Reconstruction Acts of 1867-1868

Nearly two years following the end of the Civil War, Congress finally forged a complete plan for reconstruction. Three measures were passed in 1867 as well as additional legislation the following year. The measures' main points included:

• Creation of five military districts in the seceded states (not including Tennessee, which had ratified the 14th Amendment and was readmitted to the Union)
• Each district was to be headed by a military official empowered to appoint and remove state officials
• Voters were to be registered; all freedmen were to be included as well as those white men who took an extended loyalty oath
• State constitutional conventions, comprising elected delegates, were to draft new governing documents providing for black male suffrage
• States were required to ratify the 14th Amendment prior to readmission.

Johnson’s vetoes of these measures were overridden by Congress, repeating a familiar pattern.