Reconstruction (Plans), 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, Henry McNeal Turner and Black Legislators, Ku Klux Klan

     The Reconstruction era in Georgia, after the Civil War, lasted from 1865 to 1871. After the Civil War, Georgia was war torn and, in total chaos. Confederate soldiers roamed the land taking (most times stealing) whatever they pleased. The Reconstruction period really pieced Georgia back together starting with the African Americans. Blacks began serving at local, state, and national governmental levels. Blacks also voted in the 1867 election for the first time. Twenty nine blacks came to serve in Georgia's House of Representatives and three held in the Georgian senate seats. There were many pros to Reconstruction, however there were also many cons to balance it out. Many segregated facilities were formed, former enslaved were chained to the stone of poverty, post slaves were uneducated, and blacks were still discriminated against regardless of laws and amendments (this discrimination is inevitable because it still happens today). Also, all the African Americans in the General Assembly were expelled from it in 1868. Luckily they were allowed to reenter into the Supreme Court in 1870. There were more advantages, and disadvantages, to the Reconstruction period that not only affected the African American population, but every Union citizen. Banks started to reopen, dry goods stores, shops, and hotels all started back up, railroads grew around Georgia, new businesses were formed, Savannah and Brunswick became important ports, Atlanta became the Georgia's capital, Atlanta became important again and Georgia even reentered the Union! There were many Reconstruction plans that also accompanied the period. Lincoln wished for the Southern states to have a quick return to the Union, Southerners could be pardoned for their crimes by taking an oath of allegiance (to the Union of course), and when 10% of the voters took the oath, the state could rejoin the Union and create a state government. Furthermore, Johnson agreed with Lincoln's plans, approved the 13th amendment, and nullified ordinances of secession. Lastly, the Congress required ratification of the 14th amendment and placed states under military rule. After the Reconstruction era the United States was not yet one hundred percent, however it was well on the road to getting there. 

     
     After the Civil War, three more amendments were added to the Constitution: the 13th, 14th, and 15th. The thirteenth amendment said, "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."This meant that slavery was outlawed throughout the United States for the rest of eternity. The 14th amendment was five sections long, however, to summarize, it stated that citizenship was granted to all freedmen, and everyone had equal protection under the law. It also stated that all former Confederate officials could not hold office. Finally, the fifteenth amendment said, "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude--."This amendment allowed all men no matter what their color, race, or background was, could vote. 

     
     From 1867 to 1872, sixty nine African Americans served as state legislators. Henry McNeal Turner was one of the most influential. These black legislators marked the first time in history that blacks had ever participated in Georgian politics. Out of all of these African American politicians, Turner was the best. This was because he was the most successful in organizing the black Republican vote and he convinced many ministers to go into politics. Turner was also a delegate that was part of the Georgia General Assembly, but was removed by Democrats. The Democrats said that since he could not vote, therefore he could not hold office. In return the Federal government got involved, and the black legislators reassumed their positions. 

     
     From 1868 to the early 1870s, the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) evolved and operated. This Klan was a secret society hate group, and America's first domestic terrorist group. The members of the KKK were set on destroying the African Americans' right to vote; they ended up destroying most of the blacks rights throughout the South. The Ku Klux Klan was intent on the bringing down of the Republican party, and spreading the idea of white supremacy. The Ku Klux Klan was formed in 1867 in Tennessee, and gathered in circles wearing white robes, covering their heads and bodies. This hate group used violence against Radical Republicans and African Americans. Many people were killed such as white Republican government officials and former enslaved citizens. Many blacks were lynched (publicly hung) whites assassinated, and black women raped. Luckily, this group was put to an end in 1872. There are still many hate groups out there, just remember that each and every group like that is horribly wrong, and nothing but a band of savages. 

Sources:

http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2533

http://www.ourgeorgiahistory.com/history101/gahistory08.html

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/congressional?s=thttp://www.archives.gov/historical-docs/document.html?doc=9&title.raw=13th%20Amendment%20to%20the%20U.S.%20Constitution:%20Abolition%20of%20Slavery

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution_amendments_11-27.html

http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-635

http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-694

http://whgbetc.com/mind/reconstruction_congress.jpg

http://www.nps.gov/resources/customcf/story/Reconstruction_teaser.jpg

http://mrcapwebpage.com/VCSUSHISTORY/civilwaramendments.jpg

http://www.kingtisdell.org/Turner.jpg

http://img.tfd.com/WEAL/weal_06_img1143.jpg

Freedmen's Bureau and Sharecropping/Tenant Farming

     The United States Congress created the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands (also known as the Freedmen's Bureau) in 1865. This bureau was formed to help African Americans rebuild their lives after they were freed from slavery. The Freedman's Bureau was formed by Radical Republicans (political faction that advocated equal rights for blacks). It turns out this organization was one of of a kind: it was the only agency to have been created in order to benefit social welfare. Major General Oliver O. Howard (a post Civil War hero) was extremely involved in the Bureau and its doings. The people that were a part of the Freedmen's Bureau helped post enslaved men and women receive educations, negotiate contracts, and live in the real-working world. Many times the Bureau was disregarded or looked down upon, however the missionaries working the organization were very successful in education department. Countless schools, colleges, and training schools were established for blacks where they could learn without prejudice. Howard University and Hampton Institute were two of the many schools created. Furthermore, African American's created many churches and congregations with the Freedmen's resources. The Freedmen's Bureau was very successful in its helping the African Americans start new lives. The program was around until 1872 when staff cuts were made, and operations ceased to exist.

   
     Sharecropping was an agricultural system, that was established after the Civil War ended, in Georgia and other Southern states. Sharecropping was where workers with no land, ran other owners plantations for a small profit. At the end of a year (or season) the sharecropper had to pay the owner a percentage of the crop. These laborers suffered often from bankruptcy and plaguing debt, they hardly ever made profits. Many freed slaves went into the business of sharecropping. By the 1870s sharecropping was a large part of the Southern economy and a new version of slavery. By 1880 these laborers worked on 32 percent of the farms. Throughout the next fifty years this system would continue to flourish. Tenant farming was also common after the Civil War ended. Tenant farming was considered a "step up" from sharecropping. Most tenant farmers owned their own tools or animals, although they were still poor. Unlike sharecroppers, tenant farmers paid the owners either cash or some of the crop.

Sources:

http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-3257

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_freed.html

http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-3590

http://www.history.com/topics/sharecropping

ttp://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/587122/tenant-farming

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Freedman's_bureau.jpg/250px-Freedman's_bureau.jpg

http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/media_content/m-4585.jpg

http://stfm.astate.edu/images/36-mule.jpg

Andersonville Prison

     The Confederate military prison was a hell hole. Located in the center of Georgia, close to modern day Macon and Sumter, Andersonville held more than 45,000 captive Union soldiers throughout the Civil War. This prison, also known as Camp Sumter, was surrounded on all sides by pine logs 15 to 17 feet tall. Andersonville was created in 1864, because the original prison in Richmond could not fit all the Union captives. Andersonville was built inland so it was safe from Union raids (captives couldn't escape easily) and there was a freshwater pond nearby. The prison was designed to hold 10,000 soldiers, however it held 30,000. Prisoners suffered from endless diseases, swarms of insects, and filth, all due to the contaminated water supply. The pond where the captives got their water started out fresh, although it soon became filled with sewage, trash, and endless pollutants. The poor conditions of the prison did not make sense to critics. This was because the South had enough resources and space to enlarge the prison, however they didn't. Even though the Confederates running Andersonville were cruel to the Unionists, the prisoners did little to improve the miserable conditions: guards took away firewood, the water was unsanitary because of the prisoners' waste dumped into it, robbery made life dangerous, and vicious gangs were formed. Henry Wirz, the prison commander, was resented by many Confederates because of his bad leadership. Southerners thought he was not cruel enough to the prisoners. Henry Wirz ended up getting hanged for war crimes. This is ironic because he was the only person to be executed for Civil War crimes even though he was not the cruelest. The prison population declined in August 1864 because of Sherman's march. Captives were sent to other camps so they could not be liberated by Union soldiers accompanying Sherman. When the infantry (professional military personnel) left, the a ragtag militia of Georgians and Floridians keep control with a dead line. A dead line was a line, where prisoners would be shot by a soldier if they tried to cross it. There was almost no chance of escape for a typical prisoner. Unless you were taken outside, it was unlikely to escape. In the prison, prisoners constructed "shebangs" to act as shelter. Shebangs were shacks made out of various items such as cloth, mud, bricks, tree limbs, and brush. Some prisoners would show compassion for each other by sharing their shebangs, and caring for the sick. When someone was removing the clothes of the dead they would be surprised to find a female. This is because females were not allowed to enlist in the army, meaning the woman would have had disguised herself as a man. Prisoners tried to meet basic cleanliness needs by using sand as soap. A captive, John Ransom opened a barber shop and a laundromat. For the 14 months of Andersonville's operation 13,000 captives died. Even though the prison was 26.5 acres it was crowded, overrun with disease, and full of horrific individuals no human being should ever see. Today the camp is a cemetery and today as students, teachers, and historians reflect back on the Civil War, we should remember to honor those soldiers that died, but to also remember the Union soldiers who had to suffer through the horrors of the Andersonville prison.

Mortality Rate: 13:45 (dead:living)

Sources:

http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/warfare-and-logistics/warfare/andersonville.html

http://www.nps.gov/ande/planyourvisit/special.htm

http://www.nps.gov/ande/photosmultimedia/images/I13-2615_1.jpg

http://jason-cochran.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/AndersonvillePrisoner.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1d/Andersonville_Prison.jpg/400px-Andersonville_Prison.jpg

Union Blockade of GA's Coast, Sherman's Atlanta Campaign / March to the Sea

     The Union blockade of Georgia's coastline was a major factor in the Union winning the war. This blockade lasted four years long (1861-1864). The blockade was created in order to win the war by siege. A siege is when you cut off an area's supplies and reinforcements in order to capture the area or win a battle (no violence involved). The blockade seemed unsuccessful at first, however as the skill of the blockaders advanced, one in every three ships sailing to Georgia was intercepted. Lee's soldiers had little food for the last two years of the war. Not only did the troops suffer, but the state of Georgia itself was in trouble. For instance, cotton exports dropped by 95%; and being the soul item of revenue in the South, Georgia was in danger of economic collapse.

   
     After many hours of hard thought battle strategy, General Sherman finally had devised his master plan: the Atlanta Campaign. There were two reasons for this campaign: one because Atlanta was a major rail center, causing its destruction to be a major blow to the South, and two, because Lincoln needed to beat the South and end the war quickly. The capture of Atlanta was crucial for the following two reasons: it would increase Northern support for the war, and it would ensure Lincoln's reelection. The Atlanta Campaign was successful. It was incredibly successful at that. Atlanta was torched, burned to the ground. Everything was in chaos. Civilians were out of their homes. Soldiers were destroying anything and everything in their paths. The Confederacy's hopes of winning the war diminished even further than earlier. Southern soldiers began to desert in order to escape the horrors and humiliation of the army.

     
     Sherman's march to the sea was next. After the success in the Atlanta Campaign, Sherman wanted to deliver a knockout punch to the South: he planned to march his 60,000 men from Atlanta, to Savannah, destroying everything in his path. Even though the idea of the march was brilliant, many other officers thought the plan too risky. This was because there would be no communication along the way, and there would be no consistent food supplies. The soldiers would have to live off the land. At last Sherman's march was given approval to. On November 16, 1864, Sherman's troops departed Atlanta for Savannah. Until December 21, 1864 the troops tramped through Georgia. They left a scar through the South's heartland. Southern homes were emptied, livestock stolen, crops destroyed, houses burned, families dead. Along the way, many slaves joined the march in order to contribute to the Union's effort. However Sherman managed to discourage many adventurous youngsters not to accompany the Union in order to not have to supply extra food. Sherman was the king of hard war, total war, and scorched earth (the names given to his policy of war). Sherman's plan ended up working. Southerners became increasingly weary of the war, and were ready to give in to the Union.

The Atlanta Campaign and Sherman's march to the sea matter for four reasons:

• Capture of Atlanta insured Lincoln's reelection
• Atlanta's capture was demoralizing to Southerners
• Atlanta's railroads were destroyed
• Confederate soldiers' spirits were low, they began to run away

Sherman's march to the sea: extra facts

• Atlanta was the heartland of the South
• Sherman's army caused one billion dollars of damage
• Ulysses Grant was the first Union commander, Sherman the second
• People thought Sherman to be crazy and Grant a drunk
• Grant was a strategist, Sherman was the front line commander
• The South lost 1,700 men at Jonesboro
• Sherman's march to the sea put 60,000 soldiers lives in danger
• Sherman and Grant had a great friendship
• Sherman called his soldiers "my little devils", and the soldiers called him "Uncle Billy" in return
• Blacks saw Sherman as a hero

Sources:

http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-3763

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/siege?s=t

http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2713

http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-641

http://cwmemory.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/general-william-tecumseh-sherman.jpg

http://media-1.web.britannica.com/eb-media/97/5997-004-8D6A21C6.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Scott-anaconda.jpg/300px-Scott-anaconda.jpg

Video in Class 3/4/13- 3/5/13

Gettysburg and Chickamauga

     From July 1-3, 1863, Robert E. Lee and George Meade's troops collided in the town of Gettysburg. Lee strayed from his original battle plan, a defensive strategy, and planned to invade Pennsylvania (offensive strategy). After three days of fighting, Lee's army retreated to Virginia. There were 51,00 casualties on both sides, making Gettysburg the bloodiest American Civil War battle ever fought. Gettysburg was an awful bloodbath that never should have happened. Both Union and Confederate families suffered incredible loses of their young brave soldiers. If you think about it, this battle shouldn't have even really occurred. If Lee had stuck with his defensive strategy, the two sides never would have collided. Also, the Confederates had a major flaw in their plan: Pickett's Charge. The Picket-Pettigrew assault was a charge by the Confederates in hopes of piercing the Union line. The Confederates were met with merciless Union gun fire, which contributed substantially to the casualty count. After the Battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln issued the Gettysburg address, dedicating the battlefield to become a cemetery for fallen Union soldiers. This address from Lincoln also reinforced why these gallant soldiers were fighting, and how the Unionists would continue their fight. Furthermore, Gettysburg was considered to be the war's turning point. This is because General Lee was so confident about his troops prior to the Battle of the Gettysburg, that he and his soldiers never recovered from the loss. They were not expecting such a fierce response from the Union army and were bewildered into their defeat.

     

    

     The Battle of Chickamauga was from September 18-20, 1863. Union General William S. Rosecrans was planning to force the Confederates out of Chattanooga. Rosecrans accomplished this, however Braxton Bragg (Confederate General) wanted to reoccupy Chattanooga, and met Rosecrans's army in Northern Georgia. During the battle, a gap appeared in Rosecrans's line. James Longstreet (also a Confederate General) exploited this weakness, and forced the Union's defeat. There were many flaws in the Battle of Chickamauga especially on the Confederate side. The major flaw came after the battle was finished, however. This flaw was the over- confidence the Confederate army gained after Chickamauga and how this army carried it on their soldiers during the Battle of Chattanooga. The Battle of Chickamauga inevitably led to Sherman's Atlanta Campaign, and here's how. Once the Confederates lost the Battle of Chattanooga their confidence wavered and broke. The Union already had control of Tennessee, although they now had Chattanooga as well (also known as the "Gateway to the South"). While Sherman had control over these major lands, he cooked up his plan for the Atlanta Campaign. 

Sources:

http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/gettysburg/maps/pickettscharge.html

http://www.loc.gov/wiseguide/july03/civil.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Chickamauga#Aftermath

http://www.historynet.com/battle-of-chickamauga

http://drtlibrary.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/gettysburg-battle-charge-15001.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Chickamauga_Sep20_3_detail.png/400px-Chickamauga_Sep20_3_detail.png

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Chickamauga.jpg/300px-Chickamauga.jpg

A Link to the Gettysburg Address- http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm