Buffalo in Harding County, South Dakota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
The Homesteaders
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, August 24, 2023
1. The Homesteaders Marker
Shortly after the Pony Congress disbanded, an important event occurred, which had a direct and significant effect on the Dakota Territory. It was the passage of the Homestead Act on May 20, 1862, which ultimately was to bring thousands of settlers to Dakota in quest of free land.
The Act provided that any person over 21, who was the head of a family, and either a citizen or an alien who intended to become a citizen, could obtain the title to 160 acres of public land if he lived on the land for five years and improved it. Or, the settler could pay $1.25 per acre in place of the residence requirement.
The sponsors of this law believed that land was worthless before it was improved, and that persons who converted unoccupied land into farms should not have to pay for the land. They also hoped that the law would help workers obtain homesteads (small farms) of their own. The homesteaders were hardy souls willing to risk the challenges of the prairie in exchange for free land. However, despite the availability of seemingly endless farm acres, Dakota did not get off to a stampeding start. Life was never easy even under the best of circumstances for the homesteaders. The dogged persistence of those who prevailed despite the elements, the insects, the Indians, the isolation, the frigid winters, scorching summers, drought, floods, prairie fires, hunting failures and other discouraging factors, began to develop a special kind of Dakota personality — an independent obstinacy; a quiet, almost self-effacing pride in having overcome the adversities when others couldn't.
Homestead Days
By Ella Pond Pugh
Away out here in a homestead shack,
Many a mile off the beaten track,
We plowed and planted the fields of brown,
And waited for showers that never came down,
The sky smiled on serenely blue,
And never a drop of rain, 'tis true.
That's life on a homestead.
Away out here in a homestead shack,
Many a mile off the beaten track,
The wind sweeps by with a long-drawn sigh,
The night clouds pile up in the western sky,
And darkness comes down with a noiseless tread,
And coyotes howl as I go to bed.
That's life on a homestead.
Away out here in a homestead shack,
Many a mile off the beaten track,
The rattlers crawl out in the sunny spring,
And the bobolinks sit on the sage and sing,
Where the meadowlark sits in her hood-like nest,
And hovers her young 'neath her yellow breast.
That's life on a homestead.
Away out here in a homestead shack,
Many a mile off the beaten track,
The blizzard howls and passes in rage,
Across the stretches of cactus and sage,
Where the north wind sighs with a long-drawn moan
Around the shack that I call my home.
That's life on a homestead.
Away out here in a homestead shack,
Many a mile off the beaten track,
We have time to visit and time to live,
And our needs are few and primitive.
We have freedom of spirit and freedom of soul,
And a hope that some day we'll reach our goal.
That's life on a homestead.
Erected by Buffalo
this page online
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical date for this entry is May 20, 1862.
Location. 45° 34.855′ N, 103° 32.779′ W. Marker is in Buffalo, South Dakota, in Harding County. It can be reached from Theodore Roosevelt Expressway (CanAm Highway) (U.S. 85) just south of Connel Street (State Highway 20), on the left when traveling north. The marker is in Centennial Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 91 US Highway 85, Buffalo SD 57720, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in West River. It is also in the American Lewis & Clark Corridor, on the prairies, and on the Northern Plains. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land and also the Louisiana Purchase.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Medora - Deadwood Stage Line (here, next to this marker); The Custer Black Hills Expedition of 1874 (here, next to
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, August 24, 2023
2. The Homesteaders Marker
The marker is on the heritage walkway in Centennial Park.
Also see . . . Homestead Act of 1862 (Wikipedia).
Excerpt: After the South seceded and their delegates left Congress in 1861, the Republicans and supporters from the upper South passed a homestead act signed by Abraham Lincoln on May 20, 1862, which went into effect on Jan. 1st, 1863. Its leading advocates were Andrew Johnson, George Henry Evans, and Horace Greeley. George Henry Evans famously coined the phrase "Vote Yourself a Farm" in a bid to garner support for the movement.(Submitted on June 25, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)In addition to the previous requirement in the Preemption Act [1841] of being either 21 years old or the head of a family, the 1862 act also allowed for persons under 21 who had served in the regular or volunteer forces of the U.S. army or
navy for at least 14 days during "the existence of an actual war domestic or foreign".The new act also required that the person "has never borne arms against the United States Government or given aid and comfort to its enemies"; unlike the 1848 and 1850 laws, it did not have any provision mentioning race. The act gave citizens or intended citizens 160 acres of surveyed public land if they improved their plot by cultivating the land.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 25, 2026. It was originally submitted on June 24, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 19 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on June 24, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
