Fireside History 1876
The most contested election in US history ended Reconstruction, paved the way for Jim Crow, and nearly launched a second civil war. Why is it a footnote in most history textbooks?
A podcast about the war to define America that continued after 1865
Five years after the fall of slavery, there was a Black senator in Mississippi. Two years later, there was a Black governor in Louisiana.
The next Black governor didn’t take office until 1990.
How did we go from a war to end slavery to a system of legalized white supremacy?
How did revisionist histories of Reconstruction inspire white supremacist movements around the world?
How does the legacy of this period continue to impact society today?
"This podcast is haunting, eloquently weaving together the complexities and drama of a past that seems all too familiar and leaves you to wonder where does America go from here? Has it really traveled that far?
"Required listening for a US citizen in 2024. Perhaps the most uplifting and most depressing podcast I've heard all year, and it makes me reconsider my view on many of the debates playing out today."
"...a triumph, a podcast that makes the Reconstruction period both engaging and surprisingly relevant to today's conversations about who we are as a nation and where we're going."
Episode 1: The Arc of History
Four months after Election Day 1876, the presidency is still in doubt. With militias gathering and the country teetering on the brink of war, white southerners and allies of Presidential hopeful Rutherford Hayes reach a deal: the presidency for control of the South.
But what will it mean for 4 million formerly enslaved people and the prospects of a multiracial democracy? How will the failure of Reconstruction shape the future of the country? And what does it tell us about the path to progress today?
Episode 2: The Long War
The story of Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox in 1865 is a cherished part of our national myth. War-weary soldiers lay down their arms and embrace as brothers. But is the war really over?
The Union has survived and slavery has been abolished, but what will come next? What will freedom really mean? What role will the federal government play in protecting that freedom? The fight over these questions is just beginning, and the battle lines - in DC and across the country - are forming.
Episode 3: Land of Hope and Dreams
With Lee’s surrender, the country can imagine for the first time what a true, multiracial democracy might look like. Across the country, people work to push America closer to its founding ideals. Laws are passed abolishing slavery, guaranteeing equal protection before the law, granting Black men the right to vote, and banning segregation. Black people acquire land, establish schools, and form churches. There are Black congressmen and Black senators and even a Black Governor. There is hope and progress and a sense of possibility.
Episode 4: The Whitelash
As Black communities are springing to life, a powerful force is rising to return the south to an age of white rule. The Ku Klux Klan is established in 1865 and other white terrorist groups soon follow suit.
The Lost Cause mythology is born, providing white southerners with a unifying (if inaccurate) narrative and a new vision to rally around: a white-rule south. They advance this vision through violence, propaganda, and voter suppression.
Episode 5: The Reconstruction Retreat
The white south’s war against Reconstruction has left the north with a choice: double-down on protecting the rights of formerly enslaved people or abandon the project.
With the future of Reconstruction in the balance, the country spends four months awaiting the results of a bitterly contested election. Militia form, Governors discuss using national guard troops to overpower the army, and Congressmen begin carrying pistols for protection.
A makeshift bipartisan commission is formed, but it only sort of works. Many prepare for a second Civil War. An eleventh hour deal saves the Union but results in a major retreat on Reconstruction.
Episode 6: Those Who Control the Past
In the decades following 1876, the white south moves to solidify their power. They enact laws that restrict voting, segregate society, and usher in Jim Crow. Supporting these efforts is a concerted effort to rewrite the history of the war and Reconstruction.
Textbook committees, Confederate statues, and mainstream books and movies warp the country’s understanding of the era. Revisionist histories are embedded into academia and enshrined in law. They perpetuate racist tropes, incite violence, and lead to white supremacist movements around the world.
Bonus Episode: Group Psychology & The Path to Extremism
This podcast explores some puzzling historical questions: How were white southerners able to convince themselves that the Lost Cause was true? Why were northerners so open to embracing these lies? How was violence and terror normalized and the cruelty of segregation accepted as a fact of life?
I don’t think you can fully answer those questions without asking deeper questions about human psychology - questions about how we as individuals form beliefs, how groups construct narratives, and how - under the right conditions - these narratives drive extremism, violence, and division.
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This bonus episode is a conversation with Williams College psychologist Steve Fein that explores the science behind the history of Reconstruction. It uses cutting-edge research on group psychology as a lens to view the events covered in the show - and offers lessons for understanding conflict today.
Creative Team
Nick Fogel, Host & Producer
Nick is a high school history teacher at Boston Latin School in Massachusetts. He has worked on a number of storytelling initiatives and is an avid reader and lifelong student of history.
Iris Adler, Editor & Producer
Iris served as executive director for programming, podcasts and special projects at WBUR, Boston’s NPR station, where she worked for over thirty years. She has won numerous awards, including an Edward R. Murrow Award and several Emmys.
Jason Albert, Technical Editor
Jason is a veteran audio producer based in Bend, OR. He spends much of his time covering cross-country skiing and as much time as possible wandering the hills in Central Oregon.
Additional editing support from Hannah Barg and Ellen Mayer. Voice acting from Kilo Martin, Sara Young, and Evan Dethier. Logo and episode art by Matthew Voisin.
Contributors
Shawn Alexander, University of Kansas
Author of Reconstruction Violence and the Ku Klux Klan Hearings
Michael Beschloss, Historian and NBC Contributor
Author of Presidential Courage: Brave Leaders and How They Changed America, 1789–1989
Douglas Blackmon, Georgia State University
Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Slavery by Another Name
Peggy Cooper Davis, New York University
Author of Neglected Stories: The Constitution and Family Values
Charles Dew, Williams College
Author of The Making of a Racist: A Southerner Reflects on Family, History, and the Slave Trade
Bobby Donaldson, University of South Carolina
Historian and Executive Director of the Center for Civil Rights History and Research at the University of South Carolina
​Greg Downs, University of California Davis
Author of After Appomattox: Military Occupation and the Ends of War
Steven Fein, Williams College
Social psychologist specializing in stereotype, prejudice, and cognition
Madeleine Forrest Ramsey, Virginia Military Institute
Author of The Cruel Consequences of War: Life in Fauquier County, Virginia, 1861-1863
Hilary Green, Davidson College
Author of Educational Reconstruction: African American Schools in the Urban South, 1865-1890
Kate Masur, Northwestern University
Author of Until Justice Be Done: America's First Civil Rights Movement, from the Revolution to Reconstruction
Colin McConarty, Boston College & Selma Public Schools
Historian and public school teacher
Michael Moore, International African American Museum
Founding President and CEO
Anne Twitty, Stanford University
Author of Before Dred Scott: Slavery and Legal Culture in the American Confluence, 1787-1857
For teachers, students, and hardcore fans of history
Over the summer, I will be building engaging, student-led lesson plans covering key elements of the history of Reconstruction for you to use in your classroom.​
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