<P> Following the war, the state remained chiefly agricultural, with an economy tied to cotton . During Reconstruction, state legislators ratified a new state constitution in 1868 that created the state's first public school system and expanded women's rights . Legislators funded numerous public road and railroad projects, although these were plagued with allegations of fraud and misappropriation . Organized insurgent, resistance groups tried to suppress the freedmen and Republicans . Besides the short - lived original Ku Klux Klan, these included the Pale Faces, Knights of the White Camellia, Red Shirts, and the White League . </P> <P> Reconstruction in Alabama ended in 1874, when the Democrats regained control of the legislature and governor's office through an election dominated by fraud and violence . They wrote another constitution in 1875, and the legislature passed the Blaine Amendment, prohibiting public money from being used to finance religious - affiliated schools . The same year, legislation was approved that called for racially segregated schools . Railroad passenger cars were segregated in 1891 . After disfranchising most African Americans and many poor whites in the 1901 constitution, the Alabama legislature passed more Jim Crow laws at the beginning of the 20th century to impose segregation in everyday life . </P> <Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (December 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (December 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr>

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