Overview
About This Collection
During the Reconstruction Era, Americans were faced with the challenge of rebuilding a society divided by slavery and the political upheaval of the Civil War. Teaching this history is essential to helping students understand citizenship and democracy in the United States today.
The collection includes multiple entry-points for exploring the Reconstruction Era with your students, including a new 3-week unit, videos, and an array of primary sources available in both English and Spanish.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
We're never fully going to understand who are you, who am I, how did we get here, what are the problems that we're facing, unless we understand the histories that produced that.
Reconstruction, to my mind, is the most vital period of American history.
People were making history out of the ashes of war, creating an entirely new country.
The transfer from slavery to political liberty, practically overnight, had never happened anywhere else in history. This was a bold set of aspirations.
And it set in motion civil rights, notions of equal citizenship, the empowerment of Black people, the idea that white people and Black people could work together, could live together, could govern together, could love together, in a way that was unprecedented in American history. That was not going to be accomplished in 15 years, but it set in motion a series of things that we're still wrestling with today as a society.
Who is a citizen? What should the rights of citizens be? What are the relationships between the Federal government and the state governments? How do you deal with terrorism? That's a Reconstruction issue.
Those central questions of who is an American, what does it mean to be an American, and what is the American government, and therefore what is America, are really laid down from 1865, forward.
But all of this was happening in a society that had to face this, and try to deal with this, and define all of this, practically overnight in the wake of an all-out war.
It's a story of how ordinary people, facing very difficult odds, try to create a better society, try to create a functioning democracy, try to create a semblance of equality in this country.
In its highs and its lows, and its tragedy, its corruption, it's just a remarkable story and every student of American history should know it.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
[MUSIC PLAYING]
We're never fully going to understand who are you, who am I, how did we get here, what are the problems that we're facing, unless we understand the histories that produced that.
Reconstruction, to my mind, is the most vital period of American history.
People were making history out of the ashes of war, creating an entirely new country.
The transfer from slavery to political liberty, practically overnight, had never happened anywhere else in history. This was a bold set of aspirations.
And it set in motion civil rights, notions of equal citizenship, the empowerment of Black people, the idea that white people and Black people could work together, could live together, could govern together, could love together, in a way that was unprecedented in American history. That was not going to be accomplished in 15 years, but it set in motion a series of things that we're still wrestling with today as a society.
Who is a citizen? What should the rights of citizens be? What are the relationships between the Federal government and the state governments? How do you deal with terrorism? That's a Reconstruction issue.
Those central questions of who is an American, what does it mean to be an American, and what is the American government, and therefore what is America, are really laid down from 1865, forward.
But all of this was happening in a society that had to face this, and try to deal with this, and define all of this, practically overnight in the wake of an all-out war.
It's a story of how ordinary people, facing very difficult odds, try to create a better society, try to create a functioning democracy, try to create a semblance of equality in this country.
In its highs and its lows, and its tragedy, its corruption, it's just a remarkable story and every student of American history should know it.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Credit:
Facing History & Ourselves
This collection is designed to be flexible. You can use all of the resources or choose a selection best suited to your classroom. It includes:
- 3-Week Unit
- The Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy book
- 7 videos with 7 supporting lesson plans
- A collection of over 40 primary source documents and images
- Student materials available in both English and Spanish
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Inside This Collection
Core Teaching Resources
Begin teaching this history using our new 3-week unit or by exploring our Reconstruction Era book for additional context and teaching materials.
Book
SaveThe Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy
This resource guides students through a deep exploration of the pivotal era of American history when a nation divided by slavery and war was challenged to rebuild.
Unit
SaveThe Reconstruction Era 3-Week Unit
Teach a 3-week study of the Reconstruction era guided by the essential question "What can we learn from the history of Reconstruction as we work to strengthen democracy today?"
Videos and Lessons
Our 7 videos on the Reconstruction era feature experts such as Eric Foner, David Blight, and Heather Cox Richardson. The videos provide a narrative history of Reconstruction and can be used in the classroom individually or with their accompanying lesson plans, which you can find below.
Video
SaveIntroduction: A Contested History
Scholars discuss how and why the history of Reconstruction is so contested.
Lesson
SaveA Contested History
Students consider how US history books, films, and other works of popular culture have misrepresented the history of the Reconstruction era.
Video
SavePart One: The World the War Made
Scholars discuss the effects that the changes brought about by the Civil War had on the identities of American citizens.
Lesson
SaveThe World the War Made
Students explore the ways that Emancipation and Radical Reconstruction altered the lives of many Americans.
Video
SavePart Two: Defining Freedom
Scholars discuss the evolution of the definition of freedom for emancipated slaves after the Civil War.
Lesson
SaveDefining Freedom
Students examine how freed people in the United States sought to define freedom after Emancipation.
Video
SavePart Three: The Political Struggle, 1865-1866
Scholars discuss the different visions for Reconstruction held by Congress and President Johnson.
Lesson
SaveThe Political Struggle, 1865–1866
Students learn about President Andrew Johnson and the Congressional Republican's conflicting visions of how to rebuild the nation after the Civil War.
Video
SavePart Four: Interracial Democracy
Scholars discuss how African Americans and whites initially worked together within Reconstruction governments.
Lesson
SaveInterracial Democracy
Through a video-based activity, students explore how Radical Reconstruction changed the nature of voting rights and democracy in the South.
Video
SavePart Five: Violence and Backlash
Scholars discuss racial violence that took part in the South during the Reconstruction era.
Lesson
SaveViolence and Backlash
By examining periods of violence during the Reconstruction era, students learn about the potential backlash to political and social change.
Video
SavePart Six: The Legacies of Reconstruction
Scholars discuss the legacies of the Reconstruction era as part of Facing History & Ourselves’ work on the period.
Lesson
SaveLegacies of Reconstruction
Through a video-based activity, students examine America’s struggle for a stronger democracy during Reconstruction and today.
Primary Sources
Explore our collection of over 40 primary source documents and images from the Reconstruction era, plus a selection of secondary sources from historians.
Collection
SaveThe Reconstruction Era Primary Sources
Enrich your teaching on the Reconstruction era with these primary source documents and images.
Timeline
Our Reconstruction Era timeline highlights key events from 1861–1877 and is a helpful visual tool for students learning about this history.
Timeline
SaveThe Reconstruction Era Timeline
This Facing History timeline is a useful tool for referencing key events during the US Civil War and Reconstruction Era.
Related Facing History Resources & Learning Opportunities
Deepen your understanding of this topic with these additional resources from Facing History & Ourselves.
Collection
SaveTeaching Mockingbird
Learn how to incorporate civic education, ethical reflection and historical context into a literary exploration of Harper Lee's novel, To Kill A Mockingbird.
Materials and Downloads
Related Facing History Resources & Learning Opportunities
Deepen your understanding of this topic with these additional resources from Facing History & Ourselves.
Professional Learning
Make Good the Promises of Reconstruction: A Conversation and Virtual Exhibition Tour with Candra Flanagan
On-Demand
Virtual
Listen to this recorded conversation with Candra Flanagan, Director of Teaching and Learning at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture, as we explore the museum’s exhibition, “Make Good the Promises: Reconstruction and Its Legacies.”
Professional Learning
Teaching Reconstruction: A Conversation with Dr. Kidada Williams
On-Demand
Virtual
Join us for this recorded conversation with writer and historian, Dr. Kidada Williams, as we discuss her research on African Americans’ fight for liberty and equality during and after the Civil War and Reconstruction era.
Professional Learning
Reexamining Reconstruction: A Conversation with Dr. Hasan Kwame Jeffries
On-Demand
Virtual
Examine how the Reconstruction Era is remembered and the impact of its legacy on contemporary society with Dr. Hasan Kwame Jeffries, Associate Professor of History at The Ohio State University and scholar of African American history and contemporary Black politics.
