 Reconstruction for a time limited the power of former slaveholders in Texas.Leaders, such as George T. Ruby and Norris Wright Cuney, worked to establish educational and employment opportunities for blacks and organize black voters to support the Republican Party, then the main party supporting black rights in the South.Cuney's efforts led to higher employment and higher wages for blacks in the city, especially on the wharves, and eventually led to combined black and white trade unions during the 1890s and early 1900s.