Land Distribution Headright System and Yazoo Land Fraud

The Headright System • Under the headright system, each “head” of household had a “right” to a certain amount of land. • The head of a family was entitled to 200 acres of unclaimed land. • 50 additional acres were granted for each family member and slave. • Up to 1000 acres could be held by one family.

The benefits of military service • Under the headright system, veterans of the American Revolution received additional land to compensate them for their service to the country. • High ranking generals received an additional 1, 955 acres. • Privates received an additional 288 acres.

Plats • A plat is a map of a land lot. • Plats of the headright days show that properties were a mix of irregular shapes. • Who determined the shape of a headright’s land?

Headright System (summary) What? • System to give away land to heads of households and Revolutionary War veterans How much? • 200 -1000 acres per family PLUS additional land for war veterans When? • 1733 -around 1800 (officially 1790 but continued even until 1908) Where? • Eastern Georgia (east of the Oconee River) Who? • White male heads of household and war veterans Effects on Georgia: population growth; increase in agriculture; developed land; Native Americans lose land; increase in slavery

Yazoo Land Fraud • In 1795, four companies bribed many members of the General Assembly to pass a special law. • This law allowed the companies to buy 35 million acres of land along the Yazoo River, in Georgia’s western frontier. • Much of what is now Alabama and Mississippi was sold to these companies for less than 2 -cents per acre!

• The bargain land was then sold to the public at a huge profit. Some of the land was sold to other companies, and some to innocent citizens who planned to move to the frontier. • When people in Georgia heard of the land fraud, they demanded justice. Some legislators, fearing for their lives, fled the state. • One legislator who vowed that he would repeal the act said he was “prepared to call out and shoot every person involved in passing the act. ”

Aftermath • Georgia asked the US Government to get involved. • The Georgia legislature offered to pay the settlers and companies for the land that they purchased. (But some didn’t want to leave!) • Georgia agreed to cede the land to the United States (for $1. 25 million) • The United States promised to remove all of the Indians so white settlers could move in.

Aftermath • Voters voted out the corrupt legislators and elected new ones to clean up the mess. • All copies of the “Yazoo Act” (except one) were gathered in front of the capital on February 21, 1796 and “consumed by Holy Fire from Heaven. ” (with the help of a magnifying glass)

Aftermath • Those people who didn’t want to give up their land settlements took the case to the U. S. Supreme court. • It was finally resolved in 1814 (19 years later) when the U. S. government took over the territory and paid the claims ($4 million) • For decades afterwards, politicians used the government’s promise to remove the Indians as a political tool. • Georgia’s western boundary became the Chattahoochee River.

Yazoo Land Fraud (summary) What? • System to sell land • members of General Assembly were bribed to sell land to 4 land companies for around 1½ cents an acre How much? • 30 -35 million acres ($500, 000 for 35 million acres) When? • 1794 -1802 Where? • Present day Alabama and Mississippi

YLF (continued) Who? • Georgia legislators; 4 land companies who then sold it Effects on Georgia: • Native Americans lose land • Georgia lost territory – western boundary became the Chattahoochee River • Georgia’s reputation was damaged • federal government paid $4 million to settle claims and $1. 25 million to purchase the disputed land • U. S. promised to remove all Indians in Georgia’s remaining boundary • legislators lost jobs • new legislators repealed the Yazoo Land Act and burned documents in Louisville (with “fire from heaven”)