History of the United States: Life After Reconstruction - Essay Example

 New South was a name that was coined in the years following the Civil War to the southern part of the United States. Many leaders, manufacturers, journalists and industrialists who wished to see urbanization and development in the Old south changed its name for its transformation from an underdeveloped and rural area to a developed and industrialized nation. The major factor which was behind the changing of its name was the publications of Henry Grady who was the editor and co owner of the newspaper, the Atlanta Constitution. Through his works in the form of writings and through his speeches on different stands he tried to show the world that the south was undergoing a revolution to become a developed and urban centre and it was no longer the Old South. Other leaders and industrialists also worked hard to bring these reforms and revolutionize the Old south to a New South. “There was a land of Cavaliers and Cotton Fields called the Old South. Here in this pretty world, Gallantry took its last bow. Here was the last ever to be seen of Knights and their Ladies Fair, of Master and of Slave. Look for it only in books, for it is no more than a dream remembered, a Civilization gone with the wind...” This was the opening of the film Gone with the Wind (1939) and this quote tried to portray the beginning of a new era for the south, an era of development. Major advancements, economically and industrially were both seen during the time of Reconstruction. These years that followed the Civil war were the time when remarkable expansion and progress took place in the industrial and agricultural sector. Major industrial advancements were seen in textiles, coal, iron and steel, and railroads and the trend and methods of agriculture also changed. After the war there had been much destruction and the transportation and communication systems of the South were damaged and in a very bad shape. People in the south first started not only to reconstruct the railroads but at the same time worked for its rapid expansion. Form the time the war had ended that is 1965 till the end of 1880s the miles of the track was increased and during this period 40 000 miles of track had been laid. This was a major development because before the war there were only 10000 miles of track which means that there was an increase of 30000 miles. Before the war there were no textile mills in the South. Cotton which was grown was hardly worked upon in South but it was rather sent outside either to France or to England for processing. The improving of the transportation system and with it the awareness regarding investment industrialists diverted their attention towards the building of textile mills. People from all walks of life in the south started their investments in the cotton mills. This also attracted attention from outside South and textile mill owners from New England due to their internal problems with the labor also started their work in the South. By 1890 there were 400 cotton mills operating in the South. In the 1880s southern textile mills were constructed in the Piedmont Region. These mills provided job opportunities and people from country side moved to cities. The labor that was hired comprised mainly of whites. The mill owners did this to actually prevent the revolting of their labor because if they would try to from unions the mill owners would start appointing the blacks. They did this for their own benefit. Tobacco which was though an important crop of the south but still much development had not taken place in this sector. Before the war there had been very few processing units for tobacco and like cotton tobacco was also sent either to south or to Europe for processing. With progress in other industrial sectors this sector was also worked upon and tobacco processing plants were also built. This process of construction started in 1870 and it increased till the end of the 19th century. With the invention of the cigarette making machine, the tobacco business became more active. Durham, North Carolina, Kentucky and Virginia became the major centers of advancement in the tobacco industry. Major work in this field was again by foreign investment and by 1900 J.P. Morgan in New York had a grip over the nation’s tobacco industry. Prior to the war there were not many iron making units and it was a common opinion that this might have been one of the reasons why south had lost the civil war. But iron and coal mining increased after the war and by 1875 four and a half million tons of coal was being mined per year. This increased mining of coal and made south to be recognized as a very important source of coal around the world. At the same time reserves of iron were also being looked for and by the end of the 1870s the iron industry also became highly recognized. These industries attracted so many people from rural areas as well as so much of investment that the industry boomed and large cities emerged around the iron processing units as well as the coal mines. An example of such a city was Birmingham, Alabama with a population of forty thousand in a very short period of time. Again in these industries more than the southerner’s investments came from out of south that is either from the north or from foreign investors. After the war the economical situation of the planters had changed and they did not have the money to give wages to the laborers or to buy the equipment required for work on their plantations. The crop lien act was passed to provide loans to the plantation owners to overcome their expenses but again there was discrimination because this loan was only given to the white plantation owners. The agricultural system also largely changed in the aftermath of the war. After the war the blacks felt that the undue hard work and labor of their generations would now at least provide them with a right to own the lands which were left abandoned or which were taken over by the government. In 1865 union general William t. Sherman supported the blacks and they were given titles of 40 acres land and they were promised that they would be given proper documents soon. But this law was changed by President Johnson and the lands were again given back to their owners. By 1880 the slaves became sharecroppers, that is, they started sharing their profits with their masters. But due to the increased insecurity these sharecroppers were robbed of these rights. Laws that were introduced in 1866 again left the black workers at the mercy of the whites. their wages could be decreased and they could be fined if they defied their masters. State control was totally in the hands of the whites. Many amendments were proposed in this regard so that the blacks would get their due rights. The 13th amendment which tried to end slavery but again left the final decision in the hands of the state and as the states had already created the Black Codes after the war they did not deviate from their laws of discrimination. The Black Codes were laws that prevented blacks from voting or from owning property or from taking any civil rights which were meant for white Americans. The 14th amendment was then introduced which stressed on equality but again ways were around this law and it was also not enforced and the blacks were still under oppression. The fifteenth amendment was then passed which clearly stated that anyone could not be denied from voting on the basis of race and color. Though these legal amendments were passed but the blacks only gained their rights in 1954 when the 14th and the 15th amendments were enforced and not from 1870 which was the time when these laws were passed. Blacks were greatly oppressed in the period after the war. They were denied voting via the Mississippi plan which stated that as during the times when blacks voted corruption was prevalent they should not be allowed to vote. Segregation laws could also be seen. These laws which came to be known as Jim Crow laws separated the schools of the blacks and whites, their transport and even their insane asylums. This oppression and discrimination only came to an end in 1954 when the 14th and 15th amendment was completely imposed. Bibliography: Ayers, Edward L. The Promise of the New South: Life After Reconstruction. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992. Read More