Atlanta Reconstruction

Atlanta Reconstructed

Having been a gateway to and from southern economics and enterprise before and during the war, Atlanta seemingly sealed its fate by becoming a strategic target for a union offensive. In an effort to cripple the supply line to Confederate forces, General Sherman opted to finish destroying the already war wrenched city. When Union forces finally left Atlanta, it appeared little more then a desolate wasteland. Undoubtedly Sherman had achieved the Unions goal, as well as sending a clear message to the Confederates.

With the end of the Civil War, Atlanta served as a project and model for all the southern populous. Whites and Blacks alike quickly filled the city and rebuilding began at an astonishing rate. Southern whites, seemingly relieved at the end of the war, wasted no time in creating an environment to suite their needs. Four railways were the centerpiece to Atlanta's new vibrant economy. Soon, Atlanta surpassed its pre-war status in both area and size.

The Reconstruction Act of 1867 offered a military presence in Atlanta that insured blacks safety. Like the rest of the southern Freedmen, blacks flooded the city to escape plantations and seek a better life. The white population took a different approach then other southern areas, seeming to ignore the ever-growing black population. Jobs were sparse for the Freedmen and although compiling nearly half of Atlanta's population, blacks found themselves living well below the white standard of living. Owing to the military presents, whites simply concentrated their energies on making themselves and their city more comfortable and wealthy then ever before. In 1868, Atlanta became the new Capitol, further fueling the goal of making it the heart and soul of Georgia.

With the passing of the Fifteenth Amendment, Blacks earned