During the Civil War, North Carolina Governor David Lowry Swain persuaded Confederate President Jefferson Davis to exempt some students from the draft, so the university was one of the few in the Confederacy that managed to stay open.[30] However, Chapel Hill suffered the loss of more of its population during the war than any village in the South,[citation needed] and when student numbers did not recover, the university was forced to close during Reconstruction from December 1, 1870, until September 6, 1875.[31] Following the reopening, enrollment was slow to increase and university administrators offered free tuition for the sons of teachers and ministers, as well as loans for those who could not afford attendance.[32]