Feb. 25, 1870: Hiram Revels Sworn into Office
Hiram Revels was sworn into office as senator from Mississippi, becoming the first African American to serve in the U.S. Senate.
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Theme: Reconstruction
These are resources for teaching about Reconstruction.
March 2, 1867: Congress Passes First of Four Reconstruction Acts
Congress overrode President Andrew Johnson’s veto and passed the first of four statutes known as the Reconstruction Acts, which outlined the process of readmission to the Union.
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Freedom Was in Sight: A Graphic History of Reconstruction in the Washington, D.C., Region
Book — Non-fiction. By Kate Masur and illustrated by Elizabeth Clarke. 2024. 192 pages.
This graphic history reveals the hopes and betrayals of Reconstruction, a critical period in American history.
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This graphic history reveals the hopes and betrayals of Reconstruction, a critical period in American history.
March 4, 1877: Hayes Takes Office in 1877 Compromise
Rutherford Hayes became the 19th President of the United States with a devastating impact on Reconstruction.
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June 2, 1892: Robert Lewis Killed By White Mob in New York
Robert Lewis was brutally beaten and hanged from a tree by a crowd of nearly 2,000 people after being accused of assaulting Lena McMahon, a local white woman. No one was held accountable for his murder.
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March 17, 1886: Carroll County Courthouse Massacre
The Carroll County Courthouse Massacre left 23 Black people dead when an armed white mob attacked an ongoing trial.
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Last Seen: The Enduring Search by Formerly Enslaved People to Find Their Lost Families
Book — Non-fiction. By Judith Giesberg. 2025. 336 pages.
The story of formerly enslaved people who spent years searching for family members stolen away during slavery.
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The story of formerly enslaved people who spent years searching for family members stolen away during slavery.
How the Word Is Passed: Discussion Questions, Writing Prompts, and Teaching Ideas
Teaching ideas and discussion questions for How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith.
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Slavery by Another Name
Film. By Sam Pollard, Catherine Allan, Douglas Blackmon and Sheila Curran Bernard. 2012. 90 minutes.
Reveals the interlocking forces in the South and the North that enabled “neoslavery” post-Emancipation Proclamation.
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Reveals the interlocking forces in the South and the North that enabled “neoslavery” post-Emancipation Proclamation.
April 13, 1873: Colfax Massacre
The Ku Klux Klan carried out the Colfax Massacre in response to a Republican victory in the 1872 elections.
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Echoes of Enslavement
Teaching Activity. By Ursula Wolfe-Rocca.
Students discover “echoes of enslavement” in their own state — discrete sites of remembering, forgetting, honoring, lying, or distorting — in this lesson based on the book How the Word Is Passed by Clint Smith.
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Students discover “echoes of enslavement” in their own state — discrete sites of remembering, forgetting, honoring, lying, or distorting — in this lesson based on the book How the Word Is Passed by Clint Smith.
April 14, 1875: Frances Harper on Grassroots Organizing During Reconstruction
Frances Ellen Watkins Harper spoke in Philadelphia at the Centennial Anniversary of the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery, urging African Americans to continue organizing for justice.
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The Coup of 1898: A Blueprint for Suppressing Democracy
By Jesse Hagopian
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The Wilmington Coup reveals that white supremacist attacks on democracy are deeply embedded in U.S. history. Erasing this history allows the myth of American exceptionalism to persist, leaving us ill-equipped to recognize — and confront — the recurrence of such violence.
May 25: Memorial Day
Learn about the people’s history of Decoration Day (Memorial Day) and the Memorial Day Massacre.
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July 23, 1890: F. M. B. “Marsh” Cook Killed
F. M. B. “Marsh” Cook, a white man, was killed for standing up against the white supremacist 1890 Mississippi Constitutional Convention.
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July 30, 1866: New Orleans Massacre
The New Orleans Massacre occurred when white residents attacked Black marchers near the reconvened Louisiana Constitutional Convention.
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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.”
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June 19, 1865: “Juneteenth” Emancipation Day
Juneteenth — June 19th, also known as Emancipation Day — Juneteenth — is one of the many commemorations of people seizing their freedom in the United States.
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When the Impossible Suddenly Became Possible: A Reconstruction Mixer
Teaching Activity. By Adam Sanchez and Nqobile Mthethwa. 25 pages.
A mixer role play explores the connections between different social movements during Reconstruction.
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A mixer role play explores the connections between different social movements during Reconstruction.
Jan. 14, 1868: South Carolina Constitutional Convention
The South Carolina constitutional convention met with a majority of Black delegates, adopting a constitution that provided for all people regardless of race, economic class, or gender.
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April 9, 1865: Civil War Officially Ends
The U.S. Civil War ended when the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia surrendered to U.S. General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House in south-central Virginia.
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May 25, 1865: Black Virginians Cast Freedom Ballots
African Americans tested their right to vote and when denied, cast their own “freedom ballots,” on election day in Norfolk, Virginia.
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July 29, 1835: Abolitionist Literature Removed from Post Office and Burned
Late night raid on the Charleston post office by a mob of white supremacists and the burning of abolitionist mail.
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Nov. 3, 1883: Danville Riot
African Americans voters were threatened after the Danville Riot, leading to their loss of political power in this majority African American city in Virginia.
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Feb. 26, 1870: Wyatt Outlaw Murdered
Wyatt Outlaw, a Union veteran who became the first Black town commissioner of Graham, North Carolina, was seized from his home and lynched by members of the Ku Klux Klan known as the White Brotherhood, which controlled the county.
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