Concept

Compromise of 1877

The informal 1877 agreement that awarded Rutherford B. Hayes the contested 1876 presidential election in exchange for the withdrawal of federal troops from the South, effectively ending Reconstruction.

The agreement between Republicans and Democrats, after the contested election of 1876, in which Rutherford B. Hayes was awarded the presidency in exchange for withdrawing the last of the federal troops from the South. The two sides also agreed a Southern Democrat would join Hayes's cabinet and Democrats would control federal patronage in their areas of the South.