Mr. Burns/Mr. Milano
American History
Reconstruction – End of Reconstruction – Close Reading
Name: ____________________________ Date: _____________ Period: __________
The Compromise of 1877
The Compromise of 1877 gave Rutherford B. Hayes
the presidency in exchange for the end of
Reconstruction in the South.
Hayes was the Republican candidate for president
in 1876 against the Domocratic candidate Samuel
Tilden. In those days Democrats were generally
favorable to the South and supported slavery
while Republicans were anti-slavery and anti-
South.
Democratic candidate Samuel J. Tilden of New
York won 247,448 more popular votes than
Republican Rutherford B. Hayes of Ohio. But the
electoral votes in the three southern states of
Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina were
disputed. Reasons for this are complex, but were
essentially questions surrounding the votes cast.
This was only a few years after the end of the Civil
War, and for almost four months, from November
into late February, tensions remained high as the
question of who was to become the nation’s next
president remained unresolved.
In January 1877, Congress established a 15-
member Electoral Commission to resolve the issue
of which candidate had won the contested states.
The commission voted 8-7 along party lines to
award the votes of all three states to Hayes, the
Republican.
Democrats agreed that Rutherford B. Hayes would
become president in exchange for the withdrawal
of federal troops from the South and the granting
of home rule (self-rule) in the South.
This was an informal, unwritten, agreement
between Hayes and the Congressmen.
During Reconstruction, federal troops (solders)
occupied the South. These troops served to
guarantee African American men's right to vote,
and the Republican-controlled federal government
would only end the military occupation when
states rewrote their Constitutions to recognize the
citizenship and voting rights of African American
men.
1. What did the Compromise of 1877 do?
2. Was Hayes a Democrat or Republican?
3. Was Samuel Tilden a Democart or Republican?
4. Which party was favorable to the Southern
states?
5. Who won the popular vote in the 1876
election?
6. In which three Southern states were there
questions about votes cast?
7. What happened because of the questions
about the votes in those 3 states?
8. What did Congress do to try to solve the
question?
9. Who did the commission decided had won the
election?
10. What did Hayes agree to do in return for the
votes of Democrats?
11. Was this a formal agreement?
12. What was the purpose of troops being
stationed in Southern states?
