Women homesteaders played an important role in settling the United States. Beginning in the 1860s, thousands of women used federal homesteading laws to claim land across the Midwest and West. The Homestead Act of 1862 allowed any citizen or intended citizen who was the head of a household, or at least 21 years old, to claim 160 acres of government land. Importantly, the law did not exclude women. This created a rare opportunity at a time when women had limited property rights. Under the … [Read more...]