1865

The economic recession caused by the war's devastation was being reversed by increased railroad construction after the war ended. This turned isolated western towns such as Chicago, St. Louis, and Kansas City into great hubs for the delivery of commodities and livestock from the West. It also helped expand industries that facilitated construction, such as coal, timber, and iron. The new Bessemer process converted iron to more durable steel, which enabled even more construction.

The Union Stock Yard and Transit Company opened in Chicago late this year. Within a decade, the Union Stockyards and the growing use of railroads to transport products made Chicago the largest meatpacking center in the world. Chicago soon became the Midwestern capital of commodities trading as well, with products from western farms pouring into the city via rail.

Congress passed the National Banking Act of 1865, which imposed a ten percent tax on state bank currency notes, effective July 1, 1866. This enabled the federal government to monopolize the U.S. monetary system by virtually taxing all non-federal currency out of existence.

U.S. officials pressured Archduke Maximilian to abdicate as emperor of Mexico. Maximilian had been installed as ruler by French Emperor Napoleon III. Citing the Monroe Doctrine, the U.S. protested French influence over Mexico and expressed support for the rebels opposing Maximilian, led by former Mexican President Benito Juarez.

William Sheppard produced liquid soap by mixing one hundred pounds of ammonia with one pound of soap, then thinning the mixture with water. William Bullock developed a printing press that used a continuous roll of newsprint instead of pre-cut sheets; the initial model produced up to 15,000 sheets per hour. James Nason patented the coffee percolator. The Nation began weekly publication with E.L. Godkin as editor.

THE PRESIDENTIAL RECONSTRUCTION PLAN

Shortly after taking office, President Andrew Johnson initiated his version of what had been former President Abraham Lincoln's Reconstruction plan. There was no constitutional provision for restoring seceded states to the Union, and Lincoln and the Republican Congress had disagreed over what the legal process should be. Johnson moved to continue Lincoln's policies while Congress was in recess.

First, Johnson declared that all state governments in the conquered states were null and void. Second, he recognized the new governments of Virginia, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Tennessee, all of which had been reconstructed according to Lincoln's plan. Third, Johnson ended trade restrictions with the conquered states to begin rebuilding the devastated southern economy.

Johnson then issued the "Amnesty Proclamation," which pardoned those involved in the "existing rebellion" if they swore loyalty to the Union and acknowledged the end of slavery. Several classes of southerners were ineligible for amnesty, including those worth more than $20,000. Johnson sought to punish aristocrats that he believed had started the war. Disqualified southerners were required to personally request a pardon from Johnson and "realize the enormity of their crime," whereupon amnesty would be "liberally extended."

A second proclamation, drafted by Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton, restored civil government in North Carolina. Johnson appointed William W. Holden as provisional governor, and after swearing loyalty to the Union, Holden was authorized to organize a convention to draft a new state constitution. Convention delegates would be elected by those who had sworn loyalty to the Union. Delegate eligibility was based on registered voters from the 1860 census, which excluded blacks because they had not been permitted to vote at that time.

The delegates were required to reject the ordinance of secession, repudiate the Confederate war debt, and ratify the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery. After the new constitution was drafted, ten percent of registered voters were required to approve it to become law. After it became law, elections would be held for local, state, and federal offices.

The "North Carolina Proclamation" violated the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of a republican form of government for each state because Holden was not a popularly elected governor, and ten percent of the voters overruled the other ninety. Nevertheless, Johnson used this as the template for restoring the remaining conquered states (South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Texas) to the Union.

Johnson's Reconstruction plan was motivated by his desire to restore peace and reunion as quickly as possible, his strong belief in limited federal power, his strict interpretation of the Constitution, the influence of his southern culture, and his belief that whites should govern because blacks were inferior. Johnson also believed that subduing the southern aristocracy would prevent future secession and restore the remaining southerners' loyalty to the Union.

But perhaps most importantly, Johnson sought to finish what Lincoln had started. The Amnesty and North Carolina Proclamations were very similar to Lincoln's 1863 Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, and Johnson had told his cabinet that he intended to follow Lincoln's policies as closely as possible. Republican Party boss Thurlow Weed wrote, "I know he went to the White House with that determination."

In keeping with Lincoln's plan, Johnson rejected Stanton's suggestion to grant suffrage to black men in North Carolina. Johnson explained that Lincoln had not granted black suffrage in any of the states he reconstructed, instead asking state officials to consider doing so themselves. Johnson noted that voting rights had always been regulated by the states, not the federal government. And considering that most northern states denied black suffrage, forcing such a right on the conquered states would only increase the resentment already harbored by their defeat.

Following Lincoln's example, Johnson suggested that provisional governors grant black suffrage, if only as a political weapon to use against the Radical Republicans in Congress. Johnson wrote to one governor: "If you could extend the elective franchise to all persons of color who can read the Constitution in English and write their names, and to all persons of color who own real estate valued at not less than two hundred and fifty dollars, and pay taxes thereon, you would completely disarm the adversary (Radicals), and set an example the other states would follow."

Johnson also urged southern voters to reject former Confederates as officeholders. But neither this nor black voting rights were required by Johnson for conquered states to be restored to the Union; Johnson was only authorized to help the states form new governments, not to dictate how those governments should handle issues involving their own citizens. Secretary of State William Seward said, "According to the constitution those citizens acting politically in their respective states must reorganize their state...