Deck 14: Reconstruction: an Unfinished Revolution, 1865-1877

Question 1

Which constitutional amendment abolished slavery, passed by Congress in 1865?

A) Twelfth Amendment
B) Thirteenth Amendment
C) Fourteenth Amendment
D) Fifteenth Amendment

Answer 1

Thirteenth Amendment

Question 2

Freed slaves, after the Civil War, __________________.

A) fought hard to establish racially integrated public schools
B) showed a great desire for education as the means of escaping the ignorance of slavery
C) concentrated solely on providing primary school education for their children
D) disappointed Northern reformers with their apparent lack of interest in education

Answer 2

showed a great desire for education as the means of escaping the ignorance of slavery

Question 3

Regarding black suffrage in the South, Andrew Johnson believed that:

A) The right to vote should be extended to African Americans through an amendment to the Constitution
B) The federal government could never force the Southern states to extend voting rights to African Americans
C) The Southern states, before being allowed to re-enter the Union, should guarantee the right to vote to African-American males
D) African Americans were not citizens and should not be allowed to vote

Answer 3

The federal government could never force the Southern states to extend voting rights to African Americans

Question 4

Which section of the Fourteenth Amendment had the longest-lasting legal impact?

A) The section which guaranteed the war debt of the United States
B) The section which conferred citizenship on freedmen and prohibited states from abridging of their constitutional rights
C) The section which withheld political power from prominent Confederates
D) The section which penalized states that did not allow African Americans to vote

Question 5

The outcome of the congressional elections of 1866:

A) Gave the Democrats effective control of both houses of Congress
B) Represented an endorsement of the Reconstruction plans of the Republican congressional leaders
C) Deepened the split between Conservative and Radical Republicans
D) Demonstrated public support for Andrew Johnson's Reconstruction program

Question 6

What was the belief of Thaddeus Stevens and other congressional Republicans who criticized Lincoln's approach to Reconstruction?

A) The South's plantation elite erred in establishing the Confederacy, but the Union itself was never broken and endured through the Civil War.
B) The Reconstruction process outlined in the Constitution should be closely followed.
C) The president has sole responsibility for Reconstruction.
D) The Confederate states, by seceding and making war against the United States, lost their status as states and should now be treated as conquered territories.

Question 7

A basic economic problem in the South in the post-Civil War period was _________________.

A) a labor shortage
B) inflation
C) overdependence on cotton
D) declining prices for food crops

Question 8

Passed by Congress in the face of President Johnson's veto, the Civil Rights Act of 1866:

A) Forced state courts in the South to practice equality by placing them under the watchful eye of the federal judiciary
B) Guaranteed equality of economic opportunity by barring discrimination in employment on the basis of race
C) Was the first attempt by Congress to desegregate educational facilities in the South
D) Guaranteed the right to vote to all adult males with the equivalent of a third-grade education

Question 9

African Americans who won public office during Reconstruction _____________.

A) mostly came from the prewar educated African-American elite
B) were mostly self-educated individuals who rose from slavery
C) came from the North
D) were illiterate and uneducated

Question 10

Andrew Johnson's initial plan for Reconstruction:

A) Demonstrated an unforgiving hatred of all Southerners
B) Protected the political rights of freed slaves in the South
C) Attempted, at least temporarily, to deny power to wealthy Southern planters
D) Failed to require the Southern states to draft new constitutions

Question 11

Many freedmen saw emancipation as the opportunity to ______________.

A) punish their former masters
B) take advantage of the economic opportunities offered them by Northern factory owners
C) create their own institutions free of white control
D) demand passage of legislation outlawing social, economic, and political discrimination on the basis of race

Question 12

In early 1866, when states undertook to vote on the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment, the amendment was ________________.

A) supported by President Johnson.
B) rejected by all Southern legislatures except Tennessee's.
C) approved by the Southern states and then withdrawn by Congress.
D) supported by prominent women's rights activists but received little additional support.

Question 13

Soon after proposing his initial plan for Reconstruction, President Johnson surprisingly helped subvert his own plan by ____________________.

A) withdrawing the Union Army from the South
B) granting pardons to many wealthy Southerners
C) establishing martial law throughout the South
D) dissolving the newly elected state constitutional conventions

Question 14

After the Civil War, most African-American farmers eventually worked:

A) As sharecroppers, paying a portion of their farm proceeds as rent
B) As domestic servants in the North
C) As hired field hands under a contract for wages from their former masters
D) As independent landowners

Question 15

When sharecropping first originated:

A) It allowed African Americans to buy land on credit
B) It was forced on African Americans by ruthless landowners
C) It gave African Americans freedom from daily supervision by white landowners or overseers
D) It was a humanitarian system of poverty relief

Question 16

The Radical Republicans in Congress believed that it was essential to:

A) Complete the Reconstruction process quickly
B) Treat the South with sympathy and compassion
C) Place Reconstruction policy in the president's hands
D) Ensure the rights of the freedmen

Question 17

Although the South lost the Civil War, it was possible that Southern states would gain increased power in Congress when readmitted to the Union because:

A) Southern congressmen could use the threat of secession to intimidate Northern representatives
B) Southern congressmen would chair the key congressional committees
C) The number of Southern states had increased
D) For purposes of congressional representation, African Americans would count as a full person rather than as three-fifths of a person

Question 18

The black codes enacted in the South after the Civil War showed that Southerners

A) were willing to allow African Americans equality under law
B) sought to maintain African Americans in positions of servility
C) recognized the need for providing basic education for African Americans
D) would leave the destiny of African Americans up to the African Americans themselves

Question 19

Which of the following was true of Andrew Johnson?

A) Although from Tennessee, he remained in the Senate after his state seceded from the Union.
B) He was one of the founders of the Republican Party.
C) Although he disagreed with the Radicals on many issues, he supported the concept of an activist federal government.
D) He favored civil rights for African Americans, but did not believe that they should have the right to vote.

Question 20

The process by which the Republican-controlled Congress sought to make the Reconstruction of ex-Confederate states longer, harsher, and under greater congressional control is called

A) Judicial Reconstruction
B) Impeachment
C) Socially Just Reconstruction
D) Congressional Reconstruction

Question 21

The refusal of most of the former Confederate states to ratify the Fourteenth Amendment in 1866:

A) Caused most Northerners to support the Radicals' demand that more economic opportunity be extended to freedmen
B) Caused a thorough restructuring of Southern society
C) Led to general land reform in the South
D) Forced congressional Republicans to abolish the "Johnson governments" in the South, form new governments, and extend the vote to freedmen

Question 22

What was the result of United States v. Cruikshank?

A) The power to protect the equal rights of citizens was left solely to the states.
B) All Southern public facilities would be integrated.
C) African Americans were protected in the full exercise of their civil rights.
D) The right to vote was granted to all property-holding African Americans.

Question 23

What was a result of Bradwell v. Illinois?

A) Impairment of property rights by statute did not violate due process.
B) State laws barring women from certain occupations did not violate the privileges and immunities clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
C) The Fourteenth Amendment barred individual acts of discrimination as well as acts undertaken by a state.
D) It was unconstitutional for a state to secede from the Union.

Question 24

What was a scalawag?

A) A homeless unemployed freedman in the South
B) A native white Southerner who cooperated with the Republicans
C) A former plantation owner who had lost his lands
D) A Union soldier who occupied the South during Reconstruction

Question 25

What do modern scholars view as President Johnson's most serious and indictable offense?

A) His decision to fire Secretary of War Stanton
B) His losing battle with alcoholism
C) His advice to Southern states that they reject the Fourteenth Amendment
D) His systematic efforts to block enforcement of the Reconstruction Act of 1867

Question 26

Which of the following is true of the First Reconstruction Act?

A) Existing Southern state governments were recognized as legitimate.
B) The education of freedmen in the South would be supported by federal funding.
C) Freedmen were given the right to vote in elections for state constitutional conventions and in subsequent elections.
D) Southern plantations were confiscated and divided into smaller plots of land.

Question 27

Which of the following is true of the Ku Klux Klan?

A) It was not originally a violent organization.
B) It was not connected to party politics.
C) Congress paid little attention to its actions.
D) It normalized the use of terrorism in politics.

Question 28

The 1868 indictment handed down by the House Judiciary Committee against President Johnson concentrated on his

A) violation of the Tenure of Office Act.
B) attempts to limit the powers of military commanders in the South.
C) effort to prevent enforcement of the Military Reconstruction Act of 1867.
D) attempts to repeal the Fourteenth Amendment.

Question 29

In some cases, white conservatives in the South attempted to defeat Congress's Reconstruction plans by ___________.

A) actively and openly calling for secession
B) bribing federal poll watchers
C) defying laws designed to redistribute land throughout the South
D) boycotting the polls

Question 30

Which of the following is true of Johnson's impeachment trial?

A) Ironically, Johnson was saved by the Radical Republicans, who argued that impeachment should not be used as a political weapon.
B) Because of public outrage at the way Johnson was being forced out of office, the Senate voted to acquit him.
C) Johnson's acquittal by the Senate established the precedent that Congress could not use impeachment as a political weapon against the President.
D) Although Johnson was found guilty, his appeal to the Supreme Court prevented his removal from office.

Question 31

In the 1868 presidential campaign, Ulysses Grant, running as a Republican, _____________________.

A) endorsed African-American suffrage in the South but not in the North
B) fully supported the principles of the Radical Republicans
C) urged Congress to pass antilynching legislation
D) denounced the Ku Klux Klan as a terrorist organization

Question 32

In response to the Panic of 1873, many debtors and unemployed workers advocated ____________________.

A) easy-money policies, which they hoped would spur economic expansion
B) federal monetary grants to freedmen so they could open their own businesses and banks
C) a federal loan program to finance industrial development in the South
D) federal loans to freedmen so they could buy their own land

Question 33

In Congressional debates concerning Reconstruction of the former Confederate states, Thaddeus Stevens argued that __________________.

A) freedmen should not be extended the right to vote
B) Southern property should be confiscated and used to give freedmen homesteads and a chance at economic independence
C) all freedmen should be given forty acres from confiscated Southern land
D) the Fourteenth Amendment should extend the right to vote to women as well as to African Americans

Question 34

In decisions after the Civil War, the Supreme Court ______________________.

A) upheld the efforts of the Radicals to punish the South
B) led the drive to guarantee full equality for the former slaves
C) repeatedly overruled actions taken by Union generals during the military occupation of the South
D) participated in the Northern retreat from the Reconstruction commitment to equality for the freedmen

Question 35

In 1869, the Fifteenth Amendment:

A) Stipulated that states could not deny the right to vote on the basis of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
B) Guaranteed African Americans equal protection under the law.
C) Extended the right to vote to women and blacks.
D) Was immediately ratified by all Northern states.

Question 36

In an attempt to limit President Johnson's powers and safeguard its own Reconstruction plan, Congress:

A) Proposed a constitutional amendment that would strip the president of his veto power
B) Established a House committee to approve all candidates for political office in the former Confederate states
C) Passed legislation requiring the president to issue military orders through the General of the Army
D) Placed responsibility for the appointment of the president's cabinet in the hands of a joint Congressional committee

Question 37

During Reconstruction, African-American leaders in the South:

A) Argued that voting rights should be permanently denied to former Confederates
B) Dominated the legislatures in several southern states
C) Led efforts to establish public schools in the region
D) Advocated the confiscation and redistribution of land

Question 38

Which is true of Reconstruction governments in the South?

A) They encouraged investment in industry.
B) They lowered taxes.
C) They imposed severe economic penalties on former slaveowners.
D) They passed civil rights legislation outlawing racial discrimination in employment and housing.

Question 39

In the Slaughter-House cases, the Supreme Court held that the Fourteenth Amendment:

A) Only prohibited the states from abridging those rights associated with U.S. citizenship
B) Brought individual rights under federal protection
C) Defined state citizenship and national citizenship as being one and the same
D) Did not differentiate between state citizenship and national citizenship

Question 40

Which of the following is true of Northerners who settled in the South immediately after the Civil War?

A) They constituted the largest group holding political office in the South during Reconstruction.
B) For the most part they were greedy, scheming politicians who came to loot the South in its most desperate hour.
C) Most came because they were seeking business opportunities or a warmer climate.
D) Knowing that industrialization of the South was impractical, they were primarily interested in bringing mechanized agribusiness to the region.

Question 41

Explain the impeachment of President Johnson by the House of Representatives and his subsequent acquittal in the Senate. What implications did Johnson's acquittal have for the future?

Question 42

Trace the evolution of the Congressional Reconstruction plan, and examine the factors that affected the development of this plan.

Question 43

Discuss the aspirations and goals of African-American southerners as they entered upon life after slavery, and explain the ways in which they attempted to achieve their goals. To what extent were they successful? Why?

Question 44

Explain the conflict between the executive and legislative branches of government over Reconstruction, and discuss the consequences of this conflict.

Question 45

After the Civil War, the nation committed itself to equality for the freedmen through law and constitutional amendment. Discuss the forces and events that caused the nation to abandon this commitment during the subsequent years.

Question 46

The Fourteenth Amendment represented a compromise between Radical and Conservative Republicans. Write an essay reviewing the major provisions of this amendment and explain where the compromise was most evident.

Question 47

Contrast the Reconstruction plan advocated by Radical Republicans such as Thaddeus Stevens with the Reconstruction Act of 1867. Why were key elements of the Radical plan not adopted? How might the Radical plan have changed southern society?

Question 48

Discuss and assess President Johnson's Reconstruction plan in theory and in practice.

Question 49

Examine the social, political, and economic policies of the Reconstruction governments in the South. What were the strengths and weaknesses of these policies? Explain the extent to which southern society was changed by these policies.

Question 50

The Reconstruction era is generally divided into two phases, the presidential phase lasting from 1865 to 1867 and the congressional phase stretching from 1867 to 1876. Citing specific programs and policies, indicate how the two phases differed.

Question 51

Discuss the various means by which conservatives attempted to regain control of the southern state governments, and assess the effectiveness of their efforts.

Question 52

Examine the role played by the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the federal government in the national retreat from the commitment to equality for the freedmen.

Question 53

The disputed presidential election of 1876 was significant in its outcome because it:

A) Signaled the demise of the two-party system
B) Brought an end to Reconstruction
C) Marked the beginning of a long era of Democratic presidents
D) Demonstrated that African-American voters held the balance of power in Southern politics

Question 54

Discuss the response of former enslaved Americans to freedom.

Question 55

Discuss the disputed election of 1876. What was at stake? How did it connect to the decade preceding it? How was it resolved? Was the Compromise of 1877 effective?

Question 56

Analyze the origins, purpose, and tactics of the Ku Klux Klan and its effect on the nation's politics and African Americans.