Compromise of 1877

Quick Facts: Who was Compromise of 1877?

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Compromise of 1877

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Informal political deal settling the 1876 US presidential election, ending Reconstruction.

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Origins & Early Life

The Compromise of 1877, also known as the Wormley Agreement, the Tilden-Hayes Compromise, the Bargain of 1877, or the Corrupt Bargain, was an informal political deal in the United States that settled the intense dispute over the results of the 1876 presidential election, in which Republican candidate Rutherford B. Hayes was declared the winner over Democratic candidate Samuel Tilden. During the Reconstruction era of the 1860s and 1870s, the Southern United States fell under federal military oversight. The compromise entailed that Democrats ended both a filibuster of the certified election results as well as threats of political violence in exchange for the Republicans' ending military oversight. When Hayes took office, he withdrew the last federal troops from the South, which historians largely regard as the end of Reconstruction. No written evidence of such a deal has ever been found, and its precise details are a matter of historical debate, but historians agree that the federal government adopted a policy of leniency towards the South to ensure federal authority and Hayes's successful election as president.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

The existence of an informal agreement to secure Hayes's political authority, known as the Bargain of 1877, was long accepted as a part of American history. Its terms were reviewed by historian C. Vann Woodward in his 1951 book Reunion and Reaction: The Compromise of 1877 and the End of Reconstruction, which also coined the modern name in an effort to compare the political resolution of the election to the famous Missouri Compromise and Compromise of 1850. Under the compromise, Democrats controlling the House of Representatives allowed the decision of the Electoral Commission to take effect, securing political legitimacy for Hayes's legal authority as president. The subsequent withdrawal of the last federal troops from the Southern United States effectively ended the Reconstruction Era and forfeited the Republican claims to the state governments in South Carolina, Florida and Louisiana. The outgoing president, Republican Ulysses S. Grant, removed the soldiers from Florida, and as president, Hayes removed the remaining troops from South Carolina and Louisiana.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

As soon as the troops left, many white Republicans also left, and the "Redeemer" Democrats, who already dominated other state governments in the South, took control. Some Black Republicans felt betrayed as they lost their political legitimacy in the South that had been defended by the federal military, and by 1905 most African-American people were effectively disenfranchised in every Southern state. Criticism from other historians has taken various forms, ranging from outright rejection of the compromise theory to criticism of Woodward's emphasis of certain influences or outcomes, but critics agree that the event became almost universally accepted in the years after Woodward published Reunion and Reaction. In the November 1876 United States presidential election, Samuel J. Tilden received 184 uncontested electoral votes and Rutherford B. Hayes received 165, with 185 votes necessary for a majority. Four states (Florida, Louisiana, Oregon, and South Carolina) returned disputed slates of presidential electors with a total of 20 electoral votes at stake.

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1876: 1876 Milestone — In the November 1876 United States presidential election, Samuel J.
2. 1877: 1877 Milestone — The Compromise of 1877, also known as the Wormley Agreement, the Tilden-Hayes Compromise, the Bargain of 1877, or the Corrupt Bargain, was an informal political deal in the United States that settled the intense dispute over the results of the 1876 presidential election, in which Republican candidate Rutherford B.
3. 1905: 1905 Milestone — Some Black Republicans felt betrayed as they lost their political legitimacy in the South that had been defended by the federal military, and by 1905 most African-American people were effectively disenfranchised in every Southern state.
4. 1951: 1951 Milestone — Vann Woodward in his 1951 book Reunion and Reaction: The Compromise of 1877 and the End of Reconstruction, which also coined the modern name in an effort to compare the political resolution of the election to the famous Missouri Compromise and Compromise of 1850.

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Compromise of 1877

True or False: “The Compromise of 1877 was formally documented in a single, signed treaty immediately following the election.”

Answer (FALSE ❌): No written evidence of such a deal has ever been found; its precise details remain a matter of historical debate.

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