An Example for All the Land: Emancipation and the Struggle Over Equality in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C. In The Reconstruction Era

Among the many studies of Reconstruction, surprisingly few focus on its history in Washington, D.C. I was drawn to this new book, "An Example for All the Land: Emancipation and the Struggle over Equality in Washington, D.C." (2010) because it offered a combination of national history with the local history of Washington D.C. on a subject which continues to fascinate me. The author, Kate Masur, is Assistant Professor of history and African American Studies at Northwestern University. Dr. Masur received her PhD from the University of Michigan in 2001. This is her first book.

Within the United States, Washington, D.C. is unique because under the Constitution Congress has plenary power for its governance. There are no complicating issues of states rights and Federalism. During the Civil War and Reconstruction, Congress used Washington, D.C. as a laboratory for experiments with democracy and racial equality. The title of Masur's book derives from a statement by Senator Charles Sumner that Washington, D.C. was "an example for all the land." While many studies of Reconstruction focus on freedom as the most important concept, Masur concentrates on the difficult concept of equality in tracing the course of Reconstruction.

Understanding the course of Reconstruction in Washington, D.C. requires knowing how Congress had provided for its governance. In fact, there were three local governments at the time of the Civil War: Washington, D.C. Georgetown, and Washington County. Congress had granted by charter elective self-government to D.C. and Georgetown while providing an appointed body, the Levy Court, for Washington County. The three jurisdictions were not consolidated until 1871, but that is getting ahead of the story.

Masur's history basically has two parts. The first part, from roughly 1862 -- 1871, discusses the rise of Reconstruction in Washington, D.C., including strong concepts of equality. During the Civil War, President Lincoln and others had tried to distinguish among legal, political, and social equality, an exercise which proved slippery, shifting and difficult. Congress abolished slavery in Washington, D.C. in 1862. The influx of many former slaves, or contrabands, into the city, combined with the free African Americans who called the city home, gave African Americans a considerable power base. They frequently advanced what Masur describes as "upstart claims" in which they got ahead of Congress in the types of equality they sought. Masur describes a politically active African American community in the capital city which took the lead in expanding equality.

Masur's book shows how the concept of equality played out differently in different contexts. After the abolition of slavery, Congress at first opted for a narrow concept of equality which involved removing discrimination from statutory law. Masur shows community activism leading to the expansion of equality in areas such as housing, education, police protection, public accommodations, transportation on streetcars and railroads, and public education. In these areas, African American activists, Masur argues, were ahead of Congress, which eventually followed their lead in enacting anti-discrimination measures. These efforts culminated in 1867 when Congress enacted legislation providing for the vote for all African American men. This enactment led to the election of a mayor and city council in Washington, D.C. which made substantial strides for racial equality and opportunity.

If Washington, D.C. was a proving ground for the early stages of Reconstruction, it also was a harbinger for Reconstruction's demise. This story is told in roughly the second part of Masur's book. She begins with an interesting discussion of how the feminist movement under Elizabeth Stanton and Susan B. Anthony felt the need to distance themselves from suffrage for African American males. But most of her account concerns the retreat from the 1867 voting rights act in Washington, D.C., the rise of bossism, and the eventual loss of the franchise for African American and white voters alike.

The local government that followed upon the grant of the franchise was regarded as fiscally irresponsible. In 1871, Congress consolidated the three jurisdictions of Washington, D.C., Georgetowwn, and Washington county into one jurisdiction. Congress then provided for an appointive government for the jurisdiction, with the exception of a lower legislative house, which continued to be elective. This change provided the basis for political cronyism under President Grant, who appointed a powerful financier to govern the city. In addition, it provided for the rise of Alexander "Boss" Shepherd, whom Grant had appointed as the head of the Board of Public Works. Shepherd ultimately became the most influential figure in the City. He modernized it substantially and allowed for its development but at the cost of great corruption. Shepherd became known as Washington D.C.'s equivalent of the notorious Tweed Ring of New York City. Shepherd liberally distributed local patronage to African Americans and others even though African Americans had no role in electing Shepherd.

In 1874, Congress took away the franchise in its entirety from D.C. residents. It provided instead for a Commission form of government with appointment by Congress. Thus African Americans, and other residents, were deprived of the right to vote which had been hard-won in 1867. This brought Reconstruction to an effective end in the capital city. Masur sees parallels between the end of Reconstruction in Washington, D.C. in 1871 and 1874 and the subsequent abandonment of Reconstruction in the South. Washington D.C. would not have home rule for 99 years until its restoration in 1973.

The history Masur relates is complex, and she might presuppose too much background knowledge in her readers. A chronology and perhaps an introductory chapter would have been welcome. As much as it is a history, Masur's book is a "meditation on the meanings of equality at a pivotal moment of American history." (p.7) Masur has many insightful things to say about changing concepts of equality, which makes her history all the more challenging to read and important. This book will appeal to readers with a strong interest in the Reconstruction Era, African American history, or the local history of Washington, D.C. It also requires readers wanting to engage with different historical understandings of the nature of equality and the development of this understanding with time. Masur has written a valuable book about a too little studied part of the Reconstruction Era.

Robin Friedman