November 16th Nancy Gillis, historian The Homestead Act and the Plains Tribes Opening the Great Plains to settlement had far-reaching impacts on the Native tribes, both positive and negative. This program explores the changes in political and economic structures, gender roles, spiritual ways, and other cultural components both in the years prior to and following pivotal pieces of legislation in 1862 – the Homestead Act, transcontinental railroad acts, and the Morrill Land Grant Act.