Also because of the newly freed slaves, production during the Lincoln Reconstruction era was slow.
Some say The Johnson era helped unite the South with the North. President Johnson's main goal was to make changes that promote Southern interest, which is no big surprise considering he is a democrat from the South. During this time " Southerners began to think that by standing up for themselves they-not victorious Northerners-would shape the transition from slavery to freedom"(The American Promise 394). The Southerners did just that, they established black codes that restricted the rights of freedmen in certain states. An example of this was the Mississippi Black Codes of 1865, which basically told freedmen what they can and cannot do. The laws were used to start controlling the slaves, and to undermine the concept of free labor. The turning point in Congress is when the elections of 1865 put most of the former confederate leaders of the South back into the government. However, because of this the Northern Republicans in Congress begin to unite .much to President Johnson's dismay.
In 1866 Congress passed the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which made all native-born or naturalized persons American citizens and prohibited states from abridging the privileges and immunities of citizens, depriving them of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. While this Amendment may seem nice, it takes the Supreme Court decades before they incorporate it into the states. The amendment gave the North a loophole against the South when it came to the right of former slaves to vote. Basically the Congress said that either you allow freedmen to vote or you can count on having limited representation in Congress. This soon progressed into what is now known as the 15th Amendment which stated that the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States, or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition or servitude.