For Texas property owners, the history of the state's land grant program looms large. For various reasons, it's crucial for property owners to be able to trace their titles back through an unbroken chain. This article explores the types of land grants that underpin Texas's strong system of private property ownership.
The Basis for Land Grants in Texas
Texas wasn't always a prosperous, populous land. For much of its history, it was a hostile, sparsely populated region that offered much promise but attracted few souls. Since before the establishment of the Republic of Texas, the various governments that have administered the territory issued no-strings-attached land grants to entice migrants to move to the state. These grants provided the basis for the state's robust agricultural economy as well as its nascent energy industry. Later, they provided support for the state's public school system.
Pre-Republic Grants
As a Spanish and later Mexican territory, Texas residents received over 4,000 grants for 26 million acres of property. The bulk of these grants supported homesteads and agricultural operations.
What Is a Headright?
The federal government of the short-lived Republic of Texas and the state government that succeeded it made "headright grants" to homesteaders who moved into or within the territory. The Republic's government issued headright grants for over 36 million acres, and the state freed up several million additional acres. While these grants came with some requirements, they mostly concerned residency issues and demands for land improvement. Settlers were more than happy to follow them.
Classes of Headright
These headrights came in four distinct classes:
- First-class: Granted to heads of household in March of 1836 in parcels of one league and to single men in parcels of .33 league
- Second-class: Granted to heads of household between the Texas Declaration of Independence and the beginning of October 1837 in parcels of 1,280 acres and to single men in parcels of 640 acres
- Third-class: Granted between October 1837 and January 1840 in parcels of 640 acres for heads of households and 320 acres to single men
- Fourth-class: Granted for a 24-month period after the expiration of the third-class grants in identically sized packages
Contracts
Separately, "colonization contracts" were designed to encourage the formation of populous settlements in uninhabited or sparsely populated regions of the state. Such contracts typically comprised 640 acres.
Preemption Law
Designed to encourage homesteading and agricultural development, the Preemption Law of 1845 allowed heads of household to claim parcels of 320 acres by occupying the land for 36 months and making certain improvements. A nominal fee of $2 per acre was required for homesteaders to take formal ownership.
Military Land Grants
A total of 3.1 million acres of land was granted to veterans of various war efforts to which Texas contributed troops, including the Siege of Bexar, the Texas Revolution and the Civil War.
School Land Grants
Private colleges and "land-grant seminaries" received more than 170,000 acres of free land to finance and support their operations.
Internal Improvements
Companies that made certain internal improvements within the state of Texas were granted rights-of-way and contiguous parcels in excess of 31 million acres. These grants generally went to companies that built railroads within the state during the latter half of the 19th century.
After 1900: The Post-Unappropriated Land Grants Era
The era of state-sponsored land grants in Texas came to a close at the end of the 19th century. In the seminal Hogue v. Baker decision of 1898, the Texas Supreme Court decreed that the state was no longer eligible to make grants of unappropriated land to private or corporate landholders. In 1900, this decision was codified by the Texas Legislature in a far-reaching law that effectively set aside all unoccupied lands within the state for the benefit of its public school fund.
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