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journal article
That Settles It: The Debate and Consequences of the Homestead Act of 1862The History Teacher
Vol. 45, No. 1 (November 2011)
, pp. 117-137 (21 pages)
Published By: Society for History Education
//www.jstor.org/stable/41304034
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Journal Information
The History Teacher is the most widely recognized journal in the United States devoted to more effective teaching of history in pre-collegiate schools, community colleges and universities.
Publisher Information
The Society for History Education, Inc., an affiliate of the American Historical Association, supports all disciplines in history education with practical and insightful professional analyses of traditional and innovative teaching techniques.
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To help develop the American West and spur economic growth, Congress passed the Homestead Act of 1862, which provided 160 acres of federal land to anyone who agreed to farm the land. The act distributed millions of acres of western land to individual settlers. Until the Civil War, opposition from Southern legislators, who feared homesteaders would work to prevent slavery in new territories, and some Northern legislators, who feared the cheap land would lower property values and lure laborers west, prevented passage of the legislation. But with the dramatic departure of the Southern senators in 1861, supporters finally succeeded. Similar legislation, the Southern Homestead Act of 1866, offered the same promise to loyal Southerners and freedmen who could settle public lands. Passage of these acts encouraged farming of more land during the war years and continued to do so for decades to come. By 1890 the federal government had granted 373,000 homesteads on some 48 million acres of undeveloped land.
Signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln on May 20, 1862, the Homestead Act encouraged Western migration by providing settlers 160 acres of public land. In exchange, homesteaders paid a small filing fee and were required to complete five years of continuous residence before receiving ownership of the land. After six months of residency, homesteaders also had the option of purchasing the land from the government for $1.25 per acre. The Homestead Act led to the distribution of 80 million acres of public land by 1900.
Homestead Act
United States Statutes at Large (12 Stat. 392)
Homestead Act
Signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln on May 20, 1862, the Homestead Act encouraged Western migration by providing settlers 160 acres of public land. In exchange, homesteaders paid a small filing fee and were required to complete five years of continuous residence before receiving ownership of the land. After six months of residency, homesteaders also had the option of purchasing the land from the government for $1.25 per acre. The Homestead Act led to the distribution of 80 million acres of public land by 1900.
Library of Congress Web Site | External Web Sites | Selected Bibliography
Digital Collections
A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875
This collection contains congressional publications from 1774 to 1875, including debates, bills, laws, and journals.
- The House of Representatives passed the Homestead Act by a vote of 107 to 16 on February 28, 1862.
- The Senate passed the Homestead Act by a vote of 33 to 7 on May 6, 1862.
- The Homestead Act can be found the United States Statutes at Large, volume 12, page 392 (12 Stat. 392).
Search in the 37th Congress using the word "homestead" to find more Congressional documents related to the Homestead Act.
Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress
The complete Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress consists of approximately 20,000 documents.
Search this collection using the word "homestead" to find more documents related to the Homestead Act.
- John Sluggett to Abraham Lincoln, Thursday, January 24, 1861 (Canadian seeks information on Homestead bill).
America's Library
Jump Back in Time: The Homestead Act Went Into Effect, May 20, 1862.
Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers
Chronicling America
This site allows you to search and view millions of historic American newspaper pages from 1789-1924. Search this collection to find newspaper articles about the Homestead Act.
A selection of articles related to the Homestead Act includes:
- "Free Homes in Minnesota," St. Cloud Democrat. (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.), June 19, 1862.
- "Passage of the Homestead Bill! Great Inducements!" The Smoky Hill and Republican Union. (Junction City, Kan.), July 19, 1862.
- "The Homestead Act," The Big Blue Union. (Marysville, Kan.), December 27, 1862.
Today in History
May 20, 1862
The Homestead Act was signed into law on May 20, 1862.
Act of May 20, 1862 (Homestead Act), Public Law 37-64 (12 STAT 392), National Archives and Records Administration
The Homestead Acts, Digital Public Library of America
Frontier House: Homestead History, PBS
Homestead National Monument of America, National Park Service
Our Documents, Homestead Act, National Archives and Records Administration
Teaching With Documents: The Homestead Act of 1862, National Archives and Records Administration
Selected Bibliography
Cross, Coy F. Go West, Young Man!: Horace Greeley's Vision for America. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1995. [Catalog Record]
Lee, Lawrence Bacon. Kansas and the Homestead Act, 1862-1905. New York: Arno Press, 1979. [Catalog Record]
Ottoson, Howard W., ed. Land Use Policy and Problems in the United States. Edited by Howard W. Ottoson. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1963. [Catalog Record]
Stephenson, George Malcolm. The Political History of the Public Lands From 1840 to 1862; From Preemption to Homestead. New York: Russell & Russell, 1967. [Catalog Record]
Younger Readers
Foran, Jill. Homesteading. Mankato, Minn.: Weigl Publishers, 2003. [Catalog Record]
Landau, Elaine. The Homestead Act. New York: Children's Press, 2006. [Catalog Record]
Porterfield, Jason. The Homestead Act of 1862: A Primary Source History of the Settlement of the American Heartland in the Late 19th Century. New York: Rosen, 2005. [Catalog Record]
Raabe, Emily. Pioneers: Life as a Homesteader. New York: PowerKids Press, 2003. [Catalog Record]
Stein, R. Conrad. The Story of the Homestead Act. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1978. [Catalog Record]