The Union League and biracial politics in Reconstruction Texas / Carl H. Moneyhon.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Moneyhon, Carl H., 1944- author.

Contributor:

Rosengarten Family Fund.

Series:

Summerfield G. Roberts Texas history series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Union League of America--History--19th century.

Union League of America.

Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- )--History--19th century.

Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- ).

Reconstruction (U.S. history, 1865-1877)--Texas.

Reconstruction (U.S. history, 1865-1877).

Race relations.

African Americans.

Politics and government.

History.

Texas.

African Americans--Texas--Politics and government--19th century.

Texas--Politics and government--1865-1950.

Texas--Race relations--Political aspects.

African Americans--Politics and government.

Race relations--Political aspects.

United States.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

x, 401 pages : illustrations (black and white), maps (black and white) ; 25 cm.

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

College Station : Texas A&M University Press, [2021]

Summary:

"The Republican Union League of America played a major role in the Southern Reconstruction that followed the American Civil War. A secret organization introduced into Texas in 1867 to mobilize newly enfranchised black voters, it was the first political body that attempted to secure power by forming a biracial coalition. Originally intended by white Unionists simply to marshal black voters to their support, it evolved into an organization that allowed blacks to their own political goals. It was abandoned by the state's Republican Party following the 1871 state elections. From the beginning, the use of the league by the Republican party proved controversial. While its opponents charged that its white leadership simply manipulated ignorant blacks to achieve power for themselves, ultimately encouraging racial conflict, the League not only educated blacks in their new political rights but also protected them in the exercise of those rights. It provided gave blacks a voice in supporting the legislative program of Governor Edmund J. Davis, helping him to push through laws aimed at the maintenance of law and order, securing basic civil rights for blacks, and the creation of public schools. Ultimately, its success and its secrecy provoked hostile attacks from political opponents, leading the Party to stop using it. Nonetheless, the Union League created a legacy of black activism that lasted throughout the nineteenth century and pushed Texas toward a remarkably different world from the segregated and racist one that developed after it disappeared"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: One. Texas Unionists and the National Union League, 1863-1867

Two. Black Texans

Three. The League Comes to Texas

Four. The League and Black Agency

Five. Black Agency and Democratic Violence, 1868

Six. The League and George Ruby, Conventions, and the Direction of Texas Republicanism, 1868-1869

Seven. The League and the Election of 1869

Eight. Reorganization and Restructuring: James R Newcomb and the League

Nine. Internal Divisions and the Election of 1871

Ten. The Demise of the League and its Legacy.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Rosengarten Family Fund.

ISBN:

9781623499563

1623499569

OCLC:

1223068425