St. Louis but later spread to many other U.S. cities. Before they were caught, a group of mostly Republican politicians were able to siphon off millions of dollars in federal taxes on liquor. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://pro.corbis.com/images/BE023063.jpg -
Congress passes Specie Resumption Act
The Specie Resumption Act provided for the redemption of United States paper currency, commonly known as "greenbacks," in gold. It also reduced the greenback total to $300 million. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://blog.mpl.org/nowatmpl/Dollar.jpg&imgrefurl -
Compromise of 1877 ends military intervention in the South and causes fall of the last Radical governments
Hayes ended federal support for the already crumbling radical regimes. He also ordered the army not to resist a Democratic takeover of state governments in South Carolina and Louisana, effectively ending the last of the Radical governments. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://scrapetv.com/News/News%2520Pages/usa/Images -
Disputed presidential election resolved in favor of Republican Hayes over Democrat Tilden
Origionally, Tilden had narrowly won the majority of the electoral college; however, votes from South Carolina, Flordia, and Louisiana were later contested. The election remained undecided for months until a special committe of fifteen members decided to award Hayes all disputed votes. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://hangrightpolitics.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/r-hayes-1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://hangrightpolitics.com/2007/10/28/the-american-pre
