Reconstruction

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Freedmen’s Bureau: Letter Received by Texas Assistant Commissioner

[image continued] “…doing anything for them although they had called on him three times.” A letter written by a member of the Freedmen’s Bureau. It was originally a part of the Records the Assistant Commissioner for Texas, Series 4: Letters Received and was transcribed by Digital Volunteers for the Smithsonian Institution Transcription Center.

Authored by Cassidy Simpson

The Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands was established on March 3, 1865 and is typically referred to simply as the Freedmen’s Bureau. The purpose of this Bureau was to oversee what was happening regarding freedmen and refugees in the southern states. The Bureau was also in charge of abandoned and confiscated lands in these states, the District of Columbia, and Indian Territory (The Freedmen’s Bureau Online n.d.). While the Bureau was successful during its lifetime, it only existed for seven years and was disbanded in 1872. The Commissioner was Major General Oliver Otis Howard the whole time and much of the staff was military personnel (Fleischman, Tyson, & Oldroyd 2014, 5). Some of their jobs included ensuring justice, supervising labor contracts, protecting Black people and their property, and supporting them in creating schools. Many white Texans did not support the efforts of the Bureau, so they were working with limited resources (Harper 2020). Even so, they were able to open 66 schools in Texas and many African Americans were educated because of it (ARIS Staff 2022).

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Alabama Assistant Commissioner: A Freed man’s Dilemma

Authored by Lanisha LeBlanc

Written report of the assistant commissioner of Alabama written in October of 1866.

In the Year 1865, the amorphousness of America following the emancipation of enslaved people left those in power to determine what to do with the individuals whom it was no longer legal to exploit for free labor. Within this decision, the freedmen’s bureau was formed, which entailed providing necessities such as food, shelter, and clothing, for the Southerns displaced ensuing the new law of prohibiting the ownership of African people (United States Senate, n.d.).

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Setting a Precedent for American Aid; The Freedmen’s Bureau

Authored by Marion Ward

Registers and Letters Received by the Commissioner, Indexes and Registers, Register 14, Jan. 1–July 31, 1869.

On March 3, 1865, the War Department of the United States established the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands; it has since come to be known as the Freedmen’s Bureau (National Archives 2021). Facing the aftermath of the Civil War and the havoc it wreaked on the American economic system, President Andrew Johnson worked alongside Congress to create the Freedmen’s Bureau, which was a federal agency that was established for the purpose of promoting the social welfare of the recently freed population of enslaved African Americans (Hatfield 2020).

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First Lieutenant and General Superintendent F. R. Chase’s Letter to Captain William H. Sterling: An Insight into the Operations of the Freedmen’s Bureau’s Educational Department

Authored by Victoria Santamorena

1st Lieutenant & General Superintendent F. R. Chase to Captain William H. Sterling, 22 February 1867. Freedmen’s Bureau: Registers and Letters Received by the Commissioner, Letters Received, Entered in Register 9, W, Jan.- May 1867, Part 1. Smithsonian Institution Transcription Center, Freedmen’s Bureau, Washington, D.C. https://transcription.si.edu/transcribe/44494/NMAAHC-007675321_00444

On February 22, 1867, First Lieutenant and General Superintendent of Education in New Orleans, F. R. Chase, wrote to Captain William H. Sterling, the acting Adjunct General, reporting on difficulties in the Educational Department, which was overseen by the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands (the Freedmen’s Bureau). Chase’s letter complains of one of the department’s agents, A. D. McCoy, who had a tendency to overstep the bounds of his position. McCoy claimed authority over the district’s schools and the teachers appointed to them. However, the Superintendent or the Assistant Commissioner were responsible for these duties (Trudeau 1978, 2-3). Complicating matters, McCoy was a former Confederate and seemed to value religious preaching above his obligations as an educator.

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Father George Deshon’s Recollections of Ulysses S. Grant

Authored by Melissa Henderson

Father Deshon and General Grant page 1

Father Deshon and General Grant page 1

The letter written by Father Deshon in regards to Ulysses S. Grant highlights the character of our 18th President and provides anecdotal information on how he viewed West Point and how he interacted with his fellow cadets. It also gives historical reference to life at the United States Military Academy. Continue reading →