Name:__________________________________________________________ Date:___________ Class:______
Bell Ringer: The Carpetbaggers
Instructions: Examine the picture. Read the Description. Answer the Questions.
Description: During the era of Reconstruction, the Union was using a lot of taxpayer money to pay for programs to
attempt to rebuild the South. Many people in the North went to the South to participate in these programs. The
perception of many Southerners was that these people were simply there to get paid with taxpayer money, not because
they actually wanted to help. They were called “carpetbaggers” by many. This referred to the derogatory notion that
these individuals packed up their carpetbags (suit cases) quickly and headed to the South in hopes of getting paid.
1. How do you think the artist wants you to view this figure in the cartoon? Explain
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
2. Why would the citizens of the South be suspicious of Northerners coming down to assist with the Reconstruction
programs?
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
3. What cultural differences existed between the culture of the North and the South? Had do you think these
differences impacted the interaction between Southerners and Carpetbaggers?
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
Copyright, USHistoryTeachers.com
All Rights Reserved.
Answers:
1. How do you think the artist wants you to view this figure in the cartoon? Explain
Answers will vary; yet, many will probably include that the figure appears greedy with the heavy bag,
rushed with the dust picking up under his feet, and even as a scoundrel due to the appearance the
artist chose.
2. Why would the citizens of the South be suspicious of Northerners coming down to assist with the Reconstruction
programs?
Many felt they were coming just to get paid by taxpayer money.
3. What cultural differences existed between the culture of the North and the South? Had do you think these
differences impacted the interaction between Southerners and Carpetbaggers?
The North was industrial and heavily supportive of the abolitionist movement that contributed to the
Civil War. The South had massive areas of discrimination against former slaves and was mainly
agrarian. These cultural differences probably created tension between the Northerners coming to the
South and the citizens of the area.
Copyright, USHistoryTeachers.com
All Rights Reserved.