White Southerners hated Reconstruction. They viewed the military occupation, the harsh policies set by Congress, and the higher taxes as insult heaped upon insult. Widespread corruption in Reconstruction and national politics, as well as in President Grant’s administration, damaged the Republican Party, too. Radical Republicans fell out of favor, and by 1876 many Northerners had grown tired of Reconstruction. Now political candidates who favored ending Reconstruction ran for office, even if it meant the loss of Southern African Americans’ rights. When Congress passed the Amnesty Act in 1872, it returned voting rights to most Southerners. With their restored voting rights, most of these Southerners joined the Democrats in opposition to the Republicans and Reconstruction. A political cartoon shows a man labeled White League holding hands with someone in a white robe and hood which is labeled KK. The man labeled KK has a knife and gun in his belt. Underneath their hands sit an African American couple holding a baby and they are hunched down. Behind them a man is hanging from a tree. Text reads: The lost cause: worse than slavery. Meanwhile, African Americans had already begun withdrawing from Southern politics due to organized terror and intimidation from groups like the Ku Klux Klan. This set the stage for the end of Reconstruction, which took place with the national election of 1876. Democrats nominated a reformer for president, New York Governor Samuel Tilden. The Republicans nominated a moderate Republican, Ohio Governor Rutherford B. Hayes, who also vowed to fight corruption. Governor Tilden won the popular vote, but there were disputes about the electoral votes. Tilden had 184 electoral votes and needed just one of the 20 disputed votes to be elected president. But Republicans controlled the states where 19 of the 20 disputed votes came from. Without being able to determine a winner, Congress created a special commission, made up mostly of Republicans, to settle the crisis. The Republicans decided to award all the disputed electoral votes to Hayes. To keep Southern Democrats from disputing this, Hayes secretly agreed to end Reconstruction. The Democrats allowed Hayes to be sworn in as president, and once in office he removed all federal troops remaining in the South. Reconstruction was over. As Democrats took control of Southern governments, a series of local laws chipped away at the political rights of African Americans. These included the imposition of poll taxes and literacy tests. Over time, segregation, or the separation of the races, became the law in Southern states. Blacks and whites lived, worked, and played in separate schools, restaurants, theaters, hospitals, and playgrounds. One of the biggest changes that came to the South during Reconstruction was the progress made in rebuilding the economy. Before the war, the Southern economy had been based largely on cotton. Now, Southern leaders made an effort to develop other crops and businesses. Tobacco and lumber soon became big industries.Textile production increased significantly and mineral resources, like oil, iron, copper, coal, marble, and granite, were tapped into.By 1900, these economic improvements led to a more balanced regional economy, though one that lagged behind the rapid growth of the North and the West. The impact of Reconstruction on Southern politics was deep and lasting. The constitution now recognized all native-born Americans as citizens, but what had begun as a grand effort to rebuild the South and improve the lives of African Americans ended with a whimper. Reconstruction was unpopular with white Southerners, and when Northerners lost interest, it was finished.

Question

White Southerners hated Reconstruction. They viewed the military occupation, the harsh policies set by Congress, and the higher taxes as insult heaped upon insult. Widespread corruption in Reconstruction and national politics, as well as in President Grant’s administration, damaged the Republican Party, too. Radical Republicans fell out of favor, and by 1876 many Northerners had grown tired of Reconstruction. Now political candidates who favored ending Reconstruction ran for office, even if it meant the loss of Southern African Americans’ rights. When Congress passed the Amnesty Act in 1872, it returned voting rights to most Southerners. With their restored voting rights, most of these Southerners joined the Democrats in opposition to the Republicans and Reconstruction. A political cartoon shows a man labeled White League holding hands with someone in a white robe and hood which is labeled KK. The man labeled KK has a knife and gun in his belt. Underneath their hands sit an African American couple holding a baby and they are hunched down. Behind them a man is hanging from a tree. Text reads: The lost cause: worse than slavery. Meanwhile, African Americans had already begun withdrawing from Southern politics due to organized terror and intimidation from groups like the Ku Klux Klan. This set the stage for the end of Reconstruction, which took place with the national election of 1876. Democrats nominated a reformer for president, New York Governor Samuel Tilden. The Republicans nominated a moderate Republican, Ohio Governor Rutherford B. Hayes, who also vowed to fight corruption. Governor Tilden won the popular vote, but there were disputes about the electoral votes. Tilden had 184 electoral votes and needed just one of the 20 disputed votes to be elected president. But Republicans controlled the states where 19 of the 20 disputed votes came from. Without being able to determine a winner, Congress created a special commission, made up mostly of Republicans, to settle the crisis. The Republicans decided to award all the disputed electoral votes to Hayes. To keep Southern Democrats from disputing this, Hayes secretly agreed to end Reconstruction. The Democrats allowed Hayes to be sworn in as president, and once in office he removed all federal troops remaining in the South. Reconstruction was over. As Democrats took control of Southern governments, a series of local laws chipped away at the political rights of African Americans. These included the imposition of poll taxes and literacy tests. Over time, segregation, or the separation of the races, became the law in Southern states. Blacks and whites lived, worked, and played in separate schools, restaurants, theaters, hospitals, and playgrounds. One of the biggest changes that came to the South during Reconstruction was the progress made in rebuilding the economy. Before the war, the Southern economy had been based largely on cotton. Now, Southern leaders made an effort to develop other crops and businesses. Tobacco and lumber soon became big industries.Textile production increased significantly and mineral resources, like oil, iron, copper, coal, marble, and granite, were tapped into.By 1900, these economic improvements led to a more balanced regional economy, though one that lagged behind the rapid growth of the North and the West. The impact of Reconstruction on Southern politics was deep and lasting. The constitution now recognized all native-born Americans as citizens, but what had begun as a grand effort to rebuild the South and improve the lives of African Americans ended with a whimper. Reconstruction was unpopular with white Southerners, and when Northerners lost interest, it was finished.

By reading this tell me what's important to write down

Answer 1

Some key points to write down from this passage include:

1. White Southerners' hatred of Reconstruction due to military occupation, harsh policies, corruption, and higher taxes.
2. Restoration of voting rights to Southerners in 1872 leading to their support for Democrats and opposition to Reconstruction.
3. African Americans withdrawing from Southern politics due to terror and intimidation from groups like the Ku Klux Klan.
4. End of Reconstruction in 1876 with the election of President Rutherford B. Hayes and the removal of federal troops from the South.
5. Imposition of poll taxes, literacy tests, and segregation laws chipping away at the political rights of African Americans.
6. Economic changes during Reconstruction, including the development of new industries and resources in the South.
7. Overall impact of Reconstruction on Southern politics and society, with the failure to fully rebuild the South and improve the lives of African Americans.