The Immediate Impact:After the war ended, the south was devastated, and the north was in debt. One part of the solution for this part of reconstruction was The Freedmen's Bureau. This was a government organization which assisted the refugees from the south, especially the newly freed slaves. $17,000 was used to pay for 100 new hospitals to be built, along with 4,000 schools, and also to find new jobs for all of the newly freed blacks. However, this organization was only run for a short amount of time, and then shut down. However, it did assist many freed slaves as they struggled to find their footing in the new, post war United States. Another impact was the new taxes imposed by the government, to pay for the immense debt which the war had caused for both sides (including the extensive destruction of southern farmland), as well as the creation of a new form of paper money.
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The Longterm Impact:
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During the war, both the
Union and the Confederacy had printed their own forms of money. These, as expected, were rendered useless post-war. One of the biggest reasons the South was in such an economic crisis post- war was because not only was the war fought on their land but their almost $800 million savings were worthless. As a result, one of the first steps into rebuilding the economy was printing new U.S. paper money. Essentially, this is money the U.S. still uses today but in different variations. Paper money is one of the biggest and longest-lasting impacts as it
is still used today. However, the arguably biggest impact of having to repair
the economy post war was industrialization. The South’s economy was completely
collapsed post war because their land was ruined, their savings were worthless,
and they had lost all of their free workers. The U.S. had to create jobs and
somehow stimulate the economy so they began to build businesses and factories
and urbanize America. This produced many jobs and allowed former slaves to have
something to live off of. Cities grew in size and population. America’s
population greatly increased due to the growing number of jobs and
opportunities. This spurred the huge European immigration period in the
twentieth century. Industrialization brought urbanized America, induced a flood
of immigrants to come to America, and eventually paved the way for America as
the U.S. would revolve around industrialization forever.
Union and the Confederacy had printed their own forms of money. These, as expected, were rendered useless post-war. One of the biggest reasons the South was in such an economic crisis post- war was because not only was the war fought on their land but their almost $800 million savings were worthless. As a result, one of the first steps into rebuilding the economy was printing new U.S. paper money. Essentially, this is money the U.S. still uses today but in different variations. Paper money is one of the biggest and longest-lasting impacts as it
is still used today. However, the arguably biggest impact of having to repair
the economy post war was industrialization. The South’s economy was completely
collapsed post war because their land was ruined, their savings were worthless,
and they had lost all of their free workers. The U.S. had to create jobs and
somehow stimulate the economy so they began to build businesses and factories
and urbanize America. This produced many jobs and allowed former slaves to have
something to live off of. Cities grew in size and population. America’s
population greatly increased due to the growing number of jobs and
opportunities. This spurred the huge European immigration period in the
twentieth century. Industrialization brought urbanized America, induced a flood
of immigrants to come to America, and eventually paved the way for America as
the U.S. would revolve around industrialization forever.