Anti-Defamation League
The Road to Brown
As part of the study of segregation in U.S. schools, scholars research and create a timeline of events that led to the historic Supreme Court case, Brown V. Board of Education. Groups research a topic or event that led to the decision,...
K20 LEARN
The Bank Of Justice: Civil Rights In The US
To launch a study of racial segregation and integration, young historians first watch a news video about a prom in Georgia that was first integrated in 2013. They then compare the goals in Lincoln's Gettysburg Address to King's "I Have a...
Academy of American Poets
Teach This Poem: "Black Laws" by Roger Reeves
After investigating the Black Lives Matter movement, class members do a close read of Roger Reeves' "Black Laws." They write down words and phrases that rhyme, consider the kinds of rhymes used and their function in the poem. Scholars...
Facing History and Ourselves
The Legacies of Reconstruction
The final lesson in the seven-resource Reconstruction Era collection examines the legacies of Reconstruction. Class members investigate why the period has been called an "unfinished revolution," "a splendid failure," and "the second...
C-SPAN
14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause
Two Supreme Court cases, Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education take center stage in a lesson about the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. Class members research both cases to compare and contrast the rulings.
Curated OER
The Called Themselves the K.K.K.; The Birth of an American Terrorist Group
How did Ku Klux Klan develop and flourish in the US? How did the government respond to acts of terrorism conducted by the KKK following the Civil War? How does the government respond to acts of terrorism today? This resource...
![Virginia History Series: Virginia State History Reconstruction to 1900 [Pdf] PPT](https://d15y2dacu3jp90.cloudfront.net/images/attachment_defaults/resource/large/FPO-knovation.png "Virginia History Series: Virginia State History Reconstruction to 1900 [Pdf] PPT")
Virginia History Series
Virginia History Series: Virginia State History Reconstruction to 1900 [Pdf]
Much of Virginia was devastated after the Civil War so a period of rebuilding commenced. Follow Reconstruction through the different plans, the effects on African-Americans and the South. This slideshow has pictures,charts, and maps to...
Other
University of Western Georgia: Reconstruction in the South
An excellent distillation of the many issues addressed in the Reconstruction period in the South in the twelve years after the end of the Civil War.
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Texas State Library and Archives Commission: Forever Free: The 1860s: 19th Century African American Legislators of Texas
An exhibit from the Texas State Library exploring the political achievements of African-Americans in the Texas state legislature and Constitutional Convention from 1865 through the 1890s.
OpenStax
Open Stax: Congress and the Remaking of the South, 1865 1866
This section from a chapter on "The Era of Reconstruction" describes the efforts made by Congress in 1865 and 1866 to bring to life its vision of Reconstruction and explains how the Fourteenth Amendment transformed the Constitution.
Other
Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia: What Was Jim Crow?
A listing of the Jim Crow laws and understood Jim Crow etiquette found across the South in the late 19th century.
Digital History
Digital History: America's Reconstruction: A Visual Timeline of Reconstruction
This resource provides a timeline of the Reconstruction era in the South.
Digital History
Digital History: Two Plans for Reconstruction [Pdf]
Before his assassination, Abraham Lincoln was already making plans for Reconstruction in the South. Read about his plan and the plan of the Radical Republicans. See the reasoning behind each plan.
Digital History
Digital History: The Problem of Reconstruction [Pdf]
How does a country put itself back together after a civil war? Read about the problems with the destruction of the Southern economy and land, the recognition of former slaves as freedmen, and the ways to bring the Southern states back...
Digital History
Digital History: The 14th Amendment and the Jim Crow Laws [Pdf]
Read about the background of the passage of the 14th Amendment which resulted in the famous case before the Supreme Court, Plessy v Ferguson, almost thirty years later. Suggested student exercises ask students to assess the issue of...
Then Again
Then Again: Web Chron: Plessy v. Ferguson
A short article describing the impact of Plessy v. Ferguson on the 14th Amendment. Links to other sites.
Civil War Home
Home of the American Civil War: Black Codes in the Former Confederate States
Read about the black codes in various states enacted as a result of Johnson's lenient Reconstruction plans. From "Trial by Fire, A People's History of the Civil War and Reconstruction" by Paige Smith.
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Texas State Library and Archives Commission: The 1890s: End of an Era and the Quest for Civil Rights
Part of an online exhibit called "Forever Free," this section deals with African Americans' efforts to establish themselves in society, despite increases in racism. Addresses topics such as Black Codes, Jim Crow Laws, and voting rights.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Presidential Reconstruction
After the death of Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Johnson was responsible for implementing Reconstruction in the South after the Civil War. Read about his views on African-Americans, and the leniency he offered Confederate leaders and soldiers....
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Classroom: Freedom From Discrimination
This website contains an interactive timeline about the history of freedom of discrimination in the United States.
Library of Congress
Loc: Civil Rights Jim Crow in America
A collection of primary source materials that reflect the Jim Crow laws in the United States. Includes analysis tools and teacher guides.
iCivics
I Civics: Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
This mini-activity covers the basics of the Supreme Court decision that determined that Dred Scott, having lived in a free territory, was not entitled to his freedom. Students learn about the impact of the Court's decision, and how it...
Digital Public Library of America
Dpla: Exodusters: African American Migration to the Great Plains
The resources here, including letters, photographs, official documents, and maps, represent the exodus of African Americans from the South to the Great Plains in the late 1800s.
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Texas State Library and Archives Commission: The 1890s: Black Codes
Here is a brief description of Black Codes, which were set in place in Texas in 1866 and "outlined a status for African Americans not too much removed from their earlier condition as slaves."