​Black Homesteading in America

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What the Homestead Act?

  • Signed in 1862, this allowed any American or immigrant pursuing the citizenship process to purchase up to 160 acres of federal land.
  • The law was not repealed until 1986, when it expired an Alaska. All pervious states had repealed the law by 1976.
  • Buyer was required to live on the land for five years and perform necessary upkeep and additions.
    • 1. Civil War Union veterans could use time served in the military towards the residency requirement.            
    • 2. Settlers could also acquire the title of land if they lived on the land for 6 months and paid the government $1.25 per acre.


Homestead Act of 1862


Eligibility

  • Adult 21 years and older
  • Single woman
  • Formerly enslaved (1868 - 15 Amendment was passed)
  • Immigrants (1st papers required (declaration of intention)



States without Homesteads  - Original 13 colonies

Connecticut

Delaware

Georgia

Maryland

Massachusetts

New Hampshire

New Jersey


New York

North Carolina

Pennsylvania  


Rhode Island

South Carolina

Virginia


Hawaii

Kentucky

Maine

Tennessee

Texas

Vermont

West Virginia


Ancestry.com   Homestead Records




FamilySearch Homestead Records


Homestead Law

Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa,  Mississippi , Montana ,  Nebraska ,  Nebraska, Oklahoma ,  Oregon, Social aspects - West (U.S.) - History,  West (U.S.) ,  Wyoming

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Homestead - Church Records, Directories, Cemeteries

Florida, Dade,   Michigan, Benzie, Homestead Township  , Pennsylvania, Allegheny , Wisconsin, Florence

Homestead- FamilySearch


Black Homesteader of The South

The documentation from the homestead land entry papers files offered key dates and vital information regarding the location of the land; age and birthplace of the claimant/applicant; when they originally settled on the land; the number of family members living on the land; improvements made; and a list of witnesses. Bennett's story is a guide for family historians to validate oral history as she describes the painstaking research to find documents, including obstacles, to confirm her family lore.


Bernice Alexander Bennett

This book is the first of its kind where the descendants in the rural communities of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi are telling how their ancestors met the eligibility requirements to apply for and obtain this homestead land. 

 
 


Additional Homestead Research Sites

This book is the first of its kind where the descendants in the rural communities of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi are telling how their ancestors met the eligibility requirements to apply for and obtain this homestead land. 

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