

Land Policies
After the Revolutionary War, Georgia gained
access to a large amount of land from the Native
Americans who sided with the British.
 The land Georgia claimed stretched all the way
to Mississippi River.
 The Revolutionary War veterans believed that all
citizens had the right to land ownership.

o Georgia’s political leadership agreed.
o The question became what was the best way to
allocate the land to the people of the state.

The first approach to allocate the land was called the
headright system.
o Georgia gave thousands of acres to Revolutionary War
veterans. (ex. Austin Dabney)
o Heads of households (white men over the age of 21)
began with 200 acres and had the “right” to receive up
to 1,000 acres, depending on whether they had a
family or slaves.
o 50 acres for each family member, 10 acres for each
slave

This system ended when there were too many
claimants and not enough land. It lasted until 1803.
 Land
speculator: someone who buys
property expecting that its value will
increase and it will be sold at a profit
 bribe: money paid to someone to get her
or him to do something
 cede: to surrender ownership to land
 The
lure of money led the government
to corruption.
 The 1,000 acres limit was not adhered
to.
o They granted more land than existed to
land speculators who hoped to make a
large profit later.
o This practice is known as “land fraud.”
 Other
land speculators
wanted the vast amount of
territory that is Alabama
and Mississippi.
o Speculators in four companies
bribed legislators to pass a bill
that sold them huge tracks of
land in the Yazoo area
(currently Alabama and
Mississippi) for a really cheap
price.
o This came to be known as the
Yazoo Land Fraud.
o When the citizens found out,
they were furious!
 The
citizens burned
the Yazoo Act on the
steps of the capitol in
Louisville.
 The act was repealed
in 1796.
 The
federal government paid more than $4
million to help Georgia settle Yazoo land
claims
 In 1802, Georgia ceded (gave up) its land
claims west of the Chattahoochee River to
the federal government for $1.25 million
 The
Yazoo Land Fraud changed the way that
land was granted in Georgia.
 The final approach Georgia used for land
allocation was the land lottery system.
o It gave people an equal chance to the land.
o Every free white male who lived in Georgia for a
year was given one chance.
o A man with a family was given two chances.
o A widow with children was given two chances.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Headright system
Land speculator
Yazoo land fraud
Laud fraud
Land lottery
Yazoo area
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Dishonest selling of land
Land that is Alabama
and Mississippi
Speculators bribed
legislators to get land
cheap
Granted no more than
1,000 acres per family
Land awarded by
chance
One who buys land to
sell it for profit