The Homestead Act of 1862 lured homesteaders to the open prairies of the Dakota Territory with the promise of "free" land. It was a 160 acre bet with the federal government that the homesteader, for an $18.00 filing fee, could live on and farm the land for five years, after which the land would be theirs. One of the requirements of the Homestead Act was to build a house on the land and live in it. When the railroad came wooden homestead claim shanties, like this one on exhibit, became the most popular type of dwelling. Built in 1882 near Erwin, SD, two vigorous homesteaders staked their claims to bountiful South Dakota farm land.
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