In the years following the civil war, the union and the confederacy worked together to salvage land and fix towns that had been destroyed. Because the Union attacked the south at their homes, entire towns were in ruin. There were left in an agricultural crisis because of attacks on farms, destroying barns and killing animals. Reconstruction was necessary because of this. As far as success goes, the Reconstruction Acts were mostly unsuccessful. To be fair, the south was not as cooperative as expected. They were unhappy about losing the war, and even unhappier due to the presence of carpetbaggers and free blacks. However, the First and Second Reconstruction Act of 1867 and the passing of the 15th amendment did well at pushing racism away.