where a congressman came over and tried to beat to death a senator on the floor of the senate which happened in the 1850s. what's different today is that more americans are exposed to the arguments through the internet, through cable television, but the debates we have today are nothing compared to the, for example, what adams and jefferson called each other. in those days, there were fighting duels. i mean we had big, vigorous, robust debates throughout the history of the country. what's different today is that more people are exposed to. and i think the coverage of what we do is entirely tilted toward the things we disagree on and the contentiousness of some of our debates, not the outcomes that we get. which is disappointing. >> leader mcconnell, thank you so much for the tour of your office and for the history lessons you've given us. >> thank you.

>> you can watch this, or any other american artifacts programs, at any time by visiting our website, c-span.org/history. american history tv airs on c-span3 every weekend telling the american story through events, interviews and visits to historic locations. this month american history tv is in prime time to introduce you to programs you could see every weekend on c-span3. our features include lectures in history, visits to college classrooms across the country to hear lectures by top history professors. american artifacts takes a look at the treasures at u.s. historic sites, museums and archives. reel america reviewing history through archival films and news reels. the civil war. where you hear about the people who shaped the civil war and reconstruction. the presidency focuses on u.s. presidents and first ladies to learn about their politics,

policies and legacies. all this month in prime time and every weekend on american history tv on c-span3. coming up this week on american history tv on c-span3, as the national park service prepares to celebrate its 100th anniversary, we'll take a look at the development of california's national and state parks. saturday night at 10:00 eastern on reel america, the 1935 u.s. department of the interior film "the land of the giants." it documents the efforts of the civilian conservation corps and the daily live in the redwoods. >> freeing for fire prevention provides for practically any kind of construction job that may be desirable. the conservation corps guys make everything from heavy bridge timbers to park signs. >> and sunday morning at 8:00, a panel of scholars examines the musical "hamilton," the history

depicted and the relationship between the academic history and the history portrayed in popular culture. then at teng on road to the white house rewind, incumbent president bill clinton and former kansas senator bob dole face off in their first debate of the 1996 presidential campaign. >> the bottom line is we are the strongest nation in the world. we provide the leadership. and we're going to have to continue to provide the leadership. let's do it on our terms when our interests are involved, and not when somebody blows a whistle at the united nations. >> i believe the evidence is that our deployments have been successful, in haiti, in bosnia, when we moved to kuwait to repel saddam hussein's threatened invasion of kuwait. when i sent the fleet into the taiwan straits. i believe the united states sat peace tonight in part because of the discipline, careful,

effective deployment of military resources. we'll take a tour of arlington house with ranger matthew penrod. built by george washington's step grandson, it was the home of robert e. lee, who had married into the family. >> he declared this house a federalist house. this was to represent all the beliefs and ideals of george washington. and that included once again the idea that this nation would exist forever. and that no state had a right to leave it. so how ironic is it that that man's daughter would marry robert e. lee, who became the great confederate general, and perhaps the man who came closest than any other man in history to destroying the nation that was created in the american revolution. >> for our complete american history tv schedule, go to c-span.org.

each week american history tv's american artifacts explores the history of the united states through objects. up next we visit capitol hill to talk to house historian african-americans in congress in the 19th century and see a selection of artifacts from the house collection. >> the story of how african-americans come to congress in the 19th century is not one that a lot of people are familiar with. we actually had 22 african-americans serve between 1870 and 1901. 20 in the house, 2 in the senate, largely a house story. and it has to do with the role of congress during the civil war, and in the decade after. during the civil war there were a group of radicals in congress, radicals because they believed in the equality of african-americans and wanted to create a society in the south

after the war that was a multiracial society. these were radicals in the house like thaddeus stevens who was chairman of the house ways and means committee and a very powerful leader. also people like henry winter-davis, elihu washburne. in the senate, people like charles sumner and benjamin wade. and they really drove the agenda and pushed the lincoln administration to not only prosecute the war more vigorously but also to have a reconstruction after the war that was one that was not so lenient toward southern states and was going to ensure that political rights were extended to african-americans. >> well, so the war ends in 1865, but how do you get from 1865 to the first african-american members of congress? because it's not -- doesn't happen right that day. >> doesn't happen right away, but the -- the role of radicals,

if anything, becomes even more assertive after the end of the war. after lincoln's assassinated president johnson takes over and has an even more lenient view than lincoln of how the southern states are going to be readmitted and he's pushed constantly by the radical republicans. and in a very short period of time, roughly four or five years, they pass a series of constitutional amendments and also laws that bring about the equality of african-americans in the south. that starts in early 1865 with the passage of the 13th amendment. that's ratified later that year. banning slavery once and for all in the u.s. but then followed up by some major legislation like the civil rights act of 1866, which extended citizenship rights to the freed men.

and then subsequently constitutional amendments like the 14th amendment, which guaranteed citizenship rights. the 15th amendment which guaranteed voting rights then also a series of reconstruction acts that divided the south into military districts and gave power to union generals to run those districts politically, essentially. to set up elections and to ensure that african-americans could come to the poles under the new laws and amendments that had been passed. >> you know, in the house collection, we have a number of images, prints mostly, from news weeklies. for example, this is one right here from 1866, the scene outside the gallery at the passage of the civil rights act of 1866 that you're talking about and there's great jubilation and we have some from the passage of those amendments you're talking about and other civil rights acts. in all of them, people seem really excited and delighted at this level of progress.

so, there -- it's certainly being portrayed in the public eye as something wonderful and great and terrific, and so then is it sort of a lag of a few years from those things being passed to then states being able to elect african-american members? >> so what goes into place in the southern states is our republican reconstruction governments and it's at that point by the late 1860s that you begin to see a number of african-american officeholders move up into positions of local authority. either on town councils or in the state legislatures. and they gain a political role and a political voice and a number of the african-americans who serve in this time period, that's how they kind of come up through the ranks very quickly and move up into positions where they can then be elected to

congress. >> so, so who's the first african-american in the house? >> well, the first african-american to speak on the floor in the house of representatives while the house is in session is actually a man who was elected but never seated. john willis menard from louisiana was elected in 1868. and his election was contested and that's a story that kind of runs throughout the 19th century for so many of these african-american members who were elected to congress. their election was challenged, and a number of them had that experience. menard was in february of 1869 allowed to speak on the house floor to defend himself in his contested election case. the house chose not to seat him or his opponent, and he never was seated, but he won the election.

the house just exercised its right not to seat him. the first african-american who was elected to the house and seated in the house is joseph rainey of south carolina in december of 1870 and following him are another 19 african-american members throughout the course of the 19th century. rainey wasn't actually the first african-american in congress. that distinction went to hiram revels of mississippi who was elected by the state legislature as senators were back in the 19th century. and he came into congress in early 1870s. but when you think about that revolution that occurs within a matter of less than a decade. so rainey had been born into slavery. during the civil war, he'd been conscripted into the federal army to dig trenches around charleston where he was from.

he escaped to bermuda during the war. comes back after the war. gains a political experience and a political role locally. and within a decade, he's holding the seat of a former confederate slaveholder. and revel's story is the same. he was born as a freed man, never was a slave. but he, too, comes into the senate and occupies a seat that had been held by a slaveholder less than a decade before. and when you think about the great paradoxes in american history, that's one of them. that they come to the capitol and represent african-american constituencies and they're doing it after those seats have been given up during secession by slave holders. >> that's amazing. you know, i've read a little bit about reconstruction and it's

interesting the sort of very small brotherhood of men who are serving right in the early 1870s and we actually have a print that has five of them right here. >> and you can see they're being presented in this print which is taken from a book from former speaker of the house about his time in congress. very much in the same vein as every other member of congress and statesman of the day was. most of these are taken from early photographs by matthew brady's studio, and if you were to see the whole thing, you would see that they look like they're sitting in the same chair in front of the same

curtain background that matthew brady uses for every congressman. you can't swing a cat without finding a 19th century photograph of a member of congress from brady's studio sitting in these chairs. it's very interesting to me to see that during this reconstruction period there really is that sense that these people are members of congress. there's this sort of, you know -- the civil war is the b.c. and a.d. of american history. it really sort of seems like it's very much a huge pivot that's happened as shown by this kind of representation of this em. >> well, for african-americans and historians to talk about this, the reconstruction period really is the second american revolution in which political rights were extended to this group that have been excluded for so long, and rainy and revels, their two careers in the house and senate respectively really embody the experiences of the african-americans who serve

in this time period. their service was to a great degree largely symbolic service. revels only serves a very short time in the senate, and he later gds ongoes on a speaking circui. he is introduced as the embodiment of african-american voting rights. rainy too is a symbol for african-americans. these were men who not only represented their small districts or their states and the constituents there, but they represented african-americans nationally and they were a source of pride. that's reflected in the material culture. rainy serves for almost eight years in the house. he is the longest serving african-american during the reconstruction period. during the 19th century. and he establishes a couple of

firsts. he is the first african-american to preside over the house while it's in session. that happens in 1874. his experience, though, is typical of a lot of these other individuals who come to the house in relatively small numbers. the high point in terms of the number of african-americans is the 43rd congress mid 1870s. there's only six or seven african-americans in congress at that point. there they're too small of a group to drive any sort of legislative agenda, and where they do contribute to legislation is to come out and speak on behalf of their constituents and their political rights and the abuses against those political rights in the reconstruction era south, so they tend to give very eloquent

speeches about some of the major bills, like the 1875 civil rights act which, again, is a piece of legislation not many people think about today. when you think civil rights act, it's the civil rights act of 1964, and what that bill in 1875 would have done is essentially the same thing with the 1964 bill did. it would have granted equality in accommodations, in public travel, and also in schools, and a lot of these african-americans from the south, from south carolina, mississippi, alabama got up and spoke on behalf of this bill fp and particuland pa education provision that would have provided an equal playing field, and that provision is stripped out of the bill at the very end of the congress. this was a bill that had been championed by charles sumner, the senator from massachusetts,

and supported by benjamin butler, the chairman of the judiciary committee in the house, but a lot of these men gave very moving testimonials on the house floor about that legislation. >> well, you know, i have a question about another object we have in the collection because revels and rainy as the firsts often are the ones that i think about, but there are others 19 folks, and one of them is robert brown elliott right here. this is in from frank leslie's illustrated newspaper where a lot of the 19th century stuff that we have in the house collection that tells us about what's going on in the house and what the public is reading about it, what they're seeing, this is one -- one of the rare ones in which there's an african-american member who is given sort of a little portrait right there on the pages right next to any number of other different things that are going on. this is sort of news of the day. tell me a little bit about robert elliott.

>> elliott is one of the interesting members. he is from south carolina. the majority of african-american members during the 19th century come from south carolina. there's seven members all from that state. largely because it's a majority african-american population and their districts are majority african-american, and there's support for a black candidate. elliott is a wonderful orator, and he is one of pieces theme who invepted himself as he went along. you get the sense that he was a true character, but he had a great classical education. he came up after reconstruction, worked on a newspaper. he had some journalism background, and then moves up into the state assembly in south carolina, and he comes to the house for two terms in the early 1870s, and he is one of the men who comes on to the floor and talks about the importance of

passing the 1875 civil rights bill and gives some speech that is are picked up in the northern press, and they just swoon over him. one of the speeches he actually -- it's kind of a point-counter point debate with alexanderformer confederate vice president who has come back to the house. elliott just blows him out of the water. he is so respected, and he is au such an ally that when sumner passes, shortly before his bill moves through the house and senate, elliott goes and delivers a eulogy in boston, which also is widely picked up in the northern press. he leaves the house actually mid-congress in his second term, and he goes back to south

carolina because he cares so much about state politics, and he is watching the way things are trending towards the end of reconstruction and seeing a lot of abuses against a black political participation in voting rights, and he becomes the speaker of the south carolina state assembly for a brief period. later goes on to serve at the very tail end of reconstruction as the attorney general for south carolina. afterwards, though, it's his story that typifies so many of these members. once reconstruction ends, here you have a guy who is a great speaker. got a law background. sets up a law practice. he gets almost no business. he is forced to move state, and eventually in the mid 1880s he dies in poverty, and that's sadly the story of so many of these 19th century individuals

who leave congress and then with the onset of jim crow their careers just dry up, and that speaks to the larger kind of political ramifications of the end of reconstruction and what that meant for black political participation. >> i wanted to point out to you something that i find really interesting as a curator and an art historian is the way that works, the way jim crow ends up being promulgated in the press. you get no business because of racism and because of jim crow and also it's sort of the dpsh it's reinforced in the popular press. as we move into the jim crow period, the press and the public -- the way the public sees african-americans, the way it's presented to them, changes, and it moves much more towards the characterure taz we are familiar with in the 20th

century. this is the 1880s. by 1889 in this also showing sort of little vignettes of what's going on in the capital during an interesting time period. instead of a picture with civil war veterans and interested women and african-american children and adults celebrating outside as citizens who are excited about a new venture and about the passage of the civil rights bill. here we're seeing different things going on, and the very style of it has become more like a cartoon, and in particular, i want to draw your attention to this circular area here in which they are showing african-americans in the visitors gallery. it's called the gentleman's gallery, and that's the name of a gallery in the house at the time, but it's used almost dripping with sarcasm because it is showing almost entirely african-americans in there, and

in the accompanying essay about it, it points out what it wants to point out about this image that it's showing african-americans who are in the galleries, but not engaged in the process. not interested in what's going in the floor. it's showing them as reading or sleeping or using it simply to -- as place to hang out. that's what the accompanying essay says as well. this is a really -- an enormous shift in the national news coverage of african-american civic life. it goes pretty quickly. this is 20 years difference. from seeing this, which is all over the papers at the time, the 1880s in which it moves entirely towards a characterure of african-american participation in the world of public affairs, but so the turning point happens at the end of reconstruction, right? >> the turning point for this story really happens with the end of reconstruction and formal

reconstruction where the union military forces occupy the south and head -- kept the reconstruction governments in place. that's back in 1877 as part of the disputed election of 1876 between 1 samuel tildon and r t rutherford hayes, and that election gets thrown to congress to congress to decide and what happens is the house and the senate are controlled by different political parties and can't come to an agreement as to the house decides. they create a special electoral commission composed of five representatives, five senators, and five supreme court justices. in the results that had come back, there were three southern states that had disputed returns, so what shows up is two different groups.

one for tildon, one for hayes. the commission comes back and finds in favor of hayes awarding him those votes, but as part of the political negotiation that is struck to make him president, the southern states managed to -- democrats managed to push republicans to end reconstruction formally. >> they are gradually excluded from the political process in the south. it's a combination of state laws that go on the books and local laws that go on the books, such as poll taxes. by the 1890s sort of both through law and through custom in the south, african-americans

largely are no longer part of a political process, and that plays out in congress in that post-1877 period because you see the numbers really drop off by the 1880s, and the 1880s and 1890s we only have five african-americans who are serving in congress at various points, and usually it's only just one or two during any given congress. still, some prominent individuals. john mercer langeston from virginia who was a very prominent african-american even before the civil war. he had actually been one of the first blacks in the country elected to political office in a town council in ohio, and so he was -- he had a national reputation,ing and after the war he serves as a minister to haiti

and then in the late 1880s he is elected to a virginia seat and comes into the house, but he is another african-american who faces a contested election, and by the time he is seated, he only gets about a seven or eight month term. his ability to legislate is curtailed, and that's the story of a lot of these men who had roadblocks thrown up. everything from poll taxes that affected constituents to violence at the polls now that the union army presidents -- the federal presidents in the south have been rolled back. the very last individual who serves during that period is george henry white of north carolina. represented coastal district in north carolina that had elected an african-american before. he serves for two terms in the late 1890s. he is the last african-american to serve really for three

decades, and he very forcefully pushed for two things while he was a member. one was anti-lynching legislation, which no one had really championed before, and he pushes for that. he goes to the judiciary committee and never really is debated. he is out there talking about it on the floor. the other thing that he wanted was to because so many blacks were being denied their political rights in the south, he wanted to reduce the representation of southern states in congress based on how many people were being disenfranchised in southern districts, and so these are two issues that perculate for the next couple of decades in the house, but there's no african-americans who are there to champion. in 1901 white leaves congress. he faced some very tough elections. a lot of violence. a lot of fraud.