Homestead Act

( 1862 ) Commentary by Ginette Aley, Kansas State University

“That any person who is the head of a family, or who has arrived at the age of twenty-one years, and is a citizen of the United States, or who shall have filed his declaration of intention to become such, … shall … be entitled to enter one quarter section or a less quantity of unappropriated public lands.” - Section 1
“That nothing in this act shall be so construed as to prevent any person who has availed him or herself of the benefits of the first section of this act, from paying the minimum price … for the quantity of land so entered at any time before the expiration of the five years, and obtaining a patent therefore from the government … on making proof of settlement and cultivation as provided by existing laws granting preemption rights.” - Section 8

Galusha Grow, father of the Homestead Act (Library of Congress)

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