Problem
Prior to the American Civil War, the Republican Party emerged with a platform for American development that included far more issues than its free soil or anti-slavery extension plank. Consider the Republican Party's other issues and how they implemented their platform once they gain power in 1861. What was their overall agenda? What legislation did they pass to carry out their program for America's economic development? Who did these economic programs benefit initially? In what ways did these same approaches in the Reconstruction South result in an economic crisis following the Bank Panic of 1973?