WorksheetsReconstruction Era – Multiple Choice Questions
Total questions: 10
Worksheet time: 5mins
According to Gerald Danzer et al., The Americans, 1998, what caused many Northern voters to turn away from supporting Reconstruction?
The success of Radical Republican reforms in the South
The desire to expand Reconstruction into the West
Fatigue over Southern issues and increasing concern about national corruption and economic troubles
Sympathy for former Confederate leaders
The cartoon showing a man submerged in a barrel labeled with various “rings” (such as the Whiskey Ring and Indian Ring) symbolizes:
A critique of Reconstruction military occupation
The corruption scandals that plagued President Grant’s administration
Support for Grant’s efforts to reform the government
Opposition to the 15th Amendment
What is the main message of the cartoon published in Harper's Weeekly (1876), depicting a Black man being coerced at a polling place?
African American voters freely participated in democracy
White Southerners supported universal suffrage
Violence and intimidation were used to suppress Black voting rights
The Ku Klux Klan protected voters from fraud
In Abram Colby’s 1872 congressional testimony, what did he describe happening to him and others like him?
They were given political appointments in the Grant administration
They were victims of violent attacks by the Ku Klux Klan for political participation
They migrated north to escape poverty
They joined armed militias to defend freedmen
What does Albion Tourgee’s 1870 letter to Senator Abbott reveal about conditions in the South during Reconstruction?
The South was peaceful and prosperous
Reconstruction policies were universally accepted
Violence and intimidation were common
Southern leaders supported equal rights for all
The Currier & Ives lithograph “The First Colored Senator and Representatives” (1872) was intended to:
Mock Black legislators as incompetent
Celebrate the political achievements of African Americans during Reconstruction
Promote Southern redemption movements
Advocate for the return of white supremacy in Congress
How does the Harper’s Weekly cartoon titled “Is This a Republican Form of Government? Is This Protecting Life, Liberty, or Property?” criticize the state of the South during Reconstruction?
By showing that Reconstruction policies created order and justice
By depicting Northern indifference to Southern violence against freedmen
By illustrating the collapse of constitutional government due to terror and corruption
By praising Southern Democrats for restoring peace
According to Heather Cox Richardson in The Death of Reconstruction, what shift occurred in Northern politics after the 1870s?
Increased enthusiasm for racial equality and Reconstruction policies
Growing racism and class resentment that eroded Northern support for Black civil rights
Greater cooperation between Republicans and Southern Democrats
A movement to reoccupy the South with federal troops
Which event most directly contributed to the decline of Northern interest in Southern Reconstruction by the mid-1870s?
The election of Rutherford B. Hayes
The Compromise of 1877
The Panic of 1873 and corruption scandals in the Grant administration
The ratification of the 14th Amendment
The overarching theme connecting these sources is:
The triumph of Reconstruction and the achievement of racial equality;
The growing corruption, violence, and loss of moral purpose that led to the collapse of Reconstruction;
The strengthening of federal authority in the South;
The South’s successful industrial recovery
