What nationwide event weakened support for the federal government in the mid-1870s?
a. the passage of the civil rights act of 1866
b. an attack on african americans in memphis
c. the passage of the reconstruction act
d. an economic panic and depression

The answer that I have observed to be given with regards to your question is apparent in it's lack of reliability. There were a few periods of economic depression. The first "Great Depression" was a nation-wide event, triggered by financial crisis, effecting both Europe and North America. This period began in 1873 and lasted until 1879, later branded the "Long Depression" with the arrival of the Great Depression of the 1930's. During the Panic of 1873, workers had demanded the Federal government assist in the alleviation of the crisis but were met with brutal police force in their protests.

The correct answer is D) an economic panic and depression,

The nationwide event that weakened support for the federal government in the mid-1870s was an economic panic and depression.

We are talking about the so-called Panic of 1873. The investment company "Jay Cook" went bankruptcy in September due to the heavy speculation of railroads in the stock market. It started a period of depression in which more than three million people lost their jobs, creating one of the most difficult moments for the US economy. The prices of farm products clashed, and rural America suffered a period of severe poverty. Things started to get better until 1878.

john smith was the first englishman to sail around the world. francis bacon served as attorney general and lord chancellor of england. he took up aristotelian ideas, arguing for an empirical, inductive approach, known as the scientific method, which is the foundation of modern scientific inquiry.