The Homestead Act was officially made a law in May 20, 1862 by President
Abraham Lincoln. It made settlement possible in the western United States.
By allowing all Americans, including freed slaves, to submit a claim for up to 160
free acres of federal land. The Homestead Act of 1862 basically stated that any
adult citizen who headed a family could be entitled to a grant of 160 acres of free
public land by paying a small fee and living on that land for five years or if that
settler would pay small installments, he could obtain that land after six months of
residency. The deal was that dwellers were required to improve the land by
cultivating and building a dwelling on this free land. After 5 years on the land, they
would qualify for the land free and clear,
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Grants did give new probabilities to many poor farmers from the East as well
as the Midwest.
Not many laborers or farmers could afford to build a farm or
get livestock, the tools for work, or even seeds for planting. In the end, most of the
land went to cattlemen, miners, lumbermen, and railroad however some small
farmers did acquired more land under the Homestead Act.
This Act has been called the most important act for the welfare of the people that
has ever been passed within the United States. Most of the land that was available
was said to be in very poor condition to farm especially those areas where droughts
were common issues. Many families stayed for the entire five years because of
hardships like these. Several large corporations also took advantage of this act by
paying people to buy the best property which had great resources. The Homestead
Act of 1912 diminished the homestead requirements to three years instead of the
initial five years but by this time most of the land had already been claimed.
The Homestead Act was in effect for more than 100 years .The security of social, economic, and agricultural that was developed by the Homestead Act