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[[Image:HomesteadAct.JPG|thumb|300px|The Homestead Act]]

[[Image:HomesteadAct.JPG|thumb|300px|The Homestead Act]]

The '''Homestead Act''', enacted during the [[American 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 federal land. They had to "improve" the land by building a house and cultivating the fields. After 5 years occupation the farmer owned the land free, except for a small registration fee. Ownership was possible after only 6-months by paying $1.25 per acre. Union veterans could deduct their service time from the residency requirements. Women were entitled to homestead on equal terms as men, and many women did homestead the land.<ref> See Walker D. Wyman and Helen B. Wyman, ''Frontier Woman: The Life of a Woman Homesteader on the Dakota Frontier'' (1990); Edith Eudora, ''Land Of The Burnt Thigh - A Lively Story Of Women Homesteaders On The South Dakota Frontier'' (1986) </ref>

The '''Homestead Act''' of 1862 provided that any adult citizen, or intended citizen, who had never borne arms against the U.S. government could claim 160 acres of federal land. They had to "improve" the land by building a house and cultivating the fields. After 5 years occupation the farmer owned the land free, except for a small registration fee. Ownership was possible after only 6-months by paying $1.25 per acre. Union veterans could deduct their service time from the residency requirements. Women were entitled to homestead on equal terms as men. 10% were women before 1900 and 18% after.<ref> Harris (1993)</ref>

The national land policies from the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 sought in principle to provide cheap land to family farmers. strongest support came from Northern Democrats, but Whigs wanted high land prices to discourage settlement. Free grants were given in the colonial period, and in Oregon and Florida before 1862.  The federal government before 1862 sold its land, and the revenue helped keep taxes low.  The idea of "Free Soil" for "[[yeomen]]" farmers reflected [[Jeffersonian Democracy]] and was a major political issue in the 1850s. It was promoted by the [[Republican Party]] and opposed by Southerners. President [[James Buchanan]], a Democrat, vetoed a homestead law in 1860 but [[Abraham Lincoln]] eagerly signed the new law on May 20, 1862.  It opened up all federal land to homesteading.  

The national land policies from the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 sought in principle to provide cheap land to family farmers. strongest support came from Northern Democrats, but Whigs wanted high land prices to discourage settlement. Free grants were given in the colonial period, and in Oregon and Florida before 1862.  The federal government before 1862 sold its land, and the revenue helped keep taxes low.  The idea of "Free Soil" for "[[yeomen]]" farmers reflected [[Jeffersonian Democracy]] and was a major political issue in the 1850s. It was promoted by the [[Republican Party]] and opposed by Southerners. President [[James Buchanan]], a Democrat, vetoed a homestead law in 1860 but [[Abraham Lincoln]] eagerly signed the new law on May 20, 1862.  It opened up all federal land to homesteading.  

see [[Agricultural history of the U.S.]]

see [[Agricultural history of the U.S.]]

==Bibliography==

==Bibliography==

* Fite, Gilbert C. ''The Farmers' Frontier: 1865-1900'' (1966), focus on the west

* Fite, Gilbert C. ''The Farmers' Frontier: 1865-1900'' (1966), focus on the west

* Hibbard, Benjamin H., and Paul W. Gates. ''A History of the Public Land Policies.'' (1965)

* Hibbard, Benjamin H., and Paul W. Gates. ''A History of the Public Land Policies.'' (1965)

* Nordin, Dennis S. and Scott, Roy V.  ''From Prairie Farmer to Entrepreneur: The Transformation of Midwestern Agriculture.'' Indiana U. Press, 2005. 356 pp.   

* Nordin, Dennis S. and Scott, Roy V.  ''From Prairie Farmer to Entrepreneur: The Transformation of Midwestern Agriculture.'' Indiana U. Press, 2005. 356 pp.   

*  Shannon, Fred Albert. ''Farmer's Last Frontier: Agriculture, 1860-1897'' (1945) [http://chla.library.cornell.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=chla;idno=3070303 online edition] comprehensive survey

*  Shannon, Fred Albert. ''Farmer's Last Frontier: Agriculture, 1860-1897'' (1945) [http://chla.library.cornell.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=chla;idno=3070303 online edition] comprehensive survey

 

==Text of the Homestead Act==

==Text of the Homestead Act==

'''An Act to secure Homesteads to actual Settlers on the Public Domain.'''

'''An Act to secure Homesteads to actual Settlers on the Public Domain.'''