DOUG JOHNSON:

The South was not the only place where public officials were dishonest.

The period after the Civil War in the United States was marked by several famous incidents involving violations of the public trust. Some of these incidents took place in the North, even in the White House. They were among the worst examples of dishonesty and poor government ever to take place in American history.

It also is important to note that not everyone in the South was dishonest. The new state governments did many good things.

They built roads and bridges, schools and hospitals. They improved transportation and education. They loaned money to companies to build railroads. Most important, they helped give hope to former slaves. These people were struggling to create a new life in the land of their former owners.

FRANK OLIVER:

So, the record of reconstruction in the South was mixed. Many southerners believe, even today, that reconstruction was a bitter time of defeat. But others now say this period after the Civil War was a necessary step in creating a different kind of South from the one which had existed before.

Historians do agree that reconstruction changed the United States in several important ways. One of the most important changes was in the Constitution. Congress passed three historic amendments to the Constitution during this period.

DOUG JOHNSON:

The first was the Thirteenth Amendment. It ended slavery in the United States.