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13th Amendment
Thirteenth Amendment approved in January. -
Freedmans Bureau
Congress establishes Freedmen's Bureau in March to provide assistance to the emancipated slaves. -
Reconstruction Begins
President Johnson announces his plan of Presidential Reconstruction (1865-7). -
Black Codes
Southern legislatures begin "Black Codes" to re-establish white supremacy. -
KKK formed
An organization primarily composed of Confederate Army veterans founds the Ku Klux Klan -
14th Amendment
Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution approved by Congress. -
A race riot ensues!
A race riot erupts in Memphis, TN and many blacks are killed or injured. -
Reconstruction Act
Congress passes the first Reconstruction Act.
The South has to obey the terms of the act against their favor. -
The Opelousas Massacre.
The Opelousas Massacre in Louisiana. An estimated 200 to 300 black Americans are killed. -
President Grant
Former Union General Ulysses S. Grant becomes president. -
15th Amendment
Fifteenth Amendment ratified. The Fifteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution gave the vote to all male citizens regardless of color or previous condition of servitude. -
Cracking Down
The Ku Klux Klan Act is passed. It gives the federal government power to punish violators of civil rights laws. -
End of a Bureau
The Freedmen's Bureau is terminated. -
Grant elected for 2nd term.
President Grant wins reelection against his Democratic/Liberal Republican opponent Horace Greeley.
