What act required farmers to farm for at least five consecutive years?

During the same year that the Pacific Railroad Act was passed, Congress passed a bill called the Homestead Act. The Homestead Act made it easy for immigrants and displaced Southerners to own Western land. It said that people had to do the following to have 160 acres of land:

- Be at least 21-years-old

- Pay a $10 fee

- Be a citizen or have filed papers to become a citizen

- Build a house and live on the land at least six months of the year

-Farm the land for five consecutive years