Abraham Lincoln never visited Fresno, or even California. But at the height of the Civil War, he signed three key laws that helped pave the way for the development of the Central Valley we know today. We hear that story, today on KVPR’s Central Valley Roots.
With the start of the Civil War in 1861 and the secession of southern states from the Union, Abraham Lincoln and his Republican Party now had control over Congress. They got to work, not only on war-related legislation, but on other issues connected to the West, and the use of newly abundant public land. Of course, the public land in question had been taken from Native American tribes, but the impact of the federal land policy was undeniable.
First, The Pacific Railway Act of 1862 paved the way for the Transcontinental Railroad through government land grants and loans. By 1869, the transcontinental line was complete, and the Central Pacific moved on to their next big project, building a line south through the San Joaquin Valley, kicking off a new wave of development here.
A second key law signed by Lincoln was the Homestead Act of 1862. It provided 160 acres for a family after they lived on the land for five years. Its biggest local impact was in the foothills and the Sierra.
Finally, Lincoln signed the Morrill Act of 1862, it allowed states to sell off federal lands through scrip to fund new land grant universities. In the Central Valley, land speculators William S. Chapman and Issac Friedlander used the Morrill Act to acquire 80,000 acres between the San Joaquin and Kings Rivers. The holdings of Chapman’s so-called German Syndicate helped fund the development of the University of California, and gave birth to the Fresno we know today, all thanks in part to President Abraham Lincoln.
