PSE - People and Events: Impact and Change in Georgia after Reconstruction (Lesson)

People and Events: Impact and Change in Georgia after Reconstruction 

Introduction

People and Events: Impact and Change in Georgia after Reconstruction  icon Georgia’s economy was devastated after the Civil War. In the late 1800s, thanks to the work of several key citizens, the state and the economy began to recover. The state held the first International Cotton Exposition to highlight the growth of the cotton industry and attract new thriving businesses to the state in 1881. Even with the successes, Georgia faced adversities such as growing racial tensions, the 1906 Atlanta Riot and the Leo Frank Case. Overall, the road out of Reconstruction was long and filled with obstacles as Georgia faced the 20th century.

 

Georgia After Reconstruction

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Cause and Effect

Historians use cause and effect to inform and speculate about events that happen in history. If you think about it, events happen because something makes them happen. Why an event happens is the cause. What happens is the effect. The connection between the two is known as a cause/effect relationship.

Cause and Effect Chart
Event Cause (Why it Happened) Effect (What Happened as a Result)
Redemption Overcome the hardships Reconstruction brought to the state and a faltering economy Bourbon Triumvirate
New South The South could move towards change by competing economically with its northern neighbors Development of textile industries in Georgia, improved agricultural technology
The Progressive Movement Belief that the government was best equipped to correct the ills of society Reforms (prison, labor), temperance movement, women's suffrage (right to vote). Populist party

 

Bourbon Triumvirate

  • Radical Republicans who were given the name “Bourbon” for a line of French kings who were said to have ‘learned nothing and forgotten nothing.’ The word “Triumvirate” is a ruling of three people.
  • Joseph E. Brown, Alfred Colquitt and John B. Gordon were three men united in a common goal to rebuild the South and create the “New South”.
  • They were bound together in the belief that in order for Georgia’s economy to grow, we needed to expand our ties with the Industrial North.
  • The Bourbon Triumvirate wanted to keep many of the old southern traditions, including the belief in white supremacy.
  • They were active in Georgia politics from 1872-1890.
  • They wanted farmers to diversify their crops; less cotton, more grains.
  • The group wanted stronger economic ties with the Industrial North. They wanted to modernize the economy in the South.
  • Additionally, they favored one party-politics with the Democrats who focused on low taxes and limited role for state government, in control.
  • They took advantage of the convict lease system and used of prisoners as “leased” labor on railroads, coal mines, farms, etc., and they prisoners were treated horribly.
  • They rotated positions as governor and U.S. Senator within the Democratic Party.

 

Members of the Bourbon Triumvirate:

Joseph E. Brown (1821 to 1894)

  • 1857 to 1865 Governor of Georgia
  • 1866 to 1868 Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice
  • 1868 to 1880 Head of Western and Atlantic Railroad
  • 1880 to 1891 U.S. Senator
  • Trustee for UGA and President of Atlanta Board of Education

Alfred H. Colquitt (1824 to 1894)  

  • Worked with Joseph E. Brown in Georgia Assembly in 1849 to 1851
  • Served in State and Federal governments before Civil War
  • Voted for Georgia to succeed from Union in 1861
  • Civil War General for Confederacy
  • 1876 to 1882 Governor of Georgia
  • Served as U. S. Senator from 1883 until his death

John B. Gordon (1832 to 1904)

  • Only one of three officers who reached rank of Lt. General for Confederate Army
  • 1872 to 1880, and 1891 to 1897 Served as U.S. Senator
  • 1880 to 1886 Head of railroad in GA
  • 1886 to 1890 served as Georgia Governor
  • Gordon College (Barnesville) named after him

 

Key Figures and Events

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Review

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Think About This

 

 

Georgia saw the growth of rural areas that gained large political control over the state through the county unit system. Political divides deepened as racial tensions and sectional differences continued to cause conflicts in the late 1800s. Georgia did make gains in industrializing and attracting new business through its Cotton Expositions in the last 20 years of the century. Georgia continued to grow as the turn of the century approached and Georgians had to tackle political, economic and social issues head on.

  IMAGES CREATED BY GAVS