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Placer County Homestead Claim Records
2230.11.2  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Descriptive Summary
  • Access
  • Publication Rights
  • Preferred Citation
  • Acquisition Information
  • Biography/Administrative History
  • Scope and Content of Collection
  • Indexing Terms
  • Additional collection guides

  • Descriptive Summary

    Title: Placer County Homestead Claim Records
    Dates: 1860-1939
    Collection Number: 2230.11.2
    Creator/Collector: Placer County Clerk-Recorder
    Extent: 7 Volumes and 4 file folders
    Repository: Placer County Archives
    Auburn, California 95603
    Abstract: The Placer County Archives maintains a collection of official Placer County Records regarding the filing of a Homestead Claim.
    Language of Material: English

    Access

    The Collection is open for research by appointment. A separate index has been created for the earliest volumes A and B and is available at the Archives. Appointment times are available on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays from 9-3.

    Preferred Citation

    Placer County Homestead Claim Records. Placer County Archives

    Biography/Administrative History

    California instituted a Homestead Act in April of 1851 shortly after it became a state on September 5, 1850. Land laws in California were a jumble of Mexican land grants, squatters and tribal lands. The Homestead Act was an attempt to unravel the complexities of a population that suddenly exploded with the Gold Rush. In the Homestead books in this collection the early claimants refer to the California Act of April 21, 1851 and later to an amendment of April 28, 1860. The declaration includes the name of the head of household, male or female, the notice that the claimant is currently living on the premises and the claimant’s intent to use and claim the land as a homestead. In an early nod to women’s rights, the California Homestead Act dictated that the property be held in joint tenancy if a married couple filed a claim.

    Scope and Content of Collection

    The Placer County Homestead Claims Collection includes bound volumes and folders of loose pages. The records contain the name of the claimant(s), a description of the property, and occasionally a diagram of the property location.

    Additional collection guides