page_title: Wheeler Compromise
section_title: Wheeler compromise
hierarchical_section_title: Wheeler Compromise / Wheeler compromise
caption_attribution_description: Portrait of William A. Wheeler, 19th Vice President of the United States.
context_page_description: The Wheeler Compromise, sometimes known as the Wheeler Adjustment, was the settlement of the disputed gubernatorial election of 1872 in the US state of Louisiana, and negotiation to organize the state's legislature in January 1875. It was negotiated by, and named after, William A. Wheeler, Congressman from New York and a member of the US House Committee on Southern Affairs. He later was elected as Vice President of the United States.
  The political disruption and continued violence in Louisiana was thought to show the unraveling of Reconstruction; Wheeler said it was the failure of trying to "promote peace with the sword." Republicans began to consider how to consolidate their strength in the North.
context_section_description: As the situation in Louisiana worsened, Congressman William A. Wheeler of New York and other members of the House Committee on Southern Affairs went to New Orleans to investigate. They had already looked at some of the issues related to the elections of Kellogg and McEnery. They also heard testimony from both political parties as part of the work to support Reconstruction. The Democrats objected to federal troops having been used in the State House, and the Republicans to the actions by the Democrats.
  Governor Kellogg was permitted to remain in power, while the House Committee arbitrated the seats disputed by the Returning Board. Most of these seats were awarded to the Democrats. In March 1875, the US House of Representatives endorsed what became known as the Wheeler Compromise, although it appeared to concede that Reconstruction was unraveling in the state.
  In Louisiana, the Democrats of Louisiana unseated additional Republicans to claim a majority and elect a Democrat to the Senate, but 
  most northern politicians and newspapers ignored the violations. The North seemed relieved to escape the responsibilities of Reconstruction. Representative Wheeler observed that northerners had expected too much from the South and declared that it was time to admit the failure of efforts to promote peace with the sword. His compromise taught northern Republicans how to cut their losses. Thereafter the party concentrated on preserving its power in the North while scaling down its military efforts in the South, even if that
  meant abandoning the political rights of the freedman.
  The Democrats and Republicans met separately, effectively running distinct governments in the state. In 1876 they had another disputed gubernatorial election. President Grant refused to recognize the Republicans in Louisiana and South Carolina, both states marked by excessive election violence. The national Democratic Party agreed to a compromise to gain election of President Rutherford Hayes, and in early January 1877, Grant ordered the withdrawal of federal troops from New Orleans. Later that year, they were withdrawn from the rest of the state and others, and Reconstruction ended across the South.
caption: William A. Wheeler
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