The Homestead Act Primary Source Questions

May 20, 1862
Print of a log cabin with grazing animals in the foreground.
Library of Congress

Read The Homestead Act in its entirety here.


  1. Which United States citizens does the Homestead Act exclude from benefitting from the act? How do these exclusions apply to those who were fighting in the Civil War?
  2. How did the Homestead Act protect children under the age of 21 whose parents died?
  3. How did the Homestead Act provide for those who fought in the War but who were under the age of 21?