The oath of allegiance
required a citizen to swear that he was now and always had been
loyal to the Federal Government. This excluded all the
Confederate officials. These new Southern reconstruction
governments operated under the protection of the Army and with
the encouragement of the Federal Government. They strove to
reconstruct the South economically, politically, and socially.
They established a system of public education, built many new
hospitals, founded institutions for the mentally and physically
handicapped, and attempted to reform the penal system.
During Reconstruction blacks played a significant political role
throughout the South. Besides voting in large numbers, they were
elected to local, state, and federal offices. Between 1869 and
1901, two became U. S. Senators and twenty were members of the
House of Representatives. Senators Revels and Bruce were
elected from Mississippi. P. B. S. Pinchback was elected to the
Senate from Louisiana, but he was not permitted to take his seat.
He did serve as Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana, and, for three
days, was Acting Governor.
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