What did the settlers need to do to keep the land granted by the Homestead Act?

• A. Build a house within a year
• B. Pay a large fee
• C. Farm the land for five years
• D. Sell the land after ten years

Answer: (C)

The Homestead Act, enacted in 1862, aimed to encourage westward expansion by providing settlers with the opportunity to claim land at little to no cost. To successfully earn ownership of the homesteaded land, settlers were required to establish residence and improve the land. Specifically, they needed to farm the land for a continuous period of five years. This requirement not only fostered agricultural development but also ensured that the land would be actively utilized rather than remaining unused.

Meeting this condition was essential for the settlers to gain clear title to their properties and prevented speculative landholding, as the government wanted to promote settlement and cultivation. Although building a house within a year was a related expectation, the primary requirement focused on the commitment to farming the land for that five-year duration. This understanding of the act highlights the connection between land ownership and active improvement through agriculture, reflecting the ethos of the period for promoting self-sufficiency and expansion.