The Homestead Act was designed to encourage Americans to settle in the Great Plains region. This area had been previously considered to be a barren area, but the government was trying to encourage Americans to move lands west of the Mississippi River. By offering 160 acres of land for free if a person lived on the land for five years, the government believed people would then move to this region.

The impact of this law was not a positive one for the Native Americans. The Native Americans had been relocated here in the 1830s and 1840s because the government believed that the land was unfit for settling. However, now that Americans were moving here, the Native Americans were again perceived to be in the way of progress. Many conflicts occurred between the Native Americans and the army and the Native Americans and the settlers. Native American ways of living were disrupted, and they were eventually forced to live on reservations.

The Homestead Act did spur the westward movement to the Great Plains and eventually beyond that region. Many people tried to farm the land that they received. However, life was difficult on the Great Plains as the soil was hard to farm and the climate could be very unpleasant, with very hot summers and very cold winters. As people moved westward, businesses also expanded to these regions to meet the demands of the people who lived here. Thus, this law did assist with the growth of the United States after 1860.