Homesteaders
Frontier land claimants
Homesteaders are people who settle on and cultivate land, typically under government programs that grant ownership after a period of residence and improvement.
The term most strongly evokes the American westward expansion, when the Homestead Act of 1862 allowed settlers to claim public land.
Today, homesteaders often refers to people pursuing self-sufficient lifestyles—growing food, raising animals, and living off the grid—whether on rural acreage or in suburban backyards.
The homesteaders built their cabin before the first winter.
Those who establish homes
- frontierEdge of settlement
- land claimsAssertions of property ownership
- prairieOpen grassy flatland
- wagonWheeled hauling vehicle
sod houses · wilderness · covered wagons · westward expansion · pioneers · territory · claims · log cabins
Cultivating land for food
- cropsCultivated plants for harvest
- livestockDomesticated farm animals
- plowingTurning earth for crops
- harvestGathering mature crops
subsistence · gardens · tillage · animal husbandry · root cellars · canning · preserving · dairy
Government-awarded real estate parcels
- acreageAmount of land owned
- propertySomething owned or inherent
- deedWritten property conveyance
- claimStatement of ownership or truth
patent · surveys · allotment · title · improvements · residency · public domain · filing
Without utility connections
- sustainabilityCapacity to endure indefinitely
- solar panelsLight-converting power generators
- rainwater collectionCapturing precipitation for use
- food preservationProtecting edibles from rot
hunting · foraging · woodworking · soap making · spinning · weaving · butchering · beekeeping
Movement toward rural self-sufficiency
- tiny housesDwellings under 500 square feet
- preppersPeople preparing for catastrophes
- survivalistsThose preparing for catastrophe
- minimalismAesthetic of reduction
rural living · small-scale farming · chickens · goats · raised beds · simple living · cottage industry · artisan
settlers
Those who establish homes
- frontierEdge of settlement
- land claimsAssertions of property ownership
- prairieOpen grassy flatland
wagon · sod houses · wilderness · covered wagons · westward expansion · pioneers · territory · claims · log cabins · frontier life
farming
Cultivating land for food
harvest · subsistence · gardens · tillage · animal husbandry · root cellars · canning · preserving · dairy · poultry
land grants
Government-awarded real estate parcels
claim · patent · surveys · allotment · title · improvements · residency · public domain · filing · preemption
off-grid
Without utility connections
- sustainabilityCapacity to endure indefinitely
- solar panelsLight-converting power generators
- rainwater collectionCapturing precipitation for use
food preservation · hunting · foraging · woodworking · soap making · spinning · weaving · butchering · beekeeping · herbalism
back-to-the-land
Movement toward rural self-sufficiency
- tiny housesDwellings under 500 square feet
- preppersPeople preparing for catastrophes
- survivalistsThose preparing for catastrophe
minimalism · rural living · small-scale farming · chickens · goats · raised beds · simple living · cottage industry · artisan · farm-to-table
- South DakotaMount Rushmore, Badlands, Black Hills, Sioux Falls, Pierre
Homesteadersrenters
Those who lease property
tenants · leaseholders · squatters · sharecroppers · lodgers
Homesteadersnomads
Unsettled, roving people
drifters · wanderers · vagabonds · migrants · itinerants
Homesteadersprospectors
Mineral deposit searchers
fur trappers · gold miners · outlaws · mountain men · speculators