Reconstruction Acts

This article is about the U.S. legislation enacted between 1867 and 1868. For the history of the Southern United States from 1863 until 1877, see Reconstruction era. For other uses, see Reconstruction (disambiguation).

The Reconstruction Acts, or the Military Reconstruction Acts (March 2, 1867, 14 Stat. 428-430, c.153; March 23, 1867, 15 Stat. 2-5, c.6; July 19, 1867, 15 Stat. 14-16, c.30; and March 11, 1868, 15 Stat. 41, c.25), were four statutes passed during the Reconstruction Era by the 40th United States Congress addressing the requirement for Southern States to be readmitted to the Union. The actual title of the initial legislation was "An act to provide for the more efficient government of the Rebel States"[1] and was passed on March 4, 1867. Fulfillment of the requirements of the Acts was necessary for the former Confederate States to be readmitted to the Union from military and Federal control imposed during and after the American Civil War. The Acts excluded Tennessee, which had already ratified the 14th Amendment and had been readmitted to the Union on July 24, 1866.[2]

  1. ^ "A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774–1875 | Statutes at Large, 39th Congress, 2nd Session". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on July 2, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
  2. ^ "Tennessee re-admitted to the Union". Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Archived from the original on October 22, 2014. Retrieved November 15, 2019.