By the end of June 1883, Antoni Tarnowski had applied for a land claim in Minnesota under the Homestead Act, had filed an affidavit that he was qualified to do so, had paid the initial fees, had lived on the land for six years and submitted proof thereof, had become an American citizen, and had provided the testimony of himself and two witnesses that he had acted in good faith . Only a few more details remained.
Antoni had to file a Notice of Proof, pay additional fees, and obtain a Final Certificate.
The Notice of Proof was published for five weeks from May 31 to June 28, 1883 in the Lake Superior News and stated that Antoni Tarnowski was proving his homestead claim.
Publication of Notice of Proof
Antoni paid fees totaling $6 to process the claim.
Homestead Receipt of Antoni Tarnowski
Antoni received a Final Certificate verifying the details of the claim.
Cover of Final Homestead Certificate of Antoni Tarnowski
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Final Homestead Certificate of Antoni Tarnowski
Antoni now owned the land specified in his claim . The final document that established the validity of the claim and included the name of the President of the United States was issued on January 15, 1884.
Land Patent of Antoni Tarnowski
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Copyright © 2006 by Stephen J. Danko
Tom Tarnowski is my nephew. He told me about your web site.
Thank you. It is very interesting.
Thanks for visiting the site, Lora. I’m glad you found the information about your ancestor interesting. None of my ancestors homesteaded, but it was interesting for me to learn about the homesteading process by following Antoni’s experience!
This is a great explanation of the Homestead process. I have seen bits and pieces of it explained but nothing as comprehensive anywhere else.
You might be interested in the fact that the Minnesota Historical Society in St. Paul has the original Land Office Records for the various land offices in the state. Once you know the date and/or the number of the original application, you can review the page it is on in the large ledger-style books and see who else might have walked in and filed a claim on the same day. I found the published notice in the newspaper and this original application to be interesting since it points to who grandpa’s friends in the area might have been. More “local history” than genealogy, of course.
By the way, the original filing fees paid at the time of the application in the 1880s and 1890s were $5 for 80 acres or less and $10 for over 80 acres. Plus commissions, which seem to be quite variable.
My “homesteader” was Frank Kolkowsky in the Polish community surrounding Sturgeon Lake, Minnesota about 50 miles southwest of yours.