Chapter 12 Sections 3 and 4

The New South and the End of Reconstruction

Why did planters have trouble finding people to work for them?

• The work too closely resembled slavery

• Workers often left to look for better jobs and more money

Sharecropping

• A family would farm some portion of a planter’s land

• A payment, the family would receive a portion of the crops

• The planter would usually provide a place to live

Sharecropping

• Harsh life• Could be evicted after a

harvest• Were often charged

rent, leaving them in debt

• Could not leave plantation until debt paid– Left them stuck

Tenant Farming

• Did not own the land they farmed

• Paid to rent the land• Could choose what

crops to grow • Enjoyed a higher social

status than sharecroppers

How did sharecroppers and tenant farming differ?

• Tenant farmers had a little more freedom– Could choose what

plants to grow– What hours to work

• Sharecroppers farmed someone else’s land in exchange for a portion of the crop at harvest and for housing…sometimes

How did changes in farming affect the long term health of the South’s economy?

• Too make money, Southern planters had to grow cash crops (like cotton) rather than food crops

• This required the South to import more food

• This created more expenses for Southerners in poverty

Infrastructure

• The public property and services a society uses– This was almost

completely destroyed in the south

– Left opportunities for business opportunities

– South used Reconstruction money to build: roads, bridges, canals, railroads, and telegraph lines, public schools

How did railroads contribute to the growth of cities?

• Railroads rebuilt and extended in the south– Towns and villages along

the railroad turned into cities

– Trade and business flourished

– More commerce and larger populations

Why was southern industrial growth limited?

• Southern factories often did not make finished goods-focused on the early stages of manufacturing

• Profits from the cotton industries shifted to the North

• Northern companies that dyed the cotton and sold the finished product made the money

What were the sources of funding for Reconstruction programs?

• Congress• Private investors• Heavy taxes

Enforcement Act of 1870

• Banned the use of terror, force, or bribery to prevent people from voting because of their race.

• Meant to stop the actions of the KKK

Why did Congress pass the Enforcement Act of 1870?

• KKK spreading terror throughout the South

• Desired to eliminate the Republican party

• Desired to keep African Americans in a submissive role in society

• Tortured, kidnapped, and murdered

Solid South

• A strong bloc of former Confederate and Democratic voters in the South

• Blocked many federal Reconstruction policies

• Reversed many Reconstruction reforms

Compromise of 1877

• Rutherford B. Hayes lost the popular vote in the 1876 Presidential election to Samuel Tilden

• But, the electoral results were disputed

• Both candidates were claiming victory in Louisiana, South Carolina, and Florida

Compromise of 1877

• A Congressional commission was set up to resolve the problem– Composed of more

republicans than Democrats

– Democrats rejected the commissions decision

Compromise of 1877

• The 2 parties made a deal• Hayes would win the

Presidency• In exchange for the

Presidency, he would pull the troops out of the South and give money to projects in the South

• Democrats regain control of Southern politics

• Reconstruction over

What 4 factors contributed to the end of Reconstruction?

• Corruption- poor government leadership

• The economy- lots of taxes and spending led to deep Southern debt

• Violence• The Democratic return

to power in the South

What were the successes and failures of Reconstruction?

• Successes• Union is restored• South’s economy grows

and new wealth is created in the North

• 14th and 15th Amendments offer blacks citizenship and equal protection under the law

• Freedmen’s Bureau and other organizations help many black families obtain housing, jobs, and schooling

• Southern states adopt a system of mandatory education

What were the successes and failures of Reconstruction?

• Failures• Many white southerners

remain bitter toward the federal government and the Republican Party

• The South is sow to industrialize

• After troops leave, many blacks are denied their right to vote

• Many black and white farmers remain caught in a cycle of poverty

• Racism continues in the North and South