651. Clara Barton
This heroic Union nurse launched the American Red Cross in 1881. An "angel" in the Civil War, she treated the wounded in the field.

652. Lincoln's Ten Percent Plan
Under Lincoln's plan for Reconstruction, the former Confederate states would be readmitted to the Union if 10% of their citizens took a loyalty oath and the state agreed to ratify the 13th Amendment which outlawed slavery. The plan was not put into effect because Lincoln was assassinated.

653. President Abraham Lincoln's Assassination - April 14, 1865
While sitting in his box at Ford's Theatre watching "Our American Cousin," President Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth.

654. John Wilkes Booth
This pro-Southern actor, planned with others for six months to abduct Lincoln at the start of the war, but they were foiled when Lincoln didn't arrive at the scheduled place. April 14, 1865, he shot Lincoln at Ford's Theatre and cried, "Sic Semper Tyrannis!" ("Thus always to tyrants!") When he jumped down onto the stage his spur caught in the American flag draped over the balcony and he fell and broke his leg. He escaped on a waiting horse and fled town. He was found several days later in a barn. He refused to come out; the barn was set on fire. Booth was shot, either by himself or a soldier.

655. Ex Parte Milligan, 1866
In this case the Supreme Court ruled that military trials of civilians were illegal unless the civil courts are inoperative or the region is under marshall law.

656. Radical Republicans
After the Civil War, a group that believed the South should be harshly punished and thought that Lincoln was sometimes too compassionate towards the South.

657. Wade-Davis Bill (1864), Wade-Davis Manifesto
This proposed legislation declared that the Reconstruction of the South was a legislative (Congress-controlled), not executive (Presidential-controlled), matter. It was an attempt to weaken the power of the president. President Abraham Lincoln vetoed it. The Wade-Davis Manifesto said Lincoln was acting like a dictator by vetoing the bill.

658. Joint Committee on Reconstruction (Committee of Fifteen)
Six senators and nine representatives drafted the 14th Amendment and Reconstruction Acts. The purpose of the committee was to set the pace of Reconstruction. Most were radical Republicans.

659. The Reconstruction Acts, 1867
These acts were pushed through Congress and ratified as laws over Johnson's veto. These acts gave the radical Republicans in Congress complete military control over the South and divided the South into five military zones, each headed by a general (military governor) with absolute power over his district.

660. State Suicide Theory
The Southern states had relinquished their rights when they seceded. This, in effect, was suicide. This theory was used to justify the North taking military control of the South.

661. Conquered Territory Theory
Stated that conquered Southern states weren't part of the Union, but were instead conquered territories that the North treat as it wished.

662. The Unreconstructed South
The South's infrastructure had been destroyed - manufacturing had almost ceased. Few banks were solvent and in some areas starvation was imminent. Union General William Tecumseh Sherman had destroyed much of the South and its industries, railroads, etc. on his "March to the Sea."

663. Black Codes
Restrictions on the freedom of former slaves, passed by Southern governments during Reconstruction. They reestablished white control and quasi-slavery conditions in the South.

664. Texas v. White, 1869
Argued that Texas had never seceded because there is no provision in the Constitution for a state to secede, thus Texas should still be a state and not have to undergo reconstruction.

665. Thaddeus Stevens
A radical Republican and strong abolitionist from Pennsylvania who believed in harsh punishments for the South during Reconstruction. He was the leader of the radical Republicans in the House of Representatives of Congress.

666. Charles Sumner
The same Massachusetts Senator who had been caned by Brooks in 1856. Sumner returned to the Senate after the outbreak of the Civil War. He was the formulator of the state suicide theory, and supporter of emancipation. Sumner was the leader of the radical Republicans in the Senate. This outspoken senator was largely involved in the impeachment of Andrew Johnson.

667. Andrew Johnson (1808-1875)
An inflexible former U.S. senator from Tennessee, Andrew Johnson served as Abraham Lincoln's vice-president. Following Lincoln's assassination, Johnson became the president. Johnson opposed radical Republicans who passed Reconstruction Acts over his veto. Andrew Johnson was the first U.S. president to be impeached, but he survived Senate removal by only one vote. He is generally viewed as a weak and ineffective president.

668. Freedmen's Bureau, 1865
This federal agency was created in the last few months of the Civil War to aid former slaves in adjusting themselves to freedom. It furnished food and clothing to needy blacks and helped with job training and education. The bureau had its greatest success in the area of education of the former black slaves.

669. General Oliver O. Howard
This former Union commander in the Civil War served as the director of the Freedmen's Bureau.

670. Ku Klux Klan
White-supremacist group formed by six former Conferedate officers after the Civil War. The groups name is essentially Greek for "Circle of Friends." The group eventually turned to terrorist attacks on blacks. The original Klan was disbanded in 1869, but was later resurrected by white supremacists in 1915.

671. Civil Rights Act, 1866
Prohibited the abridgement of the rights of blacks or any other citizens.

672. Thirteenth Amendment, 1865
Freed all slaves, abolished slavery.

673. Fourteenth Amendment, 1866 (ratified 1868)
It provide for full citizenship to all native-born or naturalized Americans, including former slaves and immigrants.

674. Fifteenth Amendment, ratified 1870
Stated that no one could be denied the right to vote on account of race, color, or former position of servitude. It was created to prevent states from amending their constitutions to deny black suffrage. Unfortunately for women, this amendment did not provide for their right to vote.

675. Tenure of Office Act, 1866
Law enacted by the radical Congress, it forbade the president from removing civil officers (including members of his cabinet) without the consent of the Senate. It was meant to prevent Johnson from removing radicals from office. Johnson broke this law when he fired a radical Republican from his cabinet, Edwin M. Stanton. Andrew Johnson was impeached for this "crime."

676. Impeachment
To bring formal charges against a public official. Involves the accusation of the public official of committing a serious act or negligence. Andrew Johnson was impeached, but was saved from being removed from office by one vote in the Senate.

677. Chief Justice Chase
Chief Justice in 1868, he upheld Republican Reconstruction laws and ruled that paper money was not a legal substitute for specie.

678. Secretary of War Stanton
As Secretary of War, Edwin M. Stanton acted as a spy for the radical members of Congress in cabinet meetings with the president. President Johnson asked him to resign in 1867. The dismissal of Stanton led to the impeachment of Johnson because Johnson had violated the Tenure of Office Law.

679. Scalawags
A derogatory term for Southerners who were working with the North to buy up land from desperate Southerners. These "traitors to the South" supported the Reconstruction governments and many desired the industrialization of the South.

680. Carpetbaggers
A derogatory term applied to Northerners who migrated to the South during the Reconstruction period to take advantage of economic opportunities. Many were former Union soldiers, some businessmen, and others teachers. Some were unscrupulous individuals looking to advance their own fortunes by buying up land from desperate Southerners and by manipulating new black voters to obtain lucrative government contracts. However, many were honest and hardworking people looking for new opportunities.

681. Purchase of Alaska, 1867
Russia was eager to give up the vast and chilly expanse of land now known as Alaska, as the fur resources had been exhausted there, and, expecting friction with Great Britain, they preferred to see defenseless Alaska in U.S. hands. Called "Seward's Folly" and "Seward's Icebox," the purchase was made in 1867 by Seretary of State William Seward for $7,200,000. This valuable purchase gave the U.S. Alaska's enormous resources of fish, timber, oil and gold.

682. Secretary of State William Seward
He was an eager expansionist and energetically supported the Alaskan purchase plan as its chief negotiator. The deal was criticized as wasteful and foolish by some Americans at the time who referred to the purchase as "Seward's Folly" because Alaska was not fit for settlement or farming.

683. Napoleon III
He was the nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte, and was elected emperor of France from 1852-1870. Napoleon III invaded Mexico when the Mexican government couldn't repay loans from French bankers. He sent in an army and set up a new government under Maximillian during the U.S. Civil War. Napoleon III refused Lincoln's request that France withdraw from Mexico. After the Civil War, the U.S. sent an army to enforce the request and Napoleon withdrew.

684. Maximillian in Mexico
European prince appointed by Napoleon III of France to lead the new government set up in Mexico. After the Civil War, the U.S. invaded and he was executed, as a demonstration of the enforcement of the Monroe Doctrine to European powers.

685. Monroe Doctrine, 1823
This proclaimed that Europe should not interfere in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere and that any attempt at interference by a European power would be seen as a threat to the U.S. It also declared that a New World colony which has gained independence may not be recolonized by Europe. (It was written at a time when many South American nations were gaining independence). Only England, in particular George Canning, supported the Monroe Doctrine. Mostly just a show of nationalism, the doctrine had no major impact until later in the 1800s. It was not an enforceable decree when issued.

686. Ulysses S. Grant
U.S. president 1873-1877. Military hero of the Civil War, he led a corrupt administration, consisting of friends and relatives. Although Grant was personally a very honest and moral man, his administration was considered to be extremely corrupt and was plagued by scandals.

687. Treaty of Washington, 1871
This agreement between the U.S. and Britain settled northern boundary claims between the two nations. Canada gave the U.S. permanent fishing rights to the St. Lawrence River.

688. Secretary of State Hamilton Fish
A member of the Grant administration, he was an able diplomat who peacefully settled conflicts with Great Britain through the Treaty of Washington.

689. Election of 1872: Liberal Republicans, Horace Greeley
Liberal Republicans sought honest government and nominated Greeley as their candidate. The Democratic Party had also chosen Greeley. Regular Republicans renominated Grant. The Republicans controlled enough Black votes to gain victory for Grant.

690. Election of 1876: Hayes and Tilden
Rutherford B. Hayes - liberal Republican, Civil War general, he received only 165 electoral votes. Samuel J. Tilden - Democrat, received 264,000 more popular votes that Hayes, and 184 of the 185 electoral votes needed to win. 20 electoral votes were disputed, and an electoral commission decided that Hayes was the winner - fraud was suspected.

691. Compromise of 1877
Rutherford B. Hayes promised to show concern for Southern interests and end Reconstruction in exchange for the Democrats accepting the fraudulent election results. Upon taking office, Republican President Rutherford B. Hayes took Union troops out of the South officially ending Reconstruction.

692. Solid South
Term applied to the one-party (Democrat) system of the South following the Civil War. For 100 years after the Civil War, the South voted Democrat in every presidential election.

693. Sharecropping, Crop Lien System
Sharecropping provided the necessities for Black farmers. Storekeepers granted credit until the farm was harvested. To protect the creditor, the storekeeper took a mortgage, or lien, on the tenant's share of the crop. The system was abused and uneducated blacks were taken advantage of. The results, for southern blacks, was not unlike slavery.

694. Segregation
The separation of blacks and whites, mostly in the South. Separate facilities were created in public facilities, transportation, schools, etc.

695. Hiram R. Revels
A free black from North Carolina who became a U.S. senator in 1870.

696. Blanche K. Bruce
An African-American who became a U.S. senator in 1874. He was the only black to be elected to a full term until Edward Brooke in 1966.

697. Prigg v. Pennsylvania, 1842
A slave had escaped from Maryland to Pennsylvania, where a federal agent captured him and returned him to his owner. Pennsylvania indicted the agent for kidnapping under the fugitive slave laws. The Supreme Court ruled it was unconstitutional for bounty hunters or anyone but the owner of an escaped slave to apprehend that slave, thus weakening the fugitive slave laws.

698. Dred Scott v. Sandford, 1857
A Missouri slave sued for his freedom, claiming that his four year stay in the northern portion of the Louisiana Territory made free land by the Missouri Compromise had made him a free man. The U.S, Supreme Court decided he couldn't sue in federal court because he was property, not a citizen.

699. Ablemann v. Booth, 1859
Sherman Booth was sentenced to prison in a federal court for assisting in a fugitive slave's rescue in Milwaukee. He was released by the Wisconsin Supreme Court on the grounds that the Fugitive Slave Act was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court overturned this ruling. It upheld both the constitutionality of the Fugitive Slave Act and the supremacy of federal government over state government.

700. Mississippi v. Johnson
Mississippi wanted the president to stop enforcing the Reconstruction Acts because they were unconstitutional. The Supreme Court decided that the Acts were constitutional and the states must obey them.

701. Texas v. White, 1869
The plaintiff in this case argued that Texas had never seceded because there is no provision in the Constitution for a state to secede, thus Texas should still be a state and not have to undergo reconstruction.

702. Ulysses S. Grant
U.S. president from 1873-1877. Military hero of the Civil War, he led a corrupt administration, consisting of friends and relatives. Although Grant was personally a very honest and moral man, his administration was considered the most corrupt the U.S. had had at that time.

703. Whiskey Ring
During the Grant administration, a group of officials were importing whiskey and using their offices to avoid paying the taxes on it, cheating the treasury out of millions of dollars.

704. "Waving the bloody shirt"
The practice of reviving unpleasant memories from the past. Representative Ben F. Butler waved before the House a bloodstained nightshirt of a carpetbagger flogged by Klan members.

705. Liberal Republicans: Carl Schurz, Horace Greeley
Schurz and Greeley were liberal republicans - they believed in civil service reform, opposed corruption, wanted lower tariffs, and were lenient toward the South.

706. Panic of 1873, depression
Unrestrained speculation on the railroads let to disaster - inflation and strikes by railroad workers. 18,000 businesses failed and 3 million people were out of work. Federal troops were called in to end the strike.

707. Election of 1876: candidates, electoral commission
Rutherford B. Hayes - liberal Republican, Civil War general, he received only 165 electoral votes. Samuel J. Tilden - Democrat, received 264,000 more popular votes that Hayes, and 184 of the 185 electoral votes needed to win. 20 electoral votes were disputed, and an electoral commission decided that Hayes was the winner - fraud was suspected.

708. Compromise of 1877
Hayes promised to show concern for Southern interests and end Reconstruction in exchange for the Democrats accepting the fraudulent election results. He took Union troops out of the South.

709. Greenbacks
Name given to paper money issued by the government during the Civil War, so called because the back side was printed with green ink. They were not redeemable for gold, but $300 million were issued anyway. Farmers hit by the depression wanted to inflate the notes to cover losses, but Grant vetoed an inflation bill and greenbacks were added to permanent circulation. In 1879 the federal government finally made greenbacks redeemable for gold.

710. Ohio Idea, 1867
Senator George H. Pendleton proposed an idea that Civil War bonds be redeemed with greenbacks. It was not adopted.

711. Legal Tender cases
The Supreme Court debated whether it was constitutional for the federal government to print paper money (greenbacks).

712. Species Resumption Act, 1879
Congress said that greenbacks were redeemable for gold, but no one wanted to redeem them for face gold value. Because paper money was much more convenient than gold, they remained in circulation.