Reconstruction and Its Legacy
Aligned to C3.D2.His.7 — C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.
What this lesson teaches
Reconstruction (1865-1877) was the effort to rebuild the South and define the rights of nearly 4 million freed people after the Civil War. Three constitutional amendments granted freedom and citizenship, but after Reconstruction ended, Southern states passed laws to enforce racial segregation.
Worked example
The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery, the Fourteenth granted citizenship and equal protection, and the Fifteenth gave Black men the right to vote. Yet after federal troops withdrew in 1877, 'Jim Crow' laws and poll taxes stripped away many of those gains.
Practice questions
- What did the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments accomplish?
- Explain why the end of Reconstruction in 1877 was a turning point.
- Analyze how the promises of the Reconstruction Amendments were undermined by segregation and voting restrictions.
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
La Reconstrucción y su Legado
La Reconstrucción (1865-1877) fue el esfuerzo por reconstruir el Sur y definir los derechos de casi 4 millones de personas liberadas tras la Guerra Civil. Tres enmiendas constitucionales otorgaron libertad y ciudadanía, pero al terminar la Reconstrucción, los estados del Sur aprobaron leyes para imponer la segregación racial.
Ejemplo: La Decimotercera Enmienda abolió la esclavitud, la Decimocuarta otorgó la ciudadanía y la igual protección, y la Decimoquinta dio a los hombres negros el derecho al voto. Sin embargo, tras la retirada de las tropas federales en 1877, las leyes de 'Jim Crow' y los impuestos electorales despojaron muchas de esas conquistas.
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