It's the true grit stuff of legends and dreams, the inspiration for TV series and countless books: homesteaders overcoming adversity to gain free land on the American frontier. The Sesquicentennial of the Homestead Act of 1862 will be celebrated in 2012, and if you're a homesteader or a descendant of one, the staff at Homestead National Monument of America would like to hear from you.
The park, located in southeastern Nebraska, is celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Homestead Act with two events next year, along with an ongoing effort to locate and record the experiences of the homesteaders and their descendants who are still with us today.
Between the first claim under the Act (by Daniel Freeman in Nebraska in 1863) and the last (by Kenneth Deardorff in Alaska in 1974), some two million individuals used the Homestead Act to attempt to earn the patent to a piece of land. According to information from the park, their claims totaled from 270 to 285 million acres, or about eight percent of the land area of the United States.
The Homestead Act was the quintessential door to opportunity. According to a park publication, "A homesteader had only to be the head of a household or at least 21 years of age to claim a 160-acre parcel of land. Settlers from all walks of life including newly arrived immigrants, farmers without land of their own from the East, single women and former slaves came to meet the challenge of 'proving up' and keeping this 'free land'".
"Each homesteader had to live on the land, build a home, make improvements and farm for 5 years before they were eligible to 'prove up'. A total filing fee of $18 was the only money required, but sacrifice and hard work exacted a different price from the hopeful settlers."
Those stories of sacrifice and hard work will be recognized in the pair of events next year, and the park staff is looking for volunteers from each of the 30 states where people obtained land under the Act to be part of the Sesquicentennial celebration.
Participants will include people who received land through the Homestead Act of 1862 or their descendants. Volunteers will carry their state’s flag in a commemoration to be held on May 20, 2012, and in the Homestead Day parade on June 16. For the parade, participants must be able to carry the flag for a distance of 1.2 miles. Volunteers will not be expected to carry their state flag at both events unless they wish to do so.
Some of the 30 Homestead Act states may surprise you. They are: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
Those interested in volunteering for the 2012 events are asked to submit a brief one-page nomination form that includes their contact information and a brief explanation of their connection to the Homestead Act of 1862. A copy of that form is available at this link.
Even if you aren't able to participate in person at the events next year, Homestead National Monument of America would like to hear from you if you are a homesteader or a descendant. The goal is to locate and record the experiences of remaining homesteaders before the opportunity is lost, so if you fall into either category, the park hopes you'll help by sending your name, address, telephone number and e-mail address to:
Friends of Homestead
Homestead National Monument of America
8523 W. State Highway 4
Beatrice NE 68310
You can learn more about the effort to collect and share the stories of homesteaders at the Friends of Homestead webpage.
The park has planned an interesting variety of events for the upcoming Sesquicentennial, and the park website includes an impressive amount of information about the Homestead Act, including tips on how to research information about potential homesteaders from your own family's past.
You'll find information to help plan a visit to the park at this link.
Comments
I am a descendant of homesteaders who came from Missouri to northern New Mexico in 1910 (the John Wesley Mathews family). I am currently doing research at the graduate level that encompasses the journey of my family and others that traveled to New Mexico. I would love to hear from others who have family who homesteaded in New Mexico. There is not a lot in print on New Mexico, specifically northern New Mexico.
Hello Bellie,
I just ran across your message here and wanted to let you know that I am also a decendent of homesteaders to New Mexico. My Grandfather (Carl Howard) came to New Mexico from Tenneessee around 1906 and first worked on a ranch and then homesteaded a parcel of land south and west of Fort Sumter. Records show he proved up on his homestead in July of 1915. My Grandmother's family also came to New Mexico from a different part of Tenneessee by way of Texas, arriving in New Mexico to homestead land around 1908. Their land was right near my grandfathers and it was while on these homesteads that my grandfather and grandmother met. My grandmother's maiden name was Grizzle (Hanna Grizzle) and her father (who homesteaded their land) was James W. Grizzle. James proved up on his homestead in March of 1916.
After marrying, my grandfather and grandmother moved off their homestead and sold it in 1918, as my grandfather had gotten a good paying job as the forman on the Hedgecox ranch out at Caprock, NM at that time. My mother, along with her other brothers and sister, were born on the Hedgecox ranch near Caprock. My greatgrandfather Grizzle sold his homestead in 1925 (a few years after my greatgrandmother died) and he moved into Rosewell,NM where he lived until his death.
Hope this is of interest to you.
Jim Tilmant
Fort Collins, CO
970-227-1834
[email protected]
Choosing to leave what you know and try to make a better like for your family is brave and admirable, and I get why they want to tell those stories.
But where in any of the materials about this celebration of the homestead act is the acknowledgement that the only reason this land was free to the 1.6 million landowners who got land under the homestead act was because 90% of the original inhabitants of that land we're killed by violence or diseases brought by European settlers and the remainder were forcibly removed?