Final answer:
The Homestead Act of 1862 gave American citizens 160 acres of land in the West. It required settlers to improve the land within five years to gain full ownership. This act was a pivotal factor in driving westward expansion and significantly affected the distribution and use of the land, especially concerning the Native American populations.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Homestead Act of 1862
The act that gave American citizens 160 acres of land in the West was the Homestead Act of 1862. This landmark legislation encouraged Western migration by offering sections of federal lands that were west of the Mississippi River to settlers under certain conditions. To claim the land, settlers were required to "improve" the land by cultivating fields and building homes and utility buildings. The act was designed not only to promote settlement in the West but also to increase agricultural production for the nation, especially during the Civil War. Over 270 million acres of public domain land was transferred to private citizens under the Homestead Act, making it a significant factor in the expansion of the United States.
The Homestead Act allowed any head of household, or individual over the age of twenty-one, including unmarried women, to receive a parcel of 160 acres for only a nominal filing fee. Recipients had to "improve the land" within five years to gain full ownership, with improvements considered minimal such as clearing a few acres, building small houses, or maintaining livestock. These incentives provided a pathway for many Americans to own land and vastly altered the landscape of the country as families and individuals moved westward to seize this opportunity.
It's important to note that while the Homestead Act enabled many to pursue farming and establish homesteads, it significantly impacted Native American populations as it promoted the distribution of their ancestral lands to incoming settlers. Other acts, such as the Dawes Act of 1887, further encroached on Native American lands by allotting parcels to individuals in an attempt to assimilate Native Americans into the predominant Euro-American culture of individual land ownership and farming.