Legal Definitions - donation land

Definition: Donation land refers to land that is granted from the public domain to an individual as a gift, usually as a reward for services or to encourage settlement in a remote area.

For example, in Pennsylvania, donation land was initially used to reward Revolutionary War soldiers. This land was given to them as a gift for their service to the country. Another example is the Homestead Act of 1862, which granted donation land to settlers who agreed to live on and improve the land for at least five years.

These examples illustrate how donation land was used to encourage settlement and development in remote areas, and to reward individuals for their service to the country.