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Reconstructing Society

This section examines the multifaceted conditions in the Postwar South, highlighting significant economic problems such as property damage, Confederate debt, and a declining labor force. Increased taxes funded public works, but politics was tumultuous, with scalawags and carpetbaggers reshaping the landscape. African American voters gained prominence, yet faced violence and challenges in claiming their freedom. Former slaves experienced reunification and education opportunities but encountered barriers like sharecropping and labor shortages. Overall, the South struggled with a transformed economy and social tensions.

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Reconstructing Society

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  1. Reconstructing Society Section 12-2 pp. 383-392

  2. Conditions in the Postwar South • Economic Problems • Property Damage • Confederate Debt • No Labor Force • Increased taxes help pay for public works projects – schools, hospitals, RRs, bridges

  3. Politics in the Postwar South • Scalawags: White Southerners who joined the Republican Party. • Carpetbaggers: Northerners who moved South after the war.

  4. Politics in the Postwar South • African American Voters • Outnumber white voters in many areas • Majority are Republican • Republican Party splits over commitment to civil rights and Northern interference in Southern politics.

  5. Former Slaves Face Challenges • Postwar Victories • Families are reunited • Take advantage of educational opportunities • Form churches and volunteer organizations • Enter into politics • Hiram Revels – First African American Senator

  6. Former Slaves Face Challenges • Postwar Challenges • Hesitate to test freedom • Many families never find each other • Violence • Sharecropping

  7. Changes in the Southern Economy • “Forty Acres and a Mule” • Promise made by General Sherman to freed slaves • President Johnson orders land returned to original owners • 44 million acres of poor land given to former slaves

  8. Changes to the Southern Economy • White plantation owners face labor shortages • Alternatives to Wage Labor • Sharecropping: Supplies given to laborers; laborers give % of their crops back • Tenant Focus: Laborers rent land, provide own tools, and keep all their crops

  9. Changes to the Southern Economy • Cotton Loses Value • Overproduction  Low Prices • Southern banks fail frequently and can’t offer credit to people • Anger taken out on African Americans

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