reconstruction

Reconstruction is the broad term for processes that rebuild or reform systems, structures, or communities after damage or disruption. The term is used in fields ranging from politics and history to medicine, engineering, and information science. It is often associated with a specific historical period in the United States following the Civil War, when governments sought to restore the Union and redefine civil rights.

In the United States, the Reconstruction era is dated 1865–1877. Its goals were to reintegrate the former Confederate states, rebuild their economies, and secure civil and political rights for freedpeople. The period saw constitutional amendments and laws central to its program: the 13th Amendment (abolishing slavery), the 14th (citizenship and equal protection), and the 15th (voting rights). The Freedmen's Bureau supported education and welfare. Beginning with the Reconstruction Acts of 1867, Congress divided the South into military districts and required new constitutions and rights guarantees for readmission. The era included political conflict and violence, ending with the Compromise of 1877 and withdrawal of federal troops, which allowed the restoration of white-dominated governance in many states.

Outside politics, reconstruction describes methods in medicine, engineering, and data processing. Reconstructive surgery repairs or replaces tissues after injury or deformity. In engineering and architecture, reconstruction involves restoring buildings and infrastructure damaged by disasters. In science and digital technology, reconstruction refers to algorithms that recover missing or occluded information, such as image, tomographic, or 3D reconstructions.

Historians view Reconstruction as a period of significant constitutional and social achievement tempered by resistance and rollback, with lasting implications for race relations and federal-state power. The term also encompasses ongoing reconstruction efforts in other disciplines.