The Freedmen's Bureau was established by an act of Congress on March 3, 1865, during the American Civil War. Its official name was the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands. The bureau was created to support and protect the newly freed African Americans and assist in their transition from slavery to freedom. Some key aspects of the bureau's work included providing food, clothing, and medical care to former slaves and refugees, helping them find employment, negotiating labor contracts, and establishing schools and education programs for freedmen and their children. The Freedmen's Bureau played a crucial role in the early stages of Reconstruction by providing assistance to millions of newly freed slaves.
