Genealogy: Land Records a WVC Library Research by Subject Page

When you got a warrant or a survey it meant you were the first person to ever claim that piece of land. Land patent records do not usually show as many kinship kinds of information as deeds but they are still important because:

1. They are wonderful historical documents for your family history. This Grandfather was the first person in America to hold title to this piece of land. He and his family settled this land and helped start its first community

2. If the warrant shows neighbors that will be valuable information for your family's cluster. Your grandfather who entered 150 acres in 18th century Maryland was probably connected to at least some of his neighbors when he got the land and if he wasn't his children will most likely marry with them. They matter in early American research.

3. The patent will give specifics on this land. The grandfather will now either keep living there or he will dispose of the land through inheritance or deeds. If John Martinson gets a patent for 200 acres on Allen Creek and succeeding generations live on that land that are named Martinson you may not know HOW they are related to John but you know these Martinsons most likely are connected to John.

4. Disposing of the land. If the patentee lived on this property all his life as he ages he will usually begin to divide off the land to his heirs through deeds. In early times, if he left no will, the transfer of his land to family members may be the only proof existing to figure out his children.

Most patents are also entered as First Title Deeds in the Deed Book (but not always).

Women: Around the internet numerous postings declare that women could not receive land patents in early times. This simply isn't true. In many places a woman could apply for patent or headright or whatever kind of land grant was being offered but remember she would have needed to be feme sole and not feme covert. Feme sole means she was a) of legal age & unmarried (a "spinster") or a widow.

If she is married her legal status is feme covert and she might QUALIFY for acreage (as in she imported herself and two servants and now qualifies for 150 acres for the three of them under headright) but the land would be granted to her husband. She has no identity of her own under the law to own property.

Rules begin to be relaxed with the rise of property rights for women in the mid to late 1800s. If Grandma wanted to homestead in 1889 in Kansas she could do it (married or not).

In early records if you know your ancestor was late to marry, or a widow, and you wonder if she might have received a grant you can usually tell the probability of this by looking at an index. Here is a page from the "Old Rights" Warrant Index to Bucks Co. PA. By scanning down the page you quickly see a couple of Elizabeths, and a Mary applying for warrants so you know instantly they COULD do it.

After America achieved independence the new government did not get around to selling any lands until the opening of the Public Domain in 1803.

This means those states who had existed prior to this distributed their lands within the colony/state and did not have federal lands as well as a couple of other states that would have special provisions.

LAND STATES/COLONIES:

NEW ENGLAND:       Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont
SOUTHERN:              Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia
MIDDLE:                    Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania
SPECIAL CASES:      Hawaii, Texas

In many colonies large grants were given to wealthy individuals who subdivided. If you discover grandpa bought land in the "Beverly Tract" or the "Borden Tract" some other "Tract" with a name look for the history that tells you more about that settlement.

The process differed slightly from colony to colony/state to state but for the most part something similar happened to get a grant:

1. You petitioned for or requested the land. This might mean you showed up at the proprietors' office or some sort of council meeting, or the land office etc. but you had to give them the reason you wanted the land (it was opening up, you had money, you brought people to the colony and qualified for headright, you met some other qualification for land that was being parceled out, you had planted corn and improved this land etc. etc.)

2. You applied for a warrant which certified the actual place the land would be and how many acres.

3. The warrant information started the survey process - it would be surveyed and a plat would be drawn with a legal description of the land

4. You received the patent or grant (meaning you got the title). If money was involved you could set all this in motion before it was paid for but you would not get the patent until it was paid for. Be aware that many people started the process of petitioning, getting a warrant and survey but moving on before they ever got the patent. Also be aware that in some places people might live on their land for a generation or two before anyone in the family got around to entering the patent.

If you get a copy of warrant, survey, patent etc. make note of ANY name that appears. You want the neighbors (often shown in the survey plat). The surveyor may not be so important, as the same guy often does everyone in the area, but chain carriers matter. You often got "the boys" in the family to go out and carry the chains that measured the land. Early patents are usually measured in poles, rods or perches - all of which were about 16 1/2 feet.

New England

Grants usually went to a group of men called town proprietors (sometimes called "Commoners"). In New England the TOWN is the center of everything. (later called township). The town was a geographical unit extending beyond the village to some agreed boundary with the next town. Townships of New England sometimes have weird shapes because of arguments about those boundaries.

This means when you go to look for film for land grants in New England you go to the town and look for the proprietor's minutes as well as anything labeled land records. Then check county resources as some land entries were kept at that level. In some places at some times in early New England you had to be a "freeman" to qualify. This meant you had taken an oath that you had not come there because you owed money or because you had been chased away from somewhere else for not working hard enough and that you would follow the laws of that colony. You could not become a freeman instantly - there was usually a waiting period. [This was a New England custom - usually if you see "freeman" in the middle colonies south it has to do with someone who had been indentured and service was up.]

In the early colonies lands were divided equally among members. Puritans were very communal in their approach and did not want some to own large pieces of the town while others went without or had minimal holdings.

As the New England township/range system grew westward it became more uniform - land was surveyed in 6 mile by six mile squares.

Make sure to check Google Books for New England town records - they have many many volumes of them

Southern & Middle Colonies / States

In the American South and the Middle Colonies COUNTIES matter. If you want to find records online or order film etc. you must know the county and it has to be the county that existed when your ancestor lived there so make certain you know the boundary changes.

Virginia was the mother of the south - meaning most of the colonies below her or just west of her did most things the way she did. They used metes and bounds, often (but not always) had similar dower laws and similar ways to dispose of lands.

Middle Colonies also used metes and bounds but they often had unique ways of doing things so don't make assumptions.

In southern and middle colony states most early warrants were done in metes & bounds and were sometimes referred to as "tomahawk grants" because frontiersmen made marks in trees marking boundaries, then went to apply/petition for his claim.

Headright grants were used in various southern colonies & states - you got land for bringing adults to settle in the colony. The rules varied in the place your ancestor settled. Virginia's headrights are most famous but if you find an ancestor elsewhere you receives headright look in Google Books for the laws concerning headrights in that state/colony.

Many middle colony land records can be found by searching Google Books

BOUNTY LANDS: Bockstruck's index to Revolutionary War Bounty Land Grants on Google Books allows many pages to be viewed

One other place where patent information can sometimes be referenced in tax lists. Here is an example from Kentucky

	NEW ENGLAND COLONIES/STATES:
Connecticut Who went there: primarily the English or people from other New England areas Where they went: most moved towards New York then to Ohio & the Great Lakes States	The first grants were given by the proprietors of the colony starting around 1635 but most record keeping was done at town level and has been filmed Connecticut had also laid claim to lands in the Wyoming Valley (now in Pennsylvania). In 1753-1801 the Susquehanna Company was formed in Harford, CT and sent settlers into the valley. Pennsylvania Archives has digitized the Minutes of the Susquehanna Company. If you have ancestors from Connecticut who went to PA or whose histories mention the Wyoming Valley, Wilkes Barr, Luzerne Co. PA etc. check out the Susquehanna Company in the minutes and on the web. No Bounty Lands (they had held claims in Pennsylvania but lost them) but they retained the Connecticut Reserve (also known as the Firelands or Sufferer's Lands) held by Connecticut in Northern Ohio - it was surveyed in 1785 - set aside for people in Connecticut who had lost their homes during the war when the British went on a burning rampage. Useful Maps: Connecticut Western Land Claims	Township & Range Connecticut County Formation Map from FamilyHistory 101
Maine Who went there: primarily the English or people from other New England areas particularly Massachusetts. Where they went: most moved towards New York then to Ohio & the Great Lakes State	Maine was part of Massachusetts until 1820 (changed with the Missouri Compromise) so nearly all patents are held by the Massachusetts State Archives. Massachusetts also retained ownership of part of Maine lands until 1853.	Township & Range Maine County Formation Map
Massachusetts Who went there: primarily the English or people from other New England areas Where they went: most moved towards New York then to Ohio & the Great Lakes State	1620 - Plymouth Colony 1630 - Massachusetts Bay Colony Land was first distributed by proprietors. Bounty Lands: Massachusetts gave bounty land in Maine The Massachusetts State Archives has an excellent index to records 1629-1799 that has many entries for proprietors minutes etc.	Township & Range Massachusetts County Formation Map
New Hampshire Who went there: primarily the English or people from other New England areas Where they went: most moved towards New York then to Ohio & the Great Lakes State	1629-1641 land was dispersed by the proprietor, Capt. John Mason. 1679-1741 New Hampshire becomes a royal province but Massachusetts claims parts of it so charters were granted both colonies for land in what is now New Hampshire. 1741-All grants were within New Hampshire These early charters were usually granted by town and were found in the State and Provincial Papers of New Hampshire (books) whose volumes have been scanned. Read the volume descriptions carefully. They take patience but if you page through to the table of contents you will find the list of towns the volume covers and be able to go to the town and see the original grantees. No Bounty Lands	Township & Range New Hampshire County Formation Map
Rhode Island	Colonial grants were made by proprietors of towns who divided up the lands beginning around 1659. The earliest land grants made by Rhode Island were called "land evidences" Google Books has vol. 1 of these 1648-1696 transcriptions No Bounty Lands	Township & Range
Vermont Who went there: primarily the English and people from Massachusetts, New Hampshire & Connecticut Where they went: most moved towards New York then to Ohio & the Great Lakes State	17th century Vermont was part of Massachusetts 1749 New Hampshire claimed much of Vermont - most of these claims are recorded in the NH Provincial Papers v. 26 1764 New York claimed some of the land in Vermont that New Hampshire was claiming 1777 Vermont became independent but be aware that people were still fighting about the borders throughout the war The State Papers of Vermont start in 1778 - some volumes have been indexed by the Nye Index	Metes & Bounds Vermont County Formation Map
	SOUTHERN COLONIES/STATES:
Georgia Who went there: Primarily fed by Maryland, Virginia & the Carolinas Where they went: many moved to the southern states west of them; Tennessee was a primary magnet and once there people often migrated on to Southern Indiana, Illinois on to Missouri and Arkansas and Texas	1732-1755 Georgia was a trusteeship 1754 Part of the Royal Land Grant System - After 1755 lands granted by headright- usually recorded in Savannah. Headrights in Georgia were granted to every free head of household with additional amounts for every free person in the family and for each slave they brought with them. One out of every 3 acres had to be improved. 1774 New kind of land grant - surveys into tracts and sold (as opposed to people just going out and picking out the land and getting it surveyed etc.). It would be the basis for the land lotteries that came later. 1783 land courts were established to distribute grants. There were headright & bounty grants in the eastern parts land lotteries began in 1802 for Georgia (which still included what is now Alabama & Mississippi) These went on for decades. WAGS has indexes in book form. Ancestry.com has a database to the 1827 index. There is a great overview of each lottery and the rules and places it applied to here Georgia Tax lists list land details and have been filmed BOUNTY LANDS Early headright & bounty plats are being digitized by Georgia's Virtual Vault. After 1763 Veterans of the French Indian Wars were entitled to grants (amount depended on rank) A preview of parts of the book Georgia Land Surveying History and Law by Farris W. Cadle is at Google books and it has wonderful information Important Maps: Halls Original County Map of GA Map of Indian Land Cessions in GA 1733-1833	Mix of Metes & Bounds, Township & Range Process: Application Warrant Survey / Plat Payment Title/Patent Georgia County Formation Map from Family History 101
Kentucky Who went there: It can depend on the part of Kentucky you are researching. Those areas closer to the Ohio River were settled mostly by people from PA & northern VA. Many of the PA & VA people had roots in MD & NJ In the more southern and eastern counties the migrations were more apt to be from VA and the Carolinas and Tennessee Where they Went: Everywhere but IN, IL & MO were huge draws	Kentucky was originally territory claimed by Virginia. About 1772 the Virginia Land Company began surveying lands along the Ohio & Kentucky Rivers and created Fincastle County which covered all of Kentucky so the earliest warrants were granted by the state of Virginia. When Kentucky was first established it only had three counties so if your family was there in the 1780-1830 period be aware of how drastically county lines changed. Tax lists in Kentucky are extremely helpful as they not only show that Grandpa owns 300 acres in early times it will tell who the land was originally surveyed for & patented to. These have been filmed by Salt Lake. A number of really great warrant databases are available online. Revolutionary War Warrants & West of Tennessee River Military Patents from the Kentucky Land Office Virginia Treasury Warrant Registers 1779-1783 from the Kentucky Land Office. Non Military Settlement & Preemptions from the Kentucky Land Office	Metes & Bounds Kentucky County Formation Map
North Carolina Who went there: Primarily fed by Virginia. The coastal areas were heavy to English and Scots (not Scotch Irish but straight from Scotland, usually highlanders) On the frontier came NJ, PA, MD & VA people down the valley of Virginia. Many Quakers. Where they went Many went south & west going to GA then AL MS etc. others went to TN & KY Large amounts of NW NC people went with the Quakers to IN	1663 King Charles II of England granted land in the Carolinas to 8 proprietors. They had the right to grant lands in present day North Carolina southward to what is now Florida. NC became a Royal Colony in 1729. It mostly had lands in the lower part of the state because one of the original proprietors - Lord Granville- still owned most of the northern half of NC. 1737 Royal patent was given to Henry McCulloch for the western counties of NC (some overlapped with Granville's land) 1748-1763 the Granville Grants were given in that part of the colony. 1777 lawmakers created a land office in every county as well as a surveyor to issue warrants to any lands not already claimed. MARS Manuscript & Archives Reference System at the NC State Archives indexes many kinds of historical records including land warrants. It also indexes people listed within the warrant and not just the grantee. Once you know they are there most all these records have been filmed or can be requested by mail.	Metes & Bounds North Carolina County Formation Map
South Carolina	1719-1775 South Carolina was a royal colony and grants were recorded by the secretary of the province. As land offices grew records became more localized. The SC FamilySearch Wiki has a good overview of the complicated changes in record keeping. Ancestry.com has published land Warrants for South Carolina 1672-1711. The South Carolina Archives are digitizing Plats for State Land Grants 1784-1868. Google Books has a copy of Records of the Secretary of the Province and the Register of the Province of South Carolina 1673-1675 which names many people if your family was there very early.	Metes & Bounds South Carolina County Formation Map
Tennessee	Earliest warrants: 1777 (granted by North Carolina) Finding land warrants for early TN lands can be difficult. Before statehood most of TN was considered part of North Carolina but some fragments were also claimed by Virginia and Kentucky. In 1784 the western counties of North Carolina declared their independence and created the state of Franklin which kept going to about 1789. In 1796 Tennessee became a state. Making matters more difficult they could make their claim at any land office - meaning Mr. Ingram in Green County might have entered his claim someplace else within the state. Use the TN Land Records FamilySearch Wiki for an overview	Primarily metes & bounds but some township & range Tennessee County Formation Map
Virginia Who went there: In the beginning mostly English Germans dropped down from Lancaster Co. PA or Frederick Co. MD to the Northern part of VA the Scotch Irish & Germans & Dutch from Pennsylvania came down the valley to the back country Large amounts of Marylanders went to the NE counties of Virginia often working southward Sizable migrations from NJ went to Chester Co. PA / Cecil Co. MD and dropped down to northern Virginia Where they went: Everywhere	1618-1634 Early grants were headrights which gave people 50 acres for each person that came or that you brought to the colony. It had many abuses and was not practiced so heavily after 1634 but would still be honored until 1779. Virginia became a Royal Colony in 1624 Ancestry.com has added book 1 of Cavaliers & Pioneers (WAGS has all volumes) which is especially helpful for earliest patents as it shows the names of those people coming into Virginia for headrights. 1701 Virginia started offering tax breaks to residents that would move inward on the frontier Those wonderful people at the Library of Virginia have several digitized collections that will help with land research including: Chancery Records Index Land Office Grants Search/Northern Neck Grants is searchable index to digitized land patetns issued prior to 1779 in Virginia. Bounty Lands: 1763 Virginia began promising bounty lands to certain kinds of soldiers. The Library of Virginia has an online index to Revolutionary War Bounties that includes the digitized documents	Metes & Bounds
West Virginia	West Virginia was created because of the Civil War - this means all its original land disbursement was done when it was a part of Virginia so when looking for warrants/patents etc. think of it simply as Virginia.	Township & Range
	MIDDLE COLONIES/STATES
Delaware Who went there: The Dutch, the Swedes, the English came first people from Bucks & Chester Co. PA moved there; also from MD & NJ the Scotch Irish (mostly to New Castle and when they exit they often went PA or to VA near the Beverly Tract) Where they Went: mostly to PA MD & VA	The earliest grants were given by the Swedes (who came in 1638) and the Dutch (1630s). When the English gained control grants were made by the proprietor of New York, known as the York Grants. In 1682 Delaware came under the jurisdiction of Pennsylvania where they were known as the three lower counties. In 1701 Delaware became a separate colony. Delaware has land divisions by "hundreds" which are similar to townships. Early Delaware research is difficult online - not much is available through any major Delaware libraries or archives.	Metes & Bounds Delaware County Formation Map
Maryland Who went there Mostly English - both Catholic & Protestant. Baltimore got more variety. Germans to old Prince Georges/Frederick Co. Many people from the lower counties of Pennsylvania like Chester, York & Lancaster Where they went: PA, VA, & the Carolinas if they left early. A little later and they went straight to OH & KY & TN	Maryland was first granted to the Calvert family as a haven for Catholics against religious persecution but from the beginnings there were many protestant settlers. Headrights were issued from 1633-1683 and later patents for various cash amounts. Land parcels had names as well as descriptions. (i.e. "John's Remorse" or "Polly's Delight") MDLandRec.net (which has all remaining scanned deed indexes and books) does not have all the patents scanned but they do have an online index. You must apply for an account (free) to use their fabulous resources. Archives of Maryland Online is also wonderful and has thousands of transcribed court records that include land references. It can be cumbersome to search but has amazing content. Try searching by surname and patent or your surname and deed.	Metes & Bounds Maryland County Formation Map
New Jersey Who went there the Dutch & the English people who had dropped down from New York & New England Large Quaker & Baptist population Where they went Early ones took the Pennsylvania Road and stayed in lower counties of PA unless they turned south down the valley of VA to the Carolinas	In 1664 King Charles gave NJ to his brother James who handed it off to the New York Colony so earliest NJ grants are made by NY 1674 NJ separated into two provinces: West Jersey & East Jersey. Each had their own proprietor and kept separate records. NJ Archives has a guide to these. The West Jersey History Project has been scanning abstracts of early land records NJ became a Royal Colony in 1702 Google Books has partial views of Patents and Deeds and Other Early Records of New Jersey 1664-1 If your family was in NJ and moved to PA or down through the valley of Virginia check Quaker records in case they did any time as Quakers. Google Books has Patents and deeds and early records of New Jersey, 1664-1703 No Bounty Lands but the Symmes Purchase / Miami Purchase found in Ohio had a plan to relocate NJ people to that part of Ohio.	Metes & Bounds New Jersey County Formation Map
New York Who went there: Primarily fed by New England states but the area around NYC was always a magnet for immigrants as well as merchants from NJ and the other middle colonies Where they went They were most attracted to Ohio & the Great Lakes region but some also chose Illinois & Indiana	Most land grants begin 1660 onward. The Family History Library has filmed the Patent Index 1649-1912 and you can either view the index by surname or its locality rolls (all the patents in Oswego Co. etc.) 1786-1791 the NY Land Commission disposed of over 5 million acres in Western NY through land companies (all of which are filmed by Salt Lake): The Holland Land Company The Phelps & Gotham Purchase The Morris Reserve the following counties had all or parts of lands affected: Allegany (Holland, Phelps & Gotham, Morris) Cattaraugus (Holland) Chautauqua (Holland) Genesee (Holland, Morris) Erie (Holland) Franklin (Mcomb) Herkimer (Mcomb) Jefferson (Mcomb) Lewis (Mcomb) Livingston (Phelps & Gotham, Morris) Monroe (Phelps & Gotham, Morris) Niagra (Holland) Orleans (Holland, Morris) Oswego (Mcomb) St. Lawrence (Mcomb) Schuyler (Holland) Wayne (Holland) Wyoming (Holland, Morris) Bounty Lands: Great overview of New York bounty lands at the Seneca County Genweb Page	Township & Range but NY granted lands more like the southern states - by petition, warrant, survey, patent etc. and the records look similar New York County Formation Map
Pennsylvania Who went there: The first people in were the Swedes, Dutch & English who settled around the Delaware River in old Bucks, Philadelphia & Chester Counties. Welsh soon joined them. Penn invited the Germans & Moravians in the late 1600s Scotch Irish poured in at the start of the 18th century and kept coming - heading to the frontier	1682-1776 the Penn Colony Penn recognized native claims to the land which meant land was purchased from the Indians in Pennsylvania before it was warranted. This means thousands of Scotch Irish went onto the frontier where they were not supposed to be and squatted causing headaches for everyone. German farmers began joining them. NJ people migrated out there as well. It means that out on the PA frontier (past the Susquehanna River) your family may have been there quite early but no sign of a land record if he moved on before they got things straightened out. The Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission has been scanning all records pertaining to patents, surveys, warrants etc. Read the descriptions carefully and if your ancestor is in one of these do not miss the Warrantee Township Maps which are just amazing. This site also has good information about different types of collections they have digitized. Bounty Lands were awarded for soldiers of the American Revolution - land was called the Last Purchase Tracts which let them into lands in the far western part of PA from about 1780-1800. These are also known as the Original Warrants of Depreciation Lands, 1780-1800	Metes & Bounds Pennsylvania County Formation Map
Texas who went there everyone. Heavy to southerners although they had often been in the south and moved to the midwest and then went to Texas. Many of its first settlers did this via MO, IL, AR Where did they go to various western states including the NW	1716-1836 First land grants in Texas were by Spain & Mexico. Texas gave out headright grants in the southern tradition 1837 Austin established the Republic of Texas Ancestry.com has Texas Land Title Abstracts for original grants. The Texas General Land Office has an online grants database with the digitized records in pdf form	Metes & Bounds Texas County Formation Map
Hawaii Who went there: primarily those native to Hawaii but many different European groups like the English, Scots, Scotch Irish, German Where they went if they went to the mainland they usually went to the Pacific coastal area	Before 1840 all land belonged to the king & chiefs and no one had titles; they could ask for them back. As Europeans began settling a land commission was set up. The king and his chiefs were given their property and other pieces were divided up and distributed in what was called the Great Mahele.	at least some islands used the metes & bounds

Canada
the Library & Archives of Canada have been adding:

Upper Canada Land Petitions 1763-1865 Petitions for grants or leases of land and other administrative records. for those individuals who lived in present-day Ontario between 1783 and 1865. The actual records have been filmed by Salt Lake and can be ordered if you find them in the index

Lower Canada Land Petitions 1764-1841 (New France- Quebec) - the actual records have been filmed by Salt Lake and can be ordered if you find them in the index

Western Land Grants 1870-1930 (Canadian Homestead Patents in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta & parts of British Columbia)

Everything else was distributed through Public Domain (Federal Lands) using township & range but there are odd exceptions like the Virginia Military Tract in southern Ohio which used metes and bounds.

More about Bounty Lands:

Bounty land for military service was offered from the very earliest times in the colonies. It killed two birds with one stone because it coaxed men to enlist AND it promoted settlements on the frontier with people who knew how to defend them which made them a buffer for the more settled areas to the east.

American Revolution

No money to pay soldiers

States offered lands on their western frontiers instead - at that time colonies believed they would have rights to the lands west of them so boundaries in their minds looked more like this

The soldier OR his widow or heirs could apply for bounty land.

The warrants themselves usually have little personal information but applications did have details (especially when it is the heirs that applied. We are starting to see some of the warrants be digitized but the applications are still in the National Archives

Ancestry.com recently has added several Bounty Land databases including many scanned images

the Continental Congress offered 100 acres each - more for higher ranking officers

Of the states North Carolina was most generous - 640 acres to a private in the Continental Line

Of the states who gave bounties Maryland offered the smallest - 50 acres - which means Marylanders often served in Virginia or Pennsylvania regiments in hope of a better reward

In Georgia and Alabama land lotteries were held

Congress was slow to actually MOVE on these promises. It took time to get them going to these new lands. Major land speculators and brokers often bought up bounty land warrants from veterans and resold them.

Most War of 1812 bounties were given in Illinois, Arkansas & Missouri

Acts of 1850-55 gave rewards for any officers & enlisted men who had not already claimed a bounty but had served in a war since 1790 (including Indian Wars)

9 months allowed 160 acres
4 months allowed 80 acres
1 month allowed 40 acres

in 1855 a new act made 160 acres the minimum settlement and reduced service requirements to 14 days (in some cases even less if they had travelled a great distance).

A veteran and his heirs who had previously gotten bounty of less than 160 acres could apply for the balance.
Elgibility was now extended to chaplains, wagon masters, volunteers in Indian uprisings etc.

Bounty lands ended with the Homestead Act but Union officers were given special homestead rights. They could deduct their length of war service from the 5 year residency required to prove homestead.

Anne Livingston @WVC Library