The Homestead Act of 1862

The Homestead Act of 1862

President Abraham Lincoln signed the Homestead Act into law on May 20, 1862.

At the time, eleven of the southern states had left the Union, and by reason of its eligibility restrictions, the Homestead Act was to have significant political consequences.

The Homestead Act – Effective Date

The Homestead Act took effect on January 1, 1863, and it was thereafter effective in the thirty public-domain states.

The Homestead Act – Eligible Claimants

Any U.S. citizen, or intended citizen, who had never borne arms against the U.S. Government, could file an application, and claim 160 acres of surveyed Government land.

Claimants had to be heads of household, military veterans, or more than twenty-one years old.

However, persons who had “borne arms against the United States” were not eligible to make a claim, meaning that Homestead claimants were typically Union supporters.

The Homestead Act – Acreage Limitation

The Act granted 160 acres of public domain land – one quarter section – to any qualifying American citizen, or immigrant who had declared an intention of becoming a citizen.

The Homestead Act – Claimant Duties

The claimant had to live on the land, cultivate it, improve it, and build a residence thereon.

For the initial five years, a claimant was required to maintain the homestead as their primary residence, and make improvements upon the land.

The Homestead Act – Title Acquisition

The Homestead Act of 1862 established a three step title acquisition process:

file an application,
improve the land, and
file for a deed of title.

After 5 years, the homesteader could file a claim with a local land office for a federal land patent – a form of a deed of title from the federal government – by submitting proof of residency and completion of the required improvements.

Local land offices forwarded the required documents to the General Land Office in Washington, DC, along with a final certificate of eligibility.

The document file was examined, and upon payment of a small registration fee, valid claimants were granted a federal patent to the land – free and clear of most encumbrances.

Title could also be acquired after a 6-month residency – after the completion of minimal improvements – provided the claimant paid the government $1.25 per acre.

After the Civil War, Union soldiers were credited for the time they served in the military when calculating the residency requirements.

Land Speculators

Some land speculators took advantage of legislative loopholes, either hiring ineligible claimants, or purchasing abandoned land.

The General Land Office was underfunded, and unable to hire a sufficient number of investigators necessary to investigate all fraudulent claims.

As a result, bribery of overworked and underpaid claims officers was not uncommon.

Preemption Claims

Persons seeking title under the Act had to file a preemption claim to vacant land, and then work and cultivate it for five years, at the end of which they were entitled to a land patent from the federal government.

Failing to occupy the land for more than six months during the preemption period resulted in the termination of the claim.

The Act required registration of each preemption claim with “the land office.”

The Commissioner of the General Land Office was authorized to make rules and regulations implementing the Act’s provisions.

While the law was in effect, the U.S. Government granted federal patents with respect to more than 270 million acres of land.

The Southern Homestead Act of 1866

On June 21, 1866, the Southern Homestead Act was signed into law by President Andrew Johnson – making 46,000,000 acres of federal land available for sale in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

Initially, 80 acres of land was available for purchase – providing that the homesteaders occupied and improved the land for five years.

However, after June of 1868, 160 acre parcels were available for purchase by homesteaders.

Until January 1, 1867, only freed black former slaves, and white supporters of the federal Union, were allowed to purchase the available lands.

Before the law was repealed in June of 1876, only about 1,000 persons were able to complete the Homestead requirements.

The Timber Culture Act of 1873

The Timber Culture Act – passed by Congress in 1873 – was an amendment to the Homestead Act, and allowed homesteaders to get another 160 acres of land if they planted trees on one-fourth of the land, because the land in many areas was:

“almost one entire plain of grass, which is and ever must be useless to cultivating man.”

160 acres of additional land could be obtained if the claimant set aside 40 acres to grow trees – which was necessary in order to solve the problem of lack of wood on public domain lands.

After planting trees, the land purchase could only be finalized if the land had been occupied by the same family for at least 5 years.

Later, the amount of land that needed to be set aside for trees was reduced to 10 acres.

Any potential settler, including foreign immigrants, could claim land under both the Homestead Act and the Timber Culture Act, provided that the claimant had become a U.S. citizen by the time of proving up their claim.

Gary C. Dahle – Attorney at Law – Real Estate

2704 Mounds View Blvd., Mounds View, MN 55112

Phone: 763-780-8390 Fax: 763-780-1735

gary@dahlelaw.com

——— Gary C. Dahle Attorney at Law ———

The Homestead Act of 1862

The Homestead Act – Effective Date

The Homestead Act – Eligible Claimants

The Homestead Act – Acreage Limitation

The Homestead Act – Claimant Duties

The Homestead Act – Title Acquisition

Land Speculators

Preemption Claims

The Southern Homestead Act of 1866

The Timber Culture Act of 1873