![]() ![]() Initially, an individual was required to purchase a full section of land at the cost of $1 per acre for 640 acres. Sale of public land was viewed as a means to generate revenue for the Government rather than as a way to encourage settlement. The township was divided into 36 sections, each measuring 1 square mile or 640 acres each. Using astronomical starting points, territory was divided into a 6-mile square called a township prior to settlement. The Land Ordinance of 1785 finally implemented a standardized system of Federal land surveys that eased boundary conflicts. As a result, overlapping claims and border disputes were common. Boundaries were established by stepping off plots from geographical landmarks. Early methods for allocating unsettled land outside the original 13 colonies were arbitrary and chaotic. At the time of the Articles of Confederation, the major controversy related to land measurement and pricing. The distribution of Government lands had been an issue since the Revolutionary War. At the time of the signing, 11 states had left the Union, and this piece of legislation would continue to have regional and political overtones. In doing so, Freeman became one of the first to take advantage of the opportunities provided by the Homestead Act, a law signed by President Abraham Lincoln on May 20, 1862. At a New Year's Eve party the night before, Freeman met some local Land Office officials and convinced a clerk to open the office shortly after midnight in order to file a land claim. On January 1, 1863, Daniel Freeman, a Union Army scout, was scheduled to leave Gage County, Nebraska Territory, to report for duty in St. Students will explore a variety of documents to get a sense of the issues faced by Native Americans due to settlement and U.S. ![]() ![]() The Impact of Westward Expansion on Native American Communities on DocsTeach asks students to examine the impact of westward expansion and settlement on Native American communities following the Civil War. ![]()
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