Homestead NHP

Homestead National Historical Park commemorates the passage of the Homestead Act of 1862, which allowed any qualified person to claim up to 160 acres of federally owned land. The Act eventually transferred 270,000,000 acres from public to private ownership. The park includes 100 acres of tallgrass prairie restored to approximate the ecosystem that once covered the central plains of the United States, and it is amazing to think that it was nearly plowed into extinction by the homesteaders. There are about 2.7 miles of hiking trails through the prairie and the woodland surrounding Cub Creek, accessible via all-terrain vehicle. The park also has an original cabin built in 1867 by George Palmer and a historic schoolhouse. The Homestead National Monument is great place to begin if you want to understand 19th century Americans life on the Great Plains.