Homestead National Monument - Beatrice, Nebraska
Posted by: 
gparkes
N 40° 17.141 W 096° 49.586
14T E 684766 N 4461732
This National Monument has been set aside to remember the Homestead Act of 1862.
This guest book is located at the entrance of the Visitors Center.
Waymark Code: WM85K9
Location: Nebraska, United States
Date Posted: 02/01/2010
Views: 2
In the midst of the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln signed into law The Homestead Act of 1862. While the country was tearing itself apart, the President and Congress of the United States had the foresight enact legislation that would see us into the next century, the foundation of expanding from sea to shining sea.
Operating Hours & Seasons
The Monument is closed on the following holidays: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.
Visitors Center Hours:
Summer Season: (Memorial Day to Labor Day) 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Fall, Winter and Spring Seasons: (Labor Day to Memorial Day)
Weekdays: 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Weekends: 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The trail system and grounds are open from dawn to dusk every day.
Phone (402) 223-3514
Address:
8523 W. State Hwy. 4
Beatrice, NE 68310
History
At 12:10 a.m. on January 1, 1863, Daniel Freeman became the first person to file a claim underneath the Homestead Act of 1862. The property his claim would be is the current Homestead National Park.
On March 19, 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the new National Monument on the property once owned by Daniel Freeman. The Executive Order creating the park states:
"...lay out said land in a suitable and enduring manner so that the same may be maintained as an appropriate monument to retain for posterity a proper memorial emblematical of the hardships and the pioneer life through which the early settlers passed in the settlement, cultivation and civilization of the Great West."
Things to do:
- Watch the park film. Laid out in very informative format, you will learn that it was only recently that the homesteading was only recently ended.
- Take a hike. Three miles of trails are on the property. Arrive at the main visitors center, and walk to the museum.