Homestead Act Of 1862, edited by Jacob K. Friefeld and Mikal Eckstrom

If I had to define this relatively short magazine that was labeled by my local library system as a book as briefly as possible, I would say that it is politically correct settler colonialism for kids. Now, I wish it to be plainly understood that I have nothing against settler colonialism. My forefathers have been practicing the art for a long time, and if I do not have any direct personal experience with getting land as a homesteader (no longer allowed by US law) nor did my direct ancestors travel to the West to claim land in such a fashion, it is undoubtedly important for the history of the United States as a whole. Moreover, there are people I personally know who practiced such homesteading within their own lifetimes and whose family still resides on homesteaded land going back for generations in the West, so this sort of material would be of personal interest to many people I know, and it is interesting to see the subject of homesteading as it is written in a way to appeal to children.

The subject matter of this particular magazine is written by a variety of contributors but generally reflects the revisionist and socio-political aims of the editors. There is a discussion of the exploration of the west, settlement and the clashes that settlers had with longstanding tribes, and also a discussion of the government support that was provided to settlers. There is a poster that describes in a vivid way who was eligible to claim land under the Homestead Act of 1862. There is a discussion about Lincoln and the relationship of homesteading and laws to support it to the free soil ideals of the Republican party which triumphed in the absence of Southern opposition during the Civil War Congress. One essay asks about the Native Americans and their experience, which was a painful one. Another one focuses on the destructiveness of the Dawes Act to the well-being of tribal communities. A humorous essay discusses life in a sod house and some of the difficulties faced by homesteaders in keeping their homes clean and dry. Other essays focus on the promise of racial equality that some black homesteaders found in creating their own communities–some of which lasted for decades but which are falling into ruins at present, as well as the way that some women used homesteading as a way of securing their own independence. One essay even looks at Alaskan homesteading as the final frontier of the phenomenon, which only ended in 1986. A humorous board game that demonstrates the difficulties of homesteading is provided, along with various other sidebars of information that include a comparison between homesteading and some other examples of settler colonialism in Canada, Russian Siberia, and Australia.

As might be expected, even with the moralizing on the part of the contributing writers (both editors contribute their own articles with an explicitly social justice bent to them), this particular volume is fairly light-handed in its look at the settlement of the West that resulted from the Homestead Act. Yet it is not hard to understand that homesteading was related to some fundamental issues that Americans have struggled with–how is land to be distributed and provided to those willing and able to work it, what is to be done about the people who are already there, and how do we preserve the history of the times in a way that is honest and sufficiently complex for us to continue to learn from it today. The Homestead Act of 1862 provided an example of a distinct view of American government that was at odds with the practice of several generations of government, but while it provided opportunity for millions of whites, it was also passed in the midst of a horrible civil war and also led to a drastic increase in conflict between settlers and the military sent to protect them and tribes who had long been free-ranging inhabitants of the open prairies themselves, but who were to find themselves confined to small remnants of their territory as a result of dispossession and military defeat. When it comes to history, there are no truly simple subjects, though it is unclear how many of the young intended readers of this particular volume will wrestle with the deeper historical questions and just enjoy the games and light-hearted aspects of what is provided here.