Question 1

After the Civil War, cotton prices

Accepted Answer

After the Civil War, the end of slavery led to a drop in cotton production, which in turn caused cotton prices to rise.

Question 2

Sharecropping

Accepted Answer

Sharecropping allowed African-Americans more autonomy compared to gang labor, as it reduced the level of direct supervision by landowners or overseers. This system was more about dividing the crop at the end of the season rather than being paid a daily wage or being constantly supervised.

Question 3

What can be determined through analyzing the "Sharecropping Contract"?

Accepted Answer

The sharecropping contract often trapped ex-slaves in a cycle of debt and poverty, resembling economic slavery rather than providing mutual benefit or a good standard of living.

Question 4

What benefit did Abraham Lincoln see in having Andrew Johnson on his ticket?

Accepted Answer

Lincoln's party hoped to build a Republican base in the South.

Question 5

During Reconstruction, what new southern class arose due to the building of new railroads?

Accepted Answer

The building of new railroads during Reconstruction facilitated the growth of an urban middle class in the South by improving transportation and commerce, which in turn stimulated economic development and urbanization.

Question 6

What did the ex-slaves see as key to significantly improving their condition?

Accepted Answer

Ex-slaves saw receiving free land as their own property as a crucial step towards significantly improving their condition. This belief was rooted in the idea that owning land would provide them with economic independence and the ability to sustain themselves and their families, breaking the cycle of dependency on former slave owners or the precarious conditions of sharecropping and wage labor.

Question 7

What did the freedmen request in their "Petition of Committee in Behalf of the Freedmen to Andrew Johnson" in 1865?

Accepted Answer

The freedmen requested the right to purchase a homestead in their petition to Andrew Johnson in 1865.

Question 8

Which statement is true about the "Petition of Committee in Behalf of the Freedmen to Andrew Johnson"?

Accepted Answer

The petitioners in the "Petition of Committee in Behalf of the Freedmen to Andrew Johnson" argued that they deserved land because they had made the lands valuable through their labor. This reflects a common argument made by freedmen during the Reconstruction era, emphasizing the value of their labor and the justice of receiving land as a form of compensation and a means to ensure their freedom and economic independence.

Question 9

Which of the following statements accurately describes the sharecropping system?

Accepted Answer

Sharecropping was a system where farmers, often former slaves, rented small plots of land from a landowner in exchange for a portion of their crop. This system kept many in a cycle of debt and poverty, rather than leading to prosperity or land ownership.

Question 10

Andrew Johnson

Accepted Answer

Andrew Johnson lacked Lincoln's political skills and keen sense of public opinion, which contributed to his difficulties in effectively managing Reconstruction and dealing with Congress.

Question 11

Other societies experienced the transition from slavery to freedom around the same time as the United States. What type of labor did plantation owners in the British Caribbean use to continue their operations?

Accepted Answer

After the abolition of slavery, plantation owners in the British Caribbean turned to indentured servants from India and China to continue their operations. This system was seen as a way to maintain labor forces on plantations without resorting to slavery, offering contracts to workers for a specified period of time under conditions that were often exploitative.

Question 12

The crop-lien system

Accepted Answer

The crop-lien system trapped many sharecroppers, both black and white, in a cycle of debt and poverty by allowing them to borrow against future crop earnings, which often led to insurmountable debts due to fluctuating crop prices and high interest rates.

Question 13

Which statement is true in reference to President Andrew Johnson?

Accepted Answer

Johnson indeed grew up in poverty in the South and was known for his disdain for the Southern elite, whom he viewed as a corrupt aristocracy. This background influenced his political views and actions as President.

Question 14

White farmers in the late nineteenth-century South

Accepted Answer

Many white farmers in the late nineteenth-century South were indeed sharecroppers involved in the crop-lien system, a system where farmers (both black and white) would receive credit from local merchants for seed and supplies, with the crop used as collateral. This system often led to a cycle of debt and poverty.

Question 15

Which of the following statements accurately describes white yeoman (small) farmers?

Accepted Answer

After the Civil War, the Southern economy was devastated, and many white yeoman farmers, who were already operating on thin margins, found themselves unable to compete or maintain their farms. The shift to a sharecropping system and the reliance on cotton, which was a cash crop but also tied to fluctuating markets and high levels of debt, led many to lose their land and become sharecroppers.

Question 16

What did Andrew Johnson do with the land of plantation owners seized during the Civil War?

Accepted Answer

Andrew Johnson, who became president after Lincoln's assassination, pursued a lenient Reconstruction policy. One of his actions was to return the land that had been seized during the Civil War to the original owners, rather than redistributing it to freed slaves or using it for other purposes. This decision was part of his broader approach to quickly restore the Southern states to the Union with minimal changes to their pre-war social structure.

Question 17

Because President Johnson ended land reform and no land distribution took place,

Accepted Answer

After the Civil War, President Andrew Johnson's policies led to the end of land reform efforts that might have redistributed land to formerly enslaved African-Americans. Without access to land of their own, most rural African-Americans remained economically disadvantaged and lacked property, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and limiting their opportunities for advancement.

Question 18

According to the petitions that freedmen sent to President Andrew Johnson, what had the government promised them?

Accepted Answer

The freedmen sent petitions to President Andrew Johnson requesting homesteads, which they believed the government had promised them. This was part of their hope for economic independence and stability following emancipation.

Question 19

What was ironic about the election of Andrew Johnson?

Accepted Answer

Andrew Johnson, who was from Tennessee, a state that had seceded from the Union during the Civil War, became president after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. This was ironic because he was a leader from a Confederate state who ascended to the presidency of a nation that had just fought to preserve the Union against the Confederacy.

Question 20

How can Andrew Johnson be compared to Abraham Lincoln?

Accepted Answer

Andrew Johnson was known for being more stubborn and less willing to compromise than Abraham Lincoln, who was known for his ability to work with others and seek compromise.

Quiz 15: What Is Freedom: Reconstruction, 1865-1877