What were the purposes of poll taxes and literacy tests instituted in the south in the late 1800s?

If i'm not mistaken, it was related to voting. I think you had to score so high on the literacy tests and do so much on the poll taxes to vote. I could be wrong.

It was related to voting, it was to prevent African Americans from voting. Due to the lack of education offered to them it was unlikely they would be able to read to their standards, the taxes was the same problem they had to use most of their income to live and had hardly any to spare.