150th Anniversary of the Homestead Act of 1862- Mark Engler

Join Mark Engler and Blake Bell to explore the rich history of the Homestead Act of 1862 and the impact it has had on land acquisitions throughout the United States. 

Mark Engler is the Superintendent for the Homestead National Monument of America, Beatrice, Nebraska.  Mark has been at Homestead since the summer of 1997.   Following a seven-year assignment at Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, or commonly known as the Gateway Arch, Mark returned to Beatrice, Nebraska. During Mark’s career with the National Park Service he has been involved in numerous special programs, detail assignments and has worked in a variety of different disciplines.

Mark attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where he obtained a Bachelors of Science in Education focusing on both Political Science and History.  

Blake Bell is the Historian at Homestead National Monument of America.  He is interested in how the Homestead Act of 1862 and subsequent land laws fit into a broader historical context of U.S. Western development.  His background is in transnational history and he is interested in understanding the global implications of Western development. He enjoys historiography with a special emphasis on the methodology employed by historians. His research interests are 19^th century legislative history, U.S. immigration and post-reconstruction migration patterns.

Theme music - Sweet Mello Spice by composer / producer Alvin  K. Alexander. (Pianist Ayako Higuchi).