1. Compare and contrast the Wade-Davis Bill and 10% Plan. How did this presage the upcoming battle between the president and congress over Reconstruction?
2. Why were the Black Codes a turning point in the course of Reconstruction?
3. In what ways and to what extent was president Johnson responsible for radicalizing the Republican party in 1866?
4. Discuss the various parts of the Radical Reconstruction plan imposed on the South from 1866-1870. Was the plan a success or failure? Why?
5. Discuss the many reasons and methods that allowed white supremacy to be restored in the South by the 1876 presidential election.
6. How did the Jim Crow Laws define race relations in the South from 1876-1965?
7. Measure the effectiveness of Military Reconstruction in the South from 1866-76.
8. In your view did Andrew Johnson deserve to be impeached? What was the danger had Congress succeeded in removing him?
9. Explain how the contested presidential election of 1876 brought an end to Reconstruction.
10. Do you agree with historian Eric Foner's assessment that Reconstruction was a "tragic era"?