Passed on May 20, 1862, the Homestead Act accelerated the settlement of the western territory by granting adult heads of families 160 acres of surveyed public land for a minimal filing fee and 5 years of continuous residence on that land.
The Homestead Act, enacted during the Civil War in 1862, provided that any adult
citizen, or intended citizen, who had never borne arms against the U.S. government
could claim 160 acres of surveyed government land. Claimants were required to
“improve” the plot by building a dwelling and cultivating the land.
After 5 years on the land, the original filer was entitled to the property, free
and clear, except for a small registration fee. Title could also be acquired after
only a 6-month residency and trivial improvements, provided the claimant paid
the government $1.25 per acre. After the Civil War, Union soldiers could deduct
the time they had served from the residency requirements.
Although this act was included in the Republican party platform of 1860, support
for the idea began decades earlier. Even under the Articles
of Confederation, before 1787, the distribution of government lands generated
much interest and discussion.
The act, however, proved to be no panacea for poverty. Comparatively few laborers
and farmers could afford to build a farm or acquire the necessary tools, seed,
and livestock. In the end, most of those who purchased land under the act came
from areas quite close to their new homesteads (Iowans moved to Nebraska, Minnesotans
to South Dakota, and so on). Unfortunately, the act was framed so ambiguously
that it seemed to invite fraud, and early modifications by Congress only compounded
the problem. Most of the land went to speculators, cattlemen, miners, lumbermen,
and railroads. Of some 500 million acres dispersed by the General Land Office
between 1862 and 1904, only 80 million acres went to homesteaders. Indeed, small
farmers acquired more land under the Homestead Act in the 20th century than
in the 19th.
(Information excerpted from Teaching with Documents:
Using Primary Sources From the National Archives. [Washington, D.C.: National
Archives and Records Administration, 1998], p. 31. And from Milestone Documents
[Washington, DC: The National Archives and Records Administration, 1995] pp
56-55.)
