The Presidency of
Ulysses Grant
Ulysses S. Grant• 1822 – 1885• 18th President (1869–77)• Republican• Won election easily, despite having no
political experience• Extremely popular president but
reputation tarnished by the many scandals in his administration• Died of throat cancer
The Fifteenth Amendment• Ratified in Feb. 1870• 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.
Carpetbaggers & Scalawags• Carpetbaggers = Northerners who
moved into the South during Reconstruction, either to help or to take advantage of new opportunities• Scalawags = Southerners who
supported the Republican Party and Reconstruction• Both groups were very unpopular in the
South
African-Americans in Politics• “Black Republicans”• Many were educated blacks from the
North who went South and ran for office• Thousands of freedmen took
government jobs• 16 would serve in Congress during the
Reconstruction Era
Reforms help African-Americans• Black Codes repealed• Built state hospitals, orphanages,
mental institutions• Rebuilt roads, railroads, bridges• Built public schools – 200,000+
freedmen attended and attendance rates for black children was 40% (High for time)• Paid for through high property taxes
Increasing Racial Violence in South
• Many Southern whites resented the Republican governments and the newly won rights of the freed slaves• Struck out violently, but usually
anonymously, by burning houses, schools, and churches and by lynching black leaders and white carpetbaggers and scalawags
Ku Klux Klan• Founded in 1866• Original goal was to drive out
carpetbaggers and restore control of state governments to the Democratic Party• Grew to terrorize African-Americans
because of their support for the Republican governments• Engaged in acts of terror, including
lynchings
The Enforcement Acts• 3 Congressional Acts• 1) Made it a federal crime to interfere
with a citizen’s right to vote• 2) Placed federal elections under the
supervision of federal marshals• 3) The Ku Klux Klan Act: outlawed the
activities of the KKK and similar groups – led to 3000+ arrests, but only 600 convictions
Grant’s Troubled Presidency• Split in Republican Party over taxes and
spending• Scandals in customs collection, postal contracts,
and with Grant’s Secretaries of the Interior, War, & Navy as well as his Attorney General and personal secretary
• The Whiskey Ring: over 100 members of Grant’s administration were taking part in a scheme to steal millions of dollars in taxes on whiskey; although not personally involved, Grant interfered in the investigation and trials to protect his friends
Panic of 1873• Bad investments caused the collapse of
one of US’ biggest private banks• This triggered the failure of smaller
banks and thousands of small businesses, putting many out of work• This plus scandals destroyed Grant’s
popularity and chances for a third term
Election of 1876• Democrats nominated Samuel Tilden, a
“law-and-order” former governor of NY• Republicans declined to run Grant again
and instead ran Rutherford B. Hayes, governor of Ohio• Election was so close that Congress had
to decide who was president
Compromise of 1877• Supposedly, Southern Democrats
pledged to support Hayes as president if the Republicans promised to remove federal troops from the South and end Reconstruction• No “formal” agreement was ever
recorded, but once Hayes took office, Reconstruction was ended!
Rutherford B. Hayes• 1822 – 1893• 19th President (1877-81)• Republican• Chosen over Pres. Grant for the
Republican nomination• Did not run for re-election• Became heavily involved in charitable
works after leaving the presidency
Reconstruction Ends• With the withdrawal of federal
troops and the final readmission of all former Confederate states, the South was once again free to begin discriminating against the freedmen
The “New South”• The idea that the South needed to
abandon its reliance on cash crops like cotton and tobacco and industrialize• New railroads were built• Steel industry, cotton mills, and
cigarette factories all opened• Still, most Southerners remained in
farming
Sharecropping & Tenant Farming• Tenant farmer: rented land from a large
landholder for a set cash fee• Sharecropper: rented land from a large
landholder for a percentage of their crop• Both systems kept most blacks and
many poor whites deeply in debt and with no hope of ever owning their own land
“Jim Crow” Laws• Laws designed to prevent freedmen
from voting:• Literacy tests – must be able to read to
vote• Poll taxes – must pay a fee to vote• Grandfather clauses – can’t vote unless
your grandfather was eligible to vote
The “Solid South”• Southern states would continue to
vote – and vote Democrat -as a block in presidential elections for decades to come, blocking Republican initiatives for reform