Genealogy Tips: Was Your Ancestor a Homesteader? (part 1)

Introduction: In this article – the first in a two-part series – Katie Rebecca Garner explains that one in three Americans descend from homesteaders and gives tips for researching your homesteader ancestors. Katie specializes in U.S. research for family history, enjoys writing and researching, and is developing curricula for teaching children genealogy.

About one in three Americans descend from homesteaders. If you are one of those Americans, this blog series is for you. This first part covers the history of homesteading, and the second part (tomorrow) covers homestead records.

Homestead Act

The Homestead Act was enacted in 1862 to encourage westward migration by offering free land to farmers. Much of the land in the West was unclaimed by whites – though, of course, much of it was Native American land at the time. A settler could claim a 160-acre tract of land. Before he could own the land, he had to live on it for five years and improve it via farming. After five years, the settler could apply for ownership. If he didn’t apply, the homestead was canceled after seven years. Alternatively, a settler could buy the land for $1.25 per acre after having resided on the land for six months.

Photo credit: https://depositphotos.com/home.html

Who qualified for the Homestead Act? The act did not specify race or gender, so this provided an opportunity for women and formerly enslaved black people to own land. Homesteaders had to be the head of household, old enough to vote, a U.S. citizen, and have never raised arms against the U.S. (no Confederates allowed). An immigrant could homestead as long as they naturalized before applying for ownership. Those who served in the U.S. military could apply their military service toward the residency requirement, thus shortening how long they needed to live on the land.

If your homesteading ancestor was an immigrant, the homestead files may contain his naturalization record. Such is the case for someone I was researching, Christian Murri. If your homesteading ancestor was also a veteran, the homestead files may contain military service records.

Women homesteaders had to be heads of household. This included widows, single women, women whose husbands were incapable of running a household, and abandoned wives. Additionally, if a claimant died, his widow or heirs could continue the process. If a woman married or remarried during the homesteading process, the homestead records would include her marriage date. More women homesteaded after the railroads connected the East to the West.

The formerly enslaved who took advantage of the Homestead Act attained real freedom by owning land. Most African American homesteaders could not afford to go back East, so they stayed and toughed it out.

Public Land Survey System

All homestead land was surveyed using the Public Land Survey System, which divided the land into sections, townships, and ranges. The legal land description gave the numbers describing which township, range, and section a parcel of land was in. The townships and ranges were numbered based on their distance from the central meridian. The townships were numbered based on how far north or south they were, and the ranges were numbered based on how far east or west they were. Christian Murri’s homestead was based on the Salt Lake Meridian and was in Township Three South and Range Four East.

Each township and range block is divided into thirty-six sections, numbered as shown below:

For 160-acre tracts of land, sections are divided into quarters designated with cardinal directions. Christian Murri’s township was in the Northwest quarter of section 22. The legal description for his homestead was NW ¼ of section 22 in Township 3S Range 4E.

Homestead Laws Changed over Time

The homestead laws changed as time passed, making it easier to homestead in some places. The size was expanded at two points, allowing for dryland and stock farming. At another point, absences for part of the year were allowed, increasing the number of homesteaders in places with harsh winters. Another change was shortening the homestead length from five years to three years. The Southern Homestead Act encouraged African Americans to obtain homesteads. The homestead law ended in 1967, but Alaska continued until 1986.

Even though the Homestead Act was enacted during the Civil War, most homesteaders came after the war ended. The transcontinental railroad was chartered in 1862 and completed in 1869. Its completion saw an increase in homesteaders.

The Homestead Act attracted immigrants to the West. Immigrants came from Palestine, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Egypt, England, Sweden, Canada, Spain, France, Russia, and Italy. Ownership of that much land was unheard of in these and other countries outside the U.S. The filing fee to begin the homestead process was cheaper than renting an acre of land. Homesteading was especially appealing to farmers who didn’t own land or to children of farmers who wouldn’t inherit under primogeniture laws (only the oldest son inherits).

Not all homesteaders completed the process. Conditions were difficult on the prairie and in the Rocky Mountains. Fierce winds and fires, grasshopper infestations, severe droughts, bad weather, and difficult farming conditions ruined crops and made farming difficult. Additionally, the lack of trees meant settlers had to build houses out of sod. Settlers also had to provide their own farming tools. It was so common to abandon claims or file bankruptcy that only about 40% of homesteaders completed the process. Some of the abandoned claims were taken by others.

Stay tuned tomorrow for part 2 of this series to learn what records homesteaders left and where you can find them.

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Note on the header image: Sylvester Rawding family sod house, 1886. Credit: Solomon D. Butcher; Wikimedia Commons.

Resources:

• https://familytreewebinars.com/webinar/the-homestead-act-of-1862/?category=records&subcategory=homestead1862
• https://familytreewebinars.com/webinar/homestead-act-of-1862-following-the-witnesses/?category=records&subcategory=homestead1862
• https://familytreewebinars.com/webinar/women-homesteaders-and-genealogy-bonus-webinar-for-subscribers/?category=records&subcategory=homestead1862
• https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/session/ladies-and-land
• https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/session/immigration-and-the-homestead-act-finding-your-ancestors
• https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/session/go-west-american-migration-1783-to-1900
• https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/session/ethnic-and-religious-community-formation-under-the-homestead-act
• https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/session/the-roots-beneath-your-feet-stories-from-homesteading-descendants
• https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/session/3-the-lay-of-the-land-using-american-land-records-in-your-family-history-research