Join us at the Little White Schoolhouse as we welcome Historian and Author John Steinle.

The 1862 Homestead Act fulfilled the American Dream: for only a few dollars to register and survey the property, each family could have its own independent farm on land offered by the government. Millions of people took advantage of this opportunity to start their Western farms. Battling drought, locusts, windstorms, prairie fires, hostile Native people, rival cattle ranchers, the railroads charging exorbitant shipping fees, and the ups and downs of farm prices, the homesteaders were the pioneers who settled the West. Using the Ingalls family of Little House on the Prairie as an example, historian John Steinle will trace the origins of the Homestead Act, how it was implemented, and its tremendous influence that is still controversial today.  

Mr. Steinle will also be available to sign copies of his new book, Colorado in the Civil War, hitting bookshelves on 4/10. This book (and many other Steinle titles) will be available for purchase in the CHSM gift shop.