Oklahoma History Unit 5 Review: The Civil War and Reconstruction Era

Key Events Leading to the Civil War

• Increasing tensions between Northern and Southern states over the issue of slavery
• The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 allowed popular sovereignty to determine the status of slavery in new territories, leading to violent conflicts known as "Bleeding Kansas"
• The Dred Scott v. Sandford Supreme Court decision in 1857 ruled that African Americans were not citizens and that Congress could not ban slavery in territories
• John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859 aimed to incite a slave rebellion, further escalating tensions
• The election of Abraham Lincoln, a Republican opposed to the expansion of slavery, as president in 1860 prompted Southern states to secede from the Union
• The formation of the Confederate States of America in 1861, with Jefferson Davis as its president
• The attack on Fort Sumter in South Carolina by Confederate forces in April 1861, marking the beginning of the Civil War

Oklahoma's Role in the Civil War

• Oklahoma, then known as Indian Territory, was not an official state during the Civil War but played a significant role
• Many Native American tribes in Indian Territory, including the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole, allied with the Confederacy
  • These tribes, known as the Five Civilized Tribes, had been forcibly removed from their ancestral lands in the Southeastern United States during the Trail of Tears
  • Some Native American leaders, such as Stand Watie, a Cherokee, became prominent Confederate generals
• Other Native American tribes, such as the Loyal Creeks and Seminoles, sided with the Union
• Indian Territory served as a strategic location for both Union and Confederate forces due to its proximity to Texas and Arkansas
• Numerous battles and skirmishes took place in Indian Territory throughout the war, including the Battle of Honey Springs in 1863

Major Battles and Campaigns

• The Battle of Round Mountain in November 1861, a Confederate victory that secured control of Indian Territory for the South
• The Battle of Pea Ridge in Arkansas in March 1862, a Union victory that helped secure Missouri for the North and opened the way for Union control of Indian Territory
• The Battle of Honey Springs in July 1863, the largest Civil War battle in Indian Territory, resulting in a Union victory and the capture of Fort Gibson
  • This battle is notable for the participation of African American soldiers in the Union army, known as the United States Colored Troops (USCT)
• The Red River Campaign in 1864, a failed Union attempt to invade Texas through Indian Territory and Louisiana
• Guerrilla warfare and raids by both Union and Confederate forces throughout Indian Territory, disrupting daily life and causing widespread destruction

Impact on Native American Tribes

• The Civil War divided Native American tribes in Indian Territory, with some supporting the Union and others the Confederacy
• Many Native Americans were forced to abandon their homes and flee to Kansas or Texas to escape the violence
• The conflict led to the destruction of Native American villages, crops, and livestock, causing widespread hardship and starvation
• The Treaty of New Echota in 1866, signed by the Cherokee Nation and the United States government, abolished slavery within the Cherokee Nation and granted citizenship to former slaves (known as Cherokee Freedmen)
  • Similar treaties were signed with other Native American tribes in Indian Territory
• The war and its aftermath weakened the autonomy and sovereignty of Native American tribes in Indian Territory, paving the way for increased white settlement and the eventual statehood of Oklahoma

Aftermath and Reconstruction

• The Reconstruction era following the Civil War aimed to rebuild the Southern states and address the issues of slavery and civil rights
• The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution were ratified, abolishing slavery, granting citizenship to African Americans, and ensuring the right to vote for African American men
• The Freedmen's Bureau was established to provide assistance to formerly enslaved people, including education, healthcare, and legal aid
• The Southern states, including Indian Territory, were divided into military districts under the control of the Union army
• The Reconstruction Treaties of 1866 between the United States and Native American tribes in Indian Territory addressed issues of land ownership, citizenship, and the abolition of slavery within the tribes
• The Reconstruction era saw the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and other white supremacist groups that used violence and intimidation to suppress African American civil rights and political participation

Social and Economic Changes

• The abolition of slavery led to significant changes in the social and economic structure of the South, including Indian Territory
• Many formerly enslaved people in Indian Territory became sharecroppers or tenant farmers, working on land owned by white or Native American landowners
• The destruction caused by the Civil War and the loss of slave labor led to economic hardship for many plantation owners and farmers
• The war and Reconstruction period saw an influx of white settlers into Indian Territory, leading to increased pressure on Native American lands and resources
• The cattle industry grew in importance in Indian Territory during the post-war period, with the establishment of cattle trails such as the Chisholm Trail
• The railroad industry expanded in Indian Territory, connecting the region to national markets and facilitating the growth of towns and cities

Legacy and Long-Term Effects

• The Civil War and Reconstruction period had lasting impacts on the political, social, and economic landscape of Oklahoma
• The war and its aftermath led to the weakening of Native American tribal sovereignty and the opening of Indian Territory to white settlement
• The Dawes Act of 1887 aimed to assimilate Native Americans into white society by dividing tribal lands into individual allotments, leading to the loss of much Native American land
• The Jim Crow era of racial segregation and discrimination followed the Reconstruction period, affecting both African Americans and Native Americans in Oklahoma
• The legacy of slavery and the Civil War continued to shape race relations and civil rights struggles in Oklahoma throughout the 20th century
• The Civil War and Reconstruction period laid the groundwork for the eventual statehood of Oklahoma in 1907, which brought together Indian Territory and Oklahoma Territory as a single state

Key Figures and Their Contributions

• Stand Watie, a Cherokee leader who served as a Confederate general and was the last Confederate general to surrender in the Civil War
• Opothleyahola, a Creek leader who led a group of Loyal Creeks and Seminoles in support of the Union during the Civil War
• Henry L. Dawes, a U.S. Senator from Massachusetts who sponsored the Dawes Act of 1887, which aimed to assimilate Native Americans into white society by dividing tribal lands into individual allotments
• E.C. Boudinot, a Cherokee lawyer and politician who advocated for the allotment of Native American lands and played a key role in the passage of the Curtis Act of 1898
• Green McCurtain, a Choctaw leader who served as Principal Chief of the Choctaw Nation during the Reconstruction period and negotiated with the U.S. government over land allotment and tribal sovereignty
• Edward P. McCabe, an African American politician who helped establish the all-black town of Langston, Oklahoma, in 1890 and advocated for African American civil rights and self-determination
• Alice Robertson, an educator and politician who became the first woman elected to Congress from Oklahoma in 1920, serving a single term in the U.S. House of Representatives