The Reconstruction A Documentary History of the South...

Shenton, James P. The Reconstruction: A Documentary History of the South after the War: 1865 1877. New York: Capricorn, 1963. Print. Book Review I read the book The Reconstruction: A Documentary History of the South after the War: 1865-1877 by James P. Shenton. James P. Shenton arrived at the University of Columbia at the age of 21 as a college freshman on the G.I. Bill. He finished his B.A. in three years and continued to finish his M.A. in 1950. In 1954 he finished his Ph. D all his accomplishments are in the subject of history. Professor Shenton arrived at Columbia University and never transferred anywhere else and eventually became a Professor on their campus. The context of this book is the years 1865 through 1877 which are the years†¦show more content†¦The U.S. government tried to reconstruct the South by punishing those who ran plantations using slaves, emancipating former slaves as well as other ways. The U.S. government made sure to give land to former slaves and white citizens who were not well-off, the land had been seized from plantation leaders. The United States government also focused on i mproving education and sanitation resources for those who did not have any. Last but not least the U.S. government focused greatly to made sure to ensure the rights of former slaves. To make sure that the newly freed slaves would be protected, many new amendments and laws were passed to protect their rights by both constitutional and federal laws. The Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments were added to the constitution in order to help protect the African American citizens from discrimination and racism. The Thirteenth amendment got rid of slavery, the Fourteenth gave African Americans legal citizenship and the Fifteenth granted African American men the privilege to vote. The author’s thesis in this book is that the North devoted a great amount of effort to reestablish the South and improve what it used to be. I agree that the North was determined to better the South and help the slaves which had been taken advantage of and been mistreated for many years. Professor Shenton provided a great amount of evidence and