Thanks!

Thank you for using my blog! I worked very hard on it and hopefully you have learned a lot from taking a look at it. It took some time but I myself have learned many things during this unit. I now have a special connection to my blog, and think that it will be hard to leave it....yah just kidding. Anyway, I really like the idea of the blog because it did not take any paper and plus, it was very easy to use. Thanks again!!!!!

Ku Klux Klan

The Ku Klux Klan was founded in 1866 right after the war. Of the racist groups in American, the KKK is one of the most prominent and terrible of them all. There are over a hundred chapters in the United States, with about 5,000 members total. The KKK is a supporter of white supremacy and segregation, and they use violent tactics to achieve their goals. The Ku Klux Klan is not just against blacks, but also gay marriage. Back in the 1880s though, no one could stop this awful group. Confederate Civil War veterans Captain John C. Lester, Major James R. Crowe, John D. Kennedy, Clavin Jones, Richard R. Reed, and Frank O. McCord founded the secret and first real terrorist group in America. They were against any blacks, black rights, and any whites who cared for blacks. They dressed up in big masked clothing, and held uprises. The KKK used violence and often did not care. They have been known to kill, knife, and even once have been noted to drag a black man from the back of a truck. The KKK was the first group to be marked as a terrorist group by Homeland Security, but none of the members have been arrested. The Ku Klux Klan have not accomplished much, they are a hated group that was dwindled down over the years. For years they have done many malicious acts, although no blacks are stopping there work because of the KKK.


Sources
Information: http://archive.adl.org/learn/ext_us/kkk/default.asp?LEARN_Cat=Extremism&LEARN_SubCat=Extremism_in_America&xpicked=4&item=kkk and http://www.history.com/topics/ku-klux-klan

Photos: http://icplibrary.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/wes_003.jpg and http://www.gutenberg.org/files/31819/31819-h/images/imagep019.jpg

Henry McNeal Turner and black legislators

During the Reconstruction Period black legislators were for the first time allowed to be part of the government. Between 1867 and 1872, sixty nine black Georgia delegates served for the state legislature. One of the most prominent figures during this time was Henry McNeal Turner. Turner came from Washington D.C. to win black congregations from the African Methodist Episcopal Church. He was a strong Republican and was a prominent black leader who had brilliant ideas. He was born in 1834 in South Carolina but was never a slave. He managed to get an education and became a minister during his early years. Once he realized of the Reconstruction Plans, he decided to switch careers into the political field. He helped organize Georgia's Republican Party, served in the Constitutional Convention, and was in the House of Representatives, representing Macon. In 1869, Turner was appointed postmaster by the Republican Administration. He was upset about the unfairness blacks faced in the south form Democrats, he was actually part of a little skirmish between the Democrats. Henry was a part of the Georgia General Assembly, part he and other black legislators were removed by radical Democrats. The Democrats excuse was that the right to vote did not mean that blacks could hold any sort of office. The Federal Government, and eventually the black legislatures did return to their seats. It was just another sign that tension had not sizzled since the war. 

Sources 
Information: Notes and http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-632 
Photos: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Henry_McNeil_Turner.jpg/220px-Henry_McNeil_Turner.jpg

Sharecropping/Tenant Farming, Reconstruction Plans, and 13th, 14th, 15th Amendments

Sharecropping & Tenant Farming

The war had finally ended, and the real United States needed to get back on its feet. Hundreds of miles of farmland had been destroyed, and the south was in need of some help after almost four million slaves had been freed since the end of the Civil War. Sharecropping had developed from the Freedman's Bureau and was designed for blacks to be able to talk about deals with their former owners about land and such, but blacks did not like the system and refused to participate. So sharecropping was a good alternative. Sharecropping was good because after the war many plantation owners land had been returned back to them. The only problem was that they had no one to farm their crops. Likewise, the former slaves had nowhere to work, so they were open to the idea of sharecropping as well. Land owners would hire people to grow agriculture and the people would come and work. The owners did not have to pay the workers, but the workers would have a place to stay and food to eat. Sharecropping life was not a great one, although the workers did learn how to grow crops and were able to pay off debts and save some money. By 1880, 32 percent of Georgia's farms were operated by sharecroppers. Sharecropping came to an end in the mid twentieth century, mostly because of the lure of big cities and the little need for farming anymore. Tenant farming was basically a step up from sharecropping. Tenant farmers came with their own equipment, and the land owner provided the house and the land. At the end of the year, the farmers paid the owners some share of the crop they had used their land to make.

Reconstruction Plans

A lot of healing was going to have to be done in order to get the U.S. back to the place it was before the war. Lincoln had been elected to his second term and was looking to bring the country back. The president was not looking to punish the southerners; he just wanted to get them back into the Union as soon as possible. Lincoln said that if the southerners pardoned after taking an oath of allegiance, and when ten percent of the voters took the oath, the state could rejoin the Union. Other prominent political leaders agreed, some added that they wanted the ordinances of secessions nullified, amendments to help the blacks, and for the Confederate states to be placed under military rule. Reconstruction was a time of great sacrifice and compromise, the states had a long road ahead of them, but they would find a way to break through.

13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments

The freed blacks were out in the world for the first time. It was not going to be easy for them to get on their feet and be successful. They needed some government support to allow them to have some of the basic rights they should have had long ago. The first step was officially banning slavery. The 13th did just that, on January 31, 1865, the Congress passed the amendment that read, "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." The 14th amendment covered many things; it was ratified by the states on July 9, 1868. It granted citzenship to all people born in the United States, which included the freed slaves. It forbids states from denying any person "life, liberty or property, without due process of law" or to "deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” The 15th Amendment was ratified on February 3, 1870, and it granted, "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." Although this law was put into act, the malicious southerners were able to cheat it. With the use of poll taxes, literacy tests, and the grandfather clause, black men would not truly be able to vote for another hundred years. All in all, these acts gave the blacks a cushion and happiness knowing they could not and should not be able to be denied of their rights.   

 

Sources
Inforamtion:
Sharecropping and Tenant Farming - http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-3590 and Notes
Reconstruction Plans - Notes
Amendments - 13th http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/13thamendment.html
14th http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/14thamendment.html
15th http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/15thamendment.html

Pictures:
Sharecropping http://histclo.com/imagef/date/2007/07/share36s.jpg
Reconstruction Plans http://whgbetc.com/mind/reconstruction_congress.jpg
13th Amendment http://www.laits.utexas.edu/txp_media/html/cons/features/0206_01/slide3.gif

Andersonville and Freendman's Bureau

Andersonville

Andersonville was a prison in the middle of Georgia, southeast of Macon. The prison's purpose was to hold Union war prisoners captive. The reason why the death trap was located in such a remote area was that it was inland and was a safe distance from any possible fighting that may be taking place in the south. Now Andersonville was not a place you wanted to be. The fresh water swamp that was supposed to be used for drinking was now invested with insects, disease, and poop. Anyone who drank this water could be killed. Conditions in the prison were about as bad as it gets. Gangs started to form, and there most of the time food was not even cooked. The food was placed on the same cart that carried out the dead bodies in the morning. Of course, the cart was not cleaned at all. The guards did not make it much better. The firewood that was supposed to keep the prisoners warm was taken away because it was used as a weapon. Although, some prisoners looked out for each other by doing some crazy things. Shebangs, which were basically shacks made out of anything you could find were shared amongst the man. Sometimes though, women were found when dead bodies were taken out to the stock house. One man named John Ransom decided to make the best of this awful nightmare. Eventhough there was no soap, Ransom made a barber shop and even a laundry mat; he did have to use sand for soap. Prisoners also scraped together anything they could find and traded or sold them. Andersonville became almost a market place. As Sherman's army drew closer and closer, prisoners were shipped elsewhere, so there was a great decline in the prisons population in 1864. Andersonville was a terrible place; it took 13,000 people's lives out of the 45,000 that entered.

Freedman's Bureau

After the war America was in a mess. Abraham Lincoln was still president, and the south was back to being a part of the United States of America. Most of Virginia and its bordering states had been tarnished with war, and Georgia had been hit hard as well. But most importantly, a whole new race was now really a part of the country. Blacks were free, but racists still flocked around, ruining the black peoples chance at an equal life. The African Americans needed help; they had no idea how to live on their own. In March 1865, the Freedman's Bureau was passed. It was an agency, the first of its kind, whose sole responsibility was to make sure blacks got equal chances. Major General Oliver O. Howard, from Sherman's March, led the agency into furnishing rations to those who were displaced in the war, established schools and hospitals, and supervised the development of a contract labor system. On May 20, 1865, Howard appointed General Rufus Saxton as the commander of the Bureau in Florida, South Carolina, and Georgia. Saxton was a big supporter of free labor and contracts, which would help in the years to come, but the states were just in so much of a mess, he could not handle it. So in September of 1865, he was relieved of his duty in Georgia and General Davis Tillson took control. By September of the next year Tillson had served over 800,000 rations statewide. Tillson also though farming was important. He supported free labor and thought that white men should get paid for the work they did just as the blacks did. Tillson's greatest contribution was in the land category. As the war was coming to an end, Sherman issued special field order 15, granting all the land along the coast to free slaves. Andrew Johnson overturned this order and Tillson worked to get the land back to its original owners. When Tillson retired in 1867, Caleb S. Sibley took command. He divided Georgia up into sub districts, which gave Georgia some organization but the plan caused severe money issues and Sibley retired soon after. Education was now of the upmost importance to Georgians. The Freedmen's Bureau got it done. Sixty schools were established and over 30,000 freed people learned how to read. The Freedman's Bureau was filled with ups and downs, but it gave Georgia the lift and starting point it needed to get the "new" country off on the right foot.



Sources
Information:
Andersonville: Notes
Freedmen's Bureau: http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-3257

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

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

Sherman's Atlanta Campaign and March

Atlanta Campaign

The war had been at a stale mate for a while now. Neither side had been able to win any big battles of late, so the Confederates and the Union were basically sitting around waiting. The Confederacy was on the wrong side though, soldiers were losing hope and because the south was inexperienced, they did not have much of a chance. Although, the Union had not been doing the things it was going to take to win the war. All the rebels had to do was not be beat. The plan to keep up this defensive strategy was simple; keep Ulysses S. Grant's army away from Richmond, and make sure that Joseph E. Johnston's army did not give Atlanta to William Sherman's army at bay. If the south could keep up this defensive plan until November of 1864, then George B. McClellan might win the election. If you remember, McClellan had been demoted by Lincoln as commander so he was looking for revenge, so he claimed that he would file for truce and end the war. Although, Sherman refused to let that happen, he could not see the bad southerners get their way and become their own country. He was a war veteran but had failed as a business man in the years since. William went back onto the battlefield for the Civil War, but he became so stressed that he went home. At one point he even contemplated taking his own life. His wife saved him, he wrote to Lincoln begging him for another chance. Sherman quickly rose in the ranks and bonded with the drunk, Ulysses S. Grant. They overcame their imperfections, and Grant ended up becoming the commander of the Union army. Both men wanted to end the war as soon as possible, and it seemed like it would be coming soon, considering the two had not been stopped since they had teamed up. The Atlanta Campaign had begun with a little skirmish at Tunnel Hill in May of 1864. Sherman was facing General Johnston who had a history of being very timid when it came to fighting. So Sherman was confident, he outnumbered the Confederate army, his troops had high spirits, and the soldiers knew they would be fed, well at least until Atlanta. Sherman stormed his way down and quickly got close to Atlanta. By May, the civilians of Atlanta knew the fall was coming. Atlanta had doubled in population since the war had begun and its industry was booming. Sherman would let nothing stand in his way. Jefferson Davis heard the news too, so he fired Johnston and replaced with John B. Hood. Hood took over on July 18, and meanwhile Sherman's army was just miles outside the city. The Union went around the outskirts of Atlanta, breaking and destroying train tracks along the way. The two armies finally met in Jonesboro, and fought hard. Sherman than invaded Atlanta, burning and eating away at everything he could. While the whole city seemed to burn in ashes, only 30 percent was burned. But for the people it seemed like more. The ones who had decided to stay had to see their homes burned and crops taken. The city that had grown so much during the Civil War now had to start back up. William Sherman ordered an evacuation of the city, and planted his headquarters here. It was in Atlanta that he would regroup and plan for the infamous March to the Sea.




Sherman's March to the Sea

Sherman had Atlanta under his control, but wanted to move on. He could leave though until he received approval from the White House that he may continue on his rampage through Georgia. Sherman wanted to run down Georgia to Savannah, destroying everything in his path. For two months he headquartered in Atlanta and prepared for what historians called "hard war" or "total war", even "scorching earth". William and Ulysses S. Grant had become good friends during the latter stages of the Civil War, so the Union Army leader was able to convince Lincoln, who had just become the president once again, to allow the expedition. Abraham wanted Sherman to go through Alabama and destroy some ports in Mobile, but Sherman convinced him otherwise and the March officially began on November 15, 1864. William T. Sherman made some risky moves; he cut off all supply lines but studied census maps closely to see where his soldiers would be able to steal food from farmers. General John B. Hood who had just become commander of the Confederate Army was at a loss of words when Sherman's plan of raid spread across the south. Hood decided to take a risky move and abandoned Atlanta and headed west. He moved his troops up into Tennessee and down into Alabama, hoping that Sherman would follow. Sherman did not take the bait, but he did send General George H. Thomas up to finish the rebels off. Sherman divided his roughly 60,000 troops into two wings. The right wing was commanded by Oliver O. Howard and the right wing was commanded by Henry W. Slocum. The Confederates on the other hand had about 8,000 men and were commanded by Joseph Wheeler. Sherman, also called "Uncle Billy" on the march, had only 2,500 supply wagons and 800 ambulances with him. It was obvious they would be living off the land. The two wings went two different routes, the right one going to Macon and the left one going to Augusta. They came across each other and head toward the then capital, Milledgeville. On November 23, the state capital surrendered knowing that there was no way they could stop Sherman. William occupied the vacant governor's mansion and capital building. The army became quite comfortable on the trek. "Bummers" would do the dirty work and raid people's houses in search for food. But they often stole more things, including silver, pots, pans, gold, and live animals. Because many husbands were at war, the poor women could not fend for themselves. Slaves came along the journey too. Most Union soldiers had never seen a black person before, but they believed slavery was wrong and welcomed the former slaves along. Although, Sherman did not really want blacks to come along on the march. The army was on limited supply and Sherman did not think a black man was above a white one. Most slaves did not care, they were free for the first time and being a part of this march would be the first real thing they had done as a free man. Sherman's army moved through Georgia at ease, most people had already evacuated the state after the Confederate army realized what was happening. The biggest battle occurred at Fort McAllister on December 13. Not many died, but by capturing this fort, Savannah's gates had been opened. Sherman now had Savannah at his fingertips. He went to Hilton Head, South Carolina to make final preparations. Mayor Richard Arnold of Savannah realized that nothing could be done, so he surrendered Savannah on December 22. Sherman wrote Lincoln a telegraph offering 25,000 bales of cotton to the president as a Christmas gift. Sherman's March to the Sea was an act only the bravest man would attempt. The march scared and demoralized folks of Georgia. While Sherman did not burn anything else and not many more actual fights occurred, the state was in a terrible position. The hope for winning the war was gone and the southerners were without husbands, food, slaves, and for some, a place to stay.




Sources
Information:
Campaign - Notes and

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

March - Notes and

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

Photos
Railroads -

http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/03/6003-004-7E74EB4A.jpg

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

Union Blockade of Georgia's Coast

Even at the very beginning of the war, President Abraham Lincoln knew he would have to have some sort of trick up his sleeve that would give the Union more of an advantage. While the north had more resources and nearly twice as many soldiers, the south was going to put everything they had into the next four years. The battle in the seas would play a very key role in deciding the outcome of the Civil War. So Lincoln called for an all-out blockade of the Confederates coastline on April 19, 1861. The plan took about a year to materialize, but by 1862, everything was set up. Fleets were posted on major port cities, preventing barely any of the boats coming and going. In Georgia, the main focus was pointed towards Savannah, Georgia's most prominent port city. Once the south understood the North's plan, Jefferson Davis appointed Robert E. Lee the commander of the naval army. As the leader, Lee realized that it was becoming more and more impossible to protect the whole southern coast. He put large dispatches of troops at major cities and began to focus more on rail lines than the sea. The blockade stretched from Virginia to Florida and was very tough to get past, especially if you had a large boat. But one brave man, Edward C. Anderson, a blockade runner, decided to break through to get supplies into Savannah. On November 11, 1861, he piloted his boat through the blockade and successfully made his way into the city. Although, this escape in might have turned out not to be such a good thing. The Union learned of this and only bumped up its security along the Blockade line. The Confederates of Georgia had to make something to stop the Blockade that was quickly chocking the southerners. They created gunships that they would charge the Union fleet with. Some of the more famous ones, The Atlanta, The Macon, and The Savannah, were going to be used. Also lined up with them, torpedoes developed by Matthew Maury were ready for action. Unfortunately, these innovations did not stand a chance against the Union. Even though the Union had mealy 500 ships and were often thought of as a rag tag group, they were able to capture nearly 1,500 Confederate runner-ships. The Union Blockade was not entirely successful; almost 80 percent of ships were able to get by. Because the rebels were forced to send small ships through, the economy dipped. Cotton exports went down 95 percent, preventing the Confederates to trade or buy food. As a result, inflation went up, prices went up, and the economy sunk. The Union Blockade was not a battle, it barely killed anyone, but it was a major factor in why the Union came out on top.

Sources

Information

http://www.usmilitary.com/3359/civil-war-union-blockade/  

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

Picture 

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/05/12/opinion/disunion_great_snake/disunion_great_snake-blog427.jpg