The Homestead Act was a United States Federal law that gave an applicant freehold title to 160 acres (one quarter section or about 65 hectares) of undeveloped land outside of the original 13 colonies. The United States Code ( USC) is a compilation and Codification of the general and permanent federal Law of the United States. Fee simple is an estate in land in Common law. It is the most common way Real estate is owned in common law countries and is ordinarily the most The acre is a unit of Area in a number of different systems including the imperial and U In US land surveying, a section is an area nominally one Mile square containing 640 Acres (2 Explanation The hectare is commonly used in most countries around the world especially in domains concerned with land planning and management such as Agriculture, The new law required three steps: file an application, improve the land, and file for deed of title. Anyone who had never taken up arms against the U. S. Government, including freed slaves, could file an application and improvements to a local land office. The Act was signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln on May 20, 1862[1][2][3][4]. Abraham Lincoln (February 12 1809 &ndash April 15 1865 the sixteenth President of the United States, successfully led his country through its greatest internal Events 325 - The First Council of Nicaea &ndash the first Ecumenical Council of the Christian Church is held Year 1862 was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting on Monday Eventually 1. 6 million homesteads were granted and 270,000,000 acres (1,100,000 km²) were privatized between 1862 and 1986, a total of 10% of all lands in the United States. [5]
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Background
The Homestead act was intended to liberalize the homesteading requirements of the Preemption Act of 1841. The Preemption Act of 1841 (27 Cong Ch 16 5 Stat 453 was a United States federal law approved by the U The "yeoman farmer" ideal was powerful in American political history, and plans for expanding their numbers through a homestead act were rooted in the 1850s. Yeoman is noun used to indicate a variety of positions or Social classes In the 16th century a yeoman was also a Farmer of middling social status who owned The South resisted, fearing the increase in free farmers would threaten plantation slavery. The Southern United States &mdashcommonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South &mdashconstitutes a large distinctive Slavery in the United States began soon after English colonists first settled Virginia in 1607 and lasted until the passage of the Thirteenth [6][7] Two men stood out as greatly responsible for the passage of the Homestead Act: George Henry Evans and Horace Greeley[8][9]. Born in England George H Evans was a radical reformer, with experience in the Working Men's movement of 1829 and the trade union movements of the 1830s Horace Greeley ( February 3, 1811 &ndash November 29, 1872) was an American editor of a leading newspaper, a founder Agitation for free land started in 1844, when several bills began to be introduced unsuccessfully until 1862[10]. After the South seceded and their delegations left Congress in 1861, the path was clear of obstacles, and the act was passed. C. G[3][4][11].
The end of homesteading
The Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 ended homesteading[4][12]; the government believed that the best use of public homes was for them to remain in government control. Federal Land Policy Management Act, or FLPMA ( is a United States federal law that governs the way in which the public lands administered by the Bureau of Land The only exception to this new policy was in Alaska, for which the law allowed homesteading until 1986[4]. Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent
The last claim under the Homestead Act was made by Kenneth Deardorff for 80 acres (32 hectares) of land on the Stony River in southwestern Alaska. The Stony River is a River in southwest Alaska. It lends its name to Stony River Alaska, a village with a population of 61 He fulfilled all requirements of the Homestead Act in 1979, but he did not actually receive his deed until May 1988. Therefore, he is the last person to receive the title to land claimed under the provisions of the Homestead Act[13].
Fraud and corporate use
The Homestead Act was much abused[4]. The intent of the Homestead Act was to grant land for agriculture. However, in the arid areas west of the Rocky Mountains, 640 acres (2. Mountain peaks of the Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, often called the Rockies, are a Mountain range in western North America. 6 km²) was generally too little land for a viable farm (at least prior to major public investments in irrigation projects). In these areas, homesteads were instead used to control resources, especially water. A common scheme was for an individual acting as a front for a large cattle operation to file for a homestead surrounding a water source under the pretense that the land was being used as a farm. Once granted, use of that water source would be denied to other cattle ranchers, effectively closing off the adjacent public land to competition. This method could also be used to gain ownership of timber and oil-producing land, as the Federal government charged royalties for extraction of these resources from public lands. On the other hand, homesteading schemes were generally pointless for land containing "locatable minerals", such as gold and silver, which could be controlled through mining claims and for which the Federal government did not charge royalties. Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 Silver (ˈsɪlvɚ is a Chemical element with the symbol " Ag " (argentum from the Ancient Greek: ἀργήντος - argēntos gen The General Mining Act of 1872 is a United States federal law that authorizes and governs Prospecting and Mining for economic Minerals such as
There was no systematic method used to evaluate claims under the Homestead Act. Land offices would rely on affidavits from witnesses that the claimant had lived on the land for the required period of time and made the required improvements. In practice, some of these witnesses were bribed or otherwise collaborated with the claimant. In any case the land was turned into farms.
Although not necessarily fraud, it was common practice for all the children of a large family who were eligible to claim nearby land as soon as possible. After a few generations a family could build up quite sizable estates.
Related acts in other countries
The act was later imitated with some modifications by Canada in the form of the Dominion Lands Act. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The Dominion Lands Act (short for An Act Respecting the Public Lands of the Dominion) was an 1872 Canadian law that aimed to encourage the settlement of Canada's Similar acts—usually termed the Selection Acts—were passed in the various Australian colonies in the 1860s, beginning in 1861 in New South Wales. Selection referred to "free selection before survey" of Crown land in some Australian colonies under land legislation introduced in the 1860s For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics.
Popular culture
- In the writings of Laura Ingalls Wilder (Little House on the Prairie series), she describes her father going through the motions of claiming a homestead in Kansas, and later Dakota Territory. Laura Ingalls Wilder ( February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American Author, who wrote the Little House series Little House on the Prairie is a children's book by Laura Ingalls Wilder that was published in 1935 Kansas ( is a Midwestern state in the central region of the United States of America, an area often referred to as the American " Dakota Territory was the name of an organized territory of the United States that existed from 1861 to 1889
- The Homestead Act is used as the ruse to allow The Amazing Screw-On Head to investigate paranormal activities west of the Mississippi River without arousing Confederate suspicion. The Amazing Screw-On Head is the title of a one-shot Comic book written and drawn by Mike Mignola and published by Dark Horse Comics The Mississippi River is the second longest River in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861
See also
- Land Act of 1804
- Military Tract of 1812
- Preemption Act of 1841
- Donation Land Claim Act of 1850
- Public Land Survey System
- Land grants
- Land patent
Further reading
- Dick, Everett, 1970. The Land Act of 1804 was an act which made it easier to buy federal land in Ohio on credit. In May 1812 an act of Congress was passed which set aside bounty lands as payment to volunteer soldiers for the War against the British ( War of 1812) The Preemption Act of 1841 (27 Cong Ch 16 5 Stat 453 was a United States federal law approved by the U The Donation Land Claim Act of 1850 (ch 76 9 Stat 496 September 27 1850) sometimes known just as the Donation Land Act, was a statute enacted by the The Public Land Survey System (PLSS is a method used in the United States to survey and identify land parcels particularly for titles and deeds of rural wild or undeveloped A land grant is a gift of Real estate - land or privileges - made by a government or other authority as a Reward for services A land patent is evidence of Right, title, and/or interest to a tract of land usually granted by a central, federal, or State The Lure of the Land: A Social History of the Public Lands from the Articles of Confederation to the New Deal.
- Gates, Paul W. , 1996. The Jeffersonian Dream: Studies in the History of American Land Policy and Development.
- Hyman, Harold M. , 1986. American Singularity: The 1787 Northwest Ordinance, the 1862 Homestead and Morrill Acts, and the 1944 G. I. Bill.
- Lause, Mark A. , 2005. Young America: Land, Labor, and the Republican Community.
- Phillips, Sarah T. , 2000, "Antebellum Agricultural Reform, Republican Ideology, and Sectional Tension. " Agricultural History 74(4): 799-822. ISSN 0002-1482
- Richardson, Heather Cox, 1997. The Greatest Nation of the Earth: Republican Economic Policies during the Civil War.
- Robbins, Roy M. , 1942. Our Landed Heritage: The Public Domain, 1776-1936.
References and Notes
- Horace Greeley. Tulane University (August 13, 1999). Events 3114 BC - According to the Lounsbury correlation the start of the Maya calendar. Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) Retrieved on 2007-11-22. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 498 - Kofi Aseidu- After the death of Anastasius II, Symmachus is elected Pope in the Lateran
- McElroy, Wendy (2001). The Free-Soil Movement, Part 1. The Future of Freedom Foundation. Retrieved on 2007-11-22. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 498 - Kofi Aseidu- After the death of Anastasius II, Symmachus is elected Pope in the Lateran
- McPherson, James M. (1998). Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era. Oxford University Press, pp. 193-195. ISBN 019516895X.
- ^ Our Documents - Homestead Act (1862).
- ^ Homestead Act: Primary Documents in American History. Library of Congress (2007-09-21). Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1217 - The Estonian tribal leader Lembitu of Lehola was killed in a battle against Teutonic Knights. Retrieved on 2007-11-22. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 498 - Kofi Aseidu- After the death of Anastasius II, Symmachus is elected Pope in the Lateran
- ^ a b McPherson 450-451
- ^ a b c d e The Florida Homestead Act of 1862. Florida Homestead Services (2006). Retrieved on 2007-11-22. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 498 - Kofi Aseidu- After the death of Anastasius II, Symmachus is elected Pope in the Lateran (paragraphs. 3,6&13) (Includes data on the U. S. Homestead Act)
- ^ The Homestead Act of 1862
- ^ Phillips, 2000
- ^ McPherson 193
- ^ McElroy page 1 par. 4
- ^ Horace par. 3
- ^ McPherson 194
- ^ McElroy page 2 par. 14
- ^ Cobb, Norma (2000). Arctic Homestead: The True Story of a Family's Survival and Courage..... St. Martin's Press, p. 21. ISBN 0312283792. Retrieved on 2007-11-22. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 498 - Kofi Aseidu- After the death of Anastasius II, Symmachus is elected Pope in the Lateran
- ^ The Last Homesteader. National Park Service (2006). Retrieved on 2007-11-22. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 498 - Kofi Aseidu- After the death of Anastasius II, Symmachus is elected Pope in the Lateran
External links
- Library of Congress: Homestead Act
- Homestead National Monument of America - National Park Service
- Homestead Act - National Park Service (broken link)
- Homestead Act of 1862 - National Archives and Records Administration
- University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections – Homesteaders and Pioneers. Online museum exhibit that documents the history of several families who moved to the Olympic Peninsula following the Homestead Act of 1862
- “Adeline Hornbek and the Homestead Act: A Colorado Success Story”, a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plan
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