Homestead National Monument of America
![](/Images/godic/202501/18/Usa_edcp_relief_location_map2557.png")
![Compass plant (Silphium laciniatum), on the restored tallgrass prairie at Homestead National Monument of America.](/Images/godic/202501/18/CompassPlant2557.jpg")
![Palmer-Epard Cabin](/Images/godic/202501/18/Home_palmer-epard_cabin_c2557.jpg")
![The Freeman School. 40°17′32.54″N 96°50′31.18″W / 40.2923722°N 96.8419944°W / 40.2923722; -96.8419944](/Images/godic/202501/18/Homestead_Freeman_School2558.jpg")
Homestead National Monument of America, a unit of the National Park System, commemorates passage of the Homestead Act of 1862, which allowed any qualified person to claim up to 160 acres (0.65 km) of federally owned land in exchange for five years of residence and the cultivation and improvement of the property. The Act eventually transferred 270,000,000 acres (1,100,000 km) from public to private ownership.