Unit 4: Separation and Reconstruction 1848-1877

Section 1: Path to Destruction

Essential Questions

• What fueled anti-slavery movements in the North: abolitionist sentiments or economic concerns?

• John Brown: domestic terrorist or American hero?

Economic Motives For/Against SlaveryNorthern Industry

• Transportation advances (railroads and clipper ships expanded markets)

• California gold rush infused capital (50 million yearly)

• Expanded labor market– Displaced farmers relocate to

cities for manufacturing jobs– Irish and German immigrants

escape famine and unrest in Europe

Southern Agriculture• Cotton prices rise (6c in

1845 to 14c in 1847)• Expansion of tobacco

market (200 million to 430 million lbs. 1850-1860)

• Westerners allied with the north, who purchased a larger share of western agricultural products

Social Motives for Slavery• Harriet Beecher Stowe

•Author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852) •Brought to light the conditions of slaves in the South•Expanded Northern abolitionist movement and increased North/South tensions.

Abraham Lincoln on Harriet Beecher Stowe---

"So you are the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war!"

John Brown’s Raid 1859

A. Brown and his followers planned a slave insurrection to begin in western Virginia.

B. Seized federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, but was quickly captured, tried, and hanged.

C. Impact of Brown 1. Northern abolitionists (Emerson and Thoreau) viewed him as a martyr, taking action against the evil of slavery.2. Southerners generally viewed Brown as a madman, symbolizing the fanatical hatred of the North 3. Moderates (Lincoln) condemned Brown's action, while admiring his commitment to countering slavery

A house divided: “the civil war” or “the war between the states”

Section 2

Essential Questions• Did the Confederate states have the right to

secede? • Was the Civil War inevitable? • Was the war worth the unprecedented human

toll and physical destruction? • In retrospect, which characterization of the

war is more accurate, the North’s or the South’s?

Comparison of Union and CSA Union CSA

Total population 22,000,000 (71%) 9,000,000 (29%)

Free population 22,000,000 5,500,000

1860 Border state slaves 432,586 NA

1860 Southern slaves NA 3,500,000

Soldiers 2,200,000 (67%) 1,064,000 (33%)

Railroad miles 21,788 (71%) 8,838 (29%)

Manufactured items 90% 10%

Firearm production 97% 3%

Bales of cotton in 1860 Negligible 4,500,000

Bales of cotton in 1864 Negligible 300,000

Pre-war U.S. exports 30% 70%

Lincoln in-Depth: idealist or pragmatist

Section 3

Idealism vs. Pragmatism

Idealism:• the cherishing or

pursuit of high or noble principles, purposes, goals, etc.

Pragmatism: • Dealing with

things sensibly and realistically in a way that is based on practical rather than theoretical considerations.

The Schism: one nation under god?Section 4

Essential Questions

• Were the federal government’s terms to readmit the Confederate states too harsh, too lenient, or appropriate?

• Did the federal government make adequate provisions for the citizenship and welfare of former slaves? What should have been done?

• Did Reconstruction end too soon?

Lincoln's plan 1. Amnesty to Confederates taking

loyalty oath 2. 2. If 10% of voters took the oath,

statehood would be re-established 3. 3. Major goal: to strengthen

Republican Party in the South

Opposed by some Republicans who offered the Wade-Davis Bill 1. Military governors to rule Southern

states2. Majority of citizens required to take

loyalty oath 3. Attitude: South should be treated as

conquered territory

Johnson's plan 1. Confederate leaders

and wealthy Southerners would have to ask presidential permission to take the loyalty oath

2. 13th Amendment (abolishing slavery) would have to be approved by state

3. Viewed as too soft on the South by Radical Republicans

Reconstruction and the Constitution

13th Amendment (1865): Outlawed slavery.

14th Amendment (1868): Granted citizenship and civil rights to former slaves.

15th Amendment (1870): Granted the right to vote to African-Americans (males only).

Southern Response to Reconstruction

A. Former Confederate officials elected to public office when eligible.B. Resentment of Freedmen's Bureau and occupying troops.C. Passage of black codes limiting rights of blacks.