Serving an expanded citizenry and embracing a new definition of public responsibility, Reconstruction governments established the South’s first state-funded public school systems, adopted measures designed to strengthen the bargaining power of plantation laborers, made taxation more equitable, and outlawed racial …
Q. What positions did African Americans hold during Reconstruction?
Table 4: Black Officeholders during Reconstruction: State and Major Black State Officials
| Title | Number | State |
|---|---|---|
| Legislative Clerk | 7 | |
| Legislator: House of Representatives | 683 | |
| Legislator: Senate | 112 | |
| Lieutenant Governor | 6 | Louisiana |
Q. How did politics play in reconstruction?
After rejecting the Reconstruction plan of President Andrew Johnson, the Republican Congress enacted laws and Constitutional amendments that empowered the federal government to enforce the principle of equal rights, and gave black Southerners the right to vote and hold office.
Q. How many black men held political office in the South during Reconstruction?
2,000 African
Q. What types of offices did blacks hold?
At the top of the state level, there were two black lieutenant governors, the treasurer, and secretary of state. Then there were numerous local officials ranging from justice of the peace, sheriff, and school board officials. What was the status of these men before the Civil War—were they free or slave?
Q. How did African American life change during reconstruction?
After the Civil War, with the protection of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution and the Civil Rights Act of 1866, African Americans enjoyed a period when they were allowed to vote, actively participate in the political process, acquire the land of former owners, seek their own …
Q. What did the First Reconstruction Act do?
The Reconstruction Act of 1867 outlined the terms for readmission to representation of rebel states. The bill divided the former Confederate states, except for Tennessee, into five military districts.
Q. What went right during reconstruction?
Meanwhile, the Reconstruction acts gave former male slaves the right to vote and hold public office. Congress also passed two amendments to the Constitution. The Fourteenth Amendment made African-Americans citizens and protected citizens from discriminatory state laws.
Q. How did Reconstruction end?
Compromise of 1877: The End of Reconstruction The Compromise of 1876 effectively ended the Reconstruction era. Southern Democrats’ promises to protect civil and political rights of blacks were not kept, and the end of federal interference in southern affairs led to widespread disenfranchisement of blacks voters.
Q. Why did the Republicans not trust Johnson?
Many, especially the Radical Republicans, felt that Johnson was being too lenient in his Reconstruction policies. In 1866, Johnson vetoed the Freedmen’s Bureau bill and the Civil Rights bill and even encouraged Southern states not to ratify the 14th Amendment.
Q. Who was Lincoln’s VP?
Hannibal Hamlin1861–1865
Q. Who was Abraham Lincoln’s first VP?
Hannibal Hamlin of Maine, Lincoln’s First Vice-President.
