Ephraim Hiram Squire's
Bounty Land Warrant for Military Service in the War of 1812
After
the War of 1812, Congress enacted legislation to reward military service by
entitling veterans to claim land in the northwest and western territories. This
so-called "bounty land" was not granted outright to the veterans,
but was instead awarded to them through a multi-step process beginning with
a bounty land warrant.
Bounty land warrants weren't
automatically issued to every veteran who served. The veteran first had to apply
for a warrant, and then, if the warrant was granted, he could use the warrant
to apply for a land patent. The land patent is the document which granted him
ownership of the land.
Basically, the warrant is
a piece of paper which states that, based on his service, the veteran is entitled
to X number of acres in one of the bounty land districts set up for veterans
of the War of 1812. These land districts were located on public domain lands
in Arkansas, Illinois and Missouri.
The warrants, themselves,
were not delivered to the veterans; all the veteran actually received was a
notification telling him that Warrant #XXX had been issued in his name and was
on file in the General Land Office.
Prior to 1842, if a veteran
chose to redeem his warrant for land, he was required to choose land in one
of the three states listed above. (After 1842, he could redeem his warrant for
public lands in other states.) Warrants
could be assigned or sold to other individuals.
On October 26, 1816 Ephraim
Hiram was awarded Bounty Land Warrant #55
granting him two tracts of land in the district of Vincennes, Vigo County, Illinois.
