“Canaan on the Prairie”: New Evidence on the Number of African American Homesteaders in the Great Plains

Edwards, Richard; Friefeld, Jacob K.; Eckstrom, Mikal Brotnov

doi:10.1353/gpq.2019.0036

Cited by 4 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…In fact, there are examples where groups of African Americans were recruited from the South to homestead in the Great Plains, but often returned to the South when realizing the bleak prospects for settlement (Edwards, 2019). 12 Although there is limited data on the African American experience on the Plains (Edwards et al, 2019), there is more detailed data and information on participation by race in the Southern Homestead Act of 1866. 13 Moreover, there is research on its impact on African American land ownership.…”

Section: African Americans and The Homestead Actsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…11 As Webb (1959) notes, by the 1840s migration to Oregon was relatively well developed but there was a "frontier jumping" of nearly 2000 miles (over the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains) that was unique to both the United States and most likely world history. 12 Edwards et al (2019) highlights, for instance, the Black homesteaders recruited from Scott and Fayette Counties in Kentucky by the founders of Nicodemus, Kansas. Nearly half of the first Nicodemus colony "quickly" returned to Kentucky once realizing the limited opportunities in the Solomon Valley.…”

Section: Endnotesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nearly half of the first Nicodemus colony "quickly" returned to Kentucky once realizing the limited opportunities in the Solomon Valley. 13 Notably, Edwards et al (2019) make a substantial contribution to our understanding of how many African Americans homesteaded on the Plains. 14 Lanza (1990) notes that there were less than 68,000 total applications during the 10-year period of the Southern Homestead Act (Blacks, Whites, successful, or otherwise).…”

Section: Endnotesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although there is limited data on the African American experience on the Plains (Edwards et al, 2019), there is more detailed data and information on participation by race in the Southern Homestead Act of 1866 13 . Moreover, there is research on its impact on African American land ownership.…”

Section: African Americans and The Homestead Actsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…12 12 Edwards et al (2019) highlights, for instance, the Black homesteaders recruited from Scott and Fayette Counties in Kentucky by the founders of Nicodemus, Kansas. Nearly half of the first Nicodemus colony “quickly” returned to Kentucky once realizing the limited opportunities in the Solomon Valley. …”

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confidence: 99%

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African Americans and federal land policy: Exploring the Homestead Acts of 1862 and 1866

Muhammad,

Sichko,

Olsson

2023

Applied Eco Perspectives Pol

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We examine the history of US land policy, with a focus on the Homestead Acts, underscoring the precarious position of African Americans during the homesteading period. We discuss the historical context and the shifting political landscape of the Civil War and Reconstruction era, providing the context for research on federal land policies and problems of race. Past research is almost entirely outside of the agricultural and applied economics profession. We believe that the applied economics discipline is especially suited for empirically examining the influence of federal land policies on past and present disparities and racial makeup of American agriculture.

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Section: African Americans and The Homestead Actsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Endnotesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Endnotesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: African Americans and The Homestead Actsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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African Americans and federal land policy: Exploring the Homestead Acts of 1862 and 1866

Muhammad,

Sichko,

Olsson

2023

Applied Eco Perspectives Pol

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Black Americans’ Landholdings and Economic Mobility after Emancipation: Evidence from the Census of Agriculture and Linked Records

Collins,

Holtkamp,

Wanamaker

2024

J. Econ. Hist.

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Large and persistent racial disparities in land-based wealth were an important legacy of the Reconstruction era. To assess how these disparities were transmitted intergenerationally, we build a dataset to observe Black households’ landholdings in 1880 alongside a sample of White households. We then link sons from all households to the 1900 census records to observe their economic and human capital outcomes. We show that Black landowners, relative to laborers, transmitted substantial intergenerational advantages to their sons, particularly in literacy and homeownership. However, such advantages were small relative to the racial gaps in measures of economic status.

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Exoduster Entrepreneurs: Distinctiveness and Segregation in Minority Communities

Ruef

Beezer

2023

Social Forces

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This study examines the creation of Black communities in the context of the Exoduster movement, the first major migration of African Americans out of the southern and border states. We focus initially on Nicodemus, Kansas, a site with well-preserved archival information, and then turn to census microdata on roughly three-hundred African-American communities that emerged in Kansas, Colorado, and Oklahoma between 1880 and 1920. Analysis of these communities informs a general model of minority-majority group relations that is differentiated along two dimensions: spatial segregation and the distinctiveness of business activities. Under conditions of prejudice from the majority ethno-racial group, the model predicts that rates of minority business proprietorship and community growth will increase with segregation and distinctiveness, but that the joint occurrence of these conditions presents an existential threat. We draw conclusions for the trajectories of several well-known Black communities, including Nicodemus, Tulsa, and Langston, Oklahoma.

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“Canaan on the Prairie”: New Evidence on the Number of African American Homesteaders in the Great Plains

Cited by 4 publications

References 11 publications

African Americans and federal land policy: Exploring the Homestead Acts of 1862 and 1866

African Americans and federal land policy: Exploring the Homestead Acts of 1862 and 1866

Black Americans’ Landholdings and Economic Mobility after Emancipation: Evidence from the Census of Agriculture and Linked Records

Exoduster Entrepreneurs: Distinctiveness and Segregation in Minority Communities

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