Books: Non-Fiction

The Second Founding: How the Civil War and Reconstruction Remade the Constitution

Book — Non-fiction. By Eric Foner. 2020. 304 pages.
Traces the arc of the three foundational Reconstruction amendments from their origins in antebellum activism to their virtual nullification by narrow Supreme Court decisions and Jim Crow state laws.

Time Periods: 1850–1864
Themes: African American, Reconstruction, Laws & Citizen Rights
Levels: Adult, High School
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The Second Founding… demonstrates [Foner’s] talent at unearthing insights about the Civil War and Reconstruction eras, in particular how Americans defined and acted on the ideals of freedom and democracy. . . . [He writes] in what another eminent historian, Christopher Lasch, called ‘plain style’ direct and vivid prose without a trace of specialized language, which anyone with a passing interest in the subject can read, learn from, and enjoy. — Michael Kazin in The Nation

An authoritative history by the preeminent scholar of the Civil War era, The Second Founding traces the arc of the three foundational Reconstruction amendments from their origins in antebellum activism and adoption amidst intense postwar politics to their virtual nullification by narrow Supreme Court decisions and Jim Crow state laws. Today these amendments remain strong tools for achieving the American ideal of equality, if only we will take them up. [Adapted from publishers’ description.]

ISBN: 9780393358520 | W. W. Norton & Company

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Related Resources
Teaching Activities (Free)

Reconstructing the South: What Really Happened

Teaching Activity. By Mimi Eisen and Ursula Wolfe-Rocca. 47 pages.
A follow-up lesson to “Reconstructing the South,” using primary source documents to reveal key outcomes of the Reconstruction era.

Articles

Erasing the Black Freedom Struggle: How State Standards Fail to Teach the Truth About Reconstruction

Article. By Ana Rosado, Gideon Cohn-Postar, and Mimi Eisen. 2022. 44 pages.
The report includes assessments of education standards in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, along with findings and recommendations for how to improve instruction on Reconstruction.

Black Power USA Book Cover | Zinn Education Project
Books: Non-Fiction

Black Power U.S.A.: The Human Side of Reconstruction, 1867-1877

Book — Non-fiction. By Lerone Bennett Jr. 1967. 426 pages.
A bottom-up, student friendly text about the people’s history of Reconstruction.

Books: Non-Fiction

Black Reconstruction in America

Book — Non-fiction. By W. E. B. Du Bois. Edited by Eric Foner and Henry Louis Gates. 2021. 1097 pages.
Originally published in 1935, Du Bois’ Black Reconstruction was the first book to challenge the prevailing racist historical narrative of the era and in sharp, incisive prose, tell the story of the Civil War and Reconstruction from the perspective of African Americans.

Engraving of the 13th Amendment.
This Day in History

Dec. 6, 1865: 13th Amendment Ratified

The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution officially ended the institution of slavery.

This Day in History

June 13, 1866: 14th Amendment Passed

The 14th Amendment to the constitution was passed, granting citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States.”

The Fifteenth Amendment and its results poster | Zinn Education Project: Teaching People's History
This Day in History

Feb. 3, 1870: 15th Amendment Ratified

The 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution officially granted African American men the right to vote.

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