Atlanta Reconstruction :: essays research papers

Atlanta ReconstructedHaving been a gateway to and from southern economics and enterprise before and during the war, Atlanta seemingly sealed its share by becoming a strategic target for a union offensive. In an effort to cripple the supply line to Confederate forces, General Sherman opted to use up destroying the already war wrenched city. When Union forces finally left Atlanta, it appeared little more then a desolate wasteland. Undoubtedly Sherman had achieved the Unions goal, as well as send a clear message to the Confederates.With the end of the Civil War, Atlanta served as a project and model for all the southern populous. Whites and Blacks alike quickly change the city and rebuilding began at an astonishing rate. Southern whites, seemingly relieved at the end of the war, wasted no time in creating an environment to retinue their needs. Four railways were the centerpiece to Atlantas new vibrant economy. Soon, Atlanta surpassed its pre-war status in both area and size.The Rec onstruction Act of 1867 offered a war machine presence in Atlanta that insured blacks safety. Like the rest of the southern Freedmen, blacks flooded the city to escape plantations and seek a better life. The white people took a different approach then other southern areas, seeming to ignore the ever-growing black population. Jobs were sparse for the Freedmen and although compiling nearly half of Atlantas population, blacks found themselves living well below the white standard of living. Owing to the military presents, whites simply concentrated their energies on making themselves and their city more at rest and wealthy then ever before. In 1868, Atlanta became the new Capitol, further fueling the goal of making it the heart and soul of Georgia.With the passing of the Fifteenth Amendment, Blacks make the right to vote. This, although powerful in appearance, had little effect on the segregation that Atlantas white population had adopted. Black voters boosted the presence of the Re publican Party, entirely not enough to over through that of the Democrats. As Atlantas growth subsided and the military presence was lifted, blacks left the inner city, taking refuge on the outskirts of town. Atlanta had seemingly succeeded in its goals. It welcomed northerners with open arms, but dealt with the blacks by simply shunting them to one side. Over time, blacks and whites simply lived life apart from one another.