Eastern Montana Homesteading

Eastern Montana's population exploded from the Enlarged Homestead Act of 1909. [Click here to read about the original residents of this land.] This act doubled the amount of land available for claim to 320 acres and shortened the "prove up" time to three years. Descendants of many of the families that rushed in to take advantage of inexpensive land still live in Powder River County today.

Homesteaders in Montana faced many challenges, including the arid climate and the need to find water for irrigation. They built simple cabins to protect themselves from the harsh Montana elements. Homesteaders worked all day to plant crops, chop wood, make candles, build furniture, and hunt game.

In the first decade of the 20th century, Montana's population exploded from 243,329 to 376,053, and the aggregate number of farms doubled to 26,214. By 1910, the income generated by agriculture surpassed that of mining.

But this was just the beginning. In the years immediately following this initial burst of excitement, nature and global politics worked hand-in-hand to beguile even more homesteaders to the Big Sky Country. The period of greatest settlement during the homestead boom was also a time of generally ample and well-timed rainfall in typically drought-stricken northern and eastern Montana. Abundant wheat harvests were commonplace. In 1909, total wheat production reached almost 11 million bushels, but in the “miracle year” of 1915, it totaled more that 42 million bushels.

Making homestead life even more prosperous was the coming of the “War to End All Wars,” which ravaged Europe between 1914 and 1918. World War I dramatically increased European demands and artificially inflated grain prices to unprecedented levels. Montana’s high-protein hard spring and winter wheat “held top rank on the booming international markets,” according to historians Michael Malone and Richard Roeder. -- This is Montana, University of Montana

The only personal requirement of the Homestead Act was that the homesteader be either the head of a family or 21 years of age. Thus, US citizens, formerly enslaved people, new immigrants intending to become naturalized, single women, and people of all races were eligible. American Indians were specifically excluded.
The history of homesteading in Montana is marked by a series of laws and promotional campaigns that attracted settlers to the area: 
  • The Homestead Act of 1862
    This act allowed US citizens to claim 160 acres of public land if they lived on, improved, and cultivated it for five years. There were three steps to the homesteading process: file the application, improve the land, and file for deed of title. The first claim in Montana was made near Helena in 1868. 
  • The Desert Land Act of 1877
    This act allowed homesteaders to claim 640 acres of land if they irrigated it within three years. 
  • The Enlarged Homestead Act of 1909
    This act doubled the amount of land available for claim to 320 acres and shortened the "prove up" time to three years. 
  • Railroad advertising campaigns
    Railroads like the Northern Pacific, the Great Northern, and the Milwaukee Road spent millions promoting Montana as a place to farm. The Miles City railroad was completed in 1880.
Additional homestead information: