<P> A land grant is a gift of real estate -- land or its use privileges -- made by a government or other authority as an incentive , means of enabling works , or as a reward for services to an individual , especially in return for military service . Grants of land are also awarded to individuals and companies as incentives to develop unused land in relatively unpopulated countries ; the process of awarding land grants are not limited to the countries named below . The United States historically gave out numerous land grants as Homesteads to individuals desiring to prove a farm . The American Industrial Revolution was guided by many supportive acts of legislatures ( for example , the Main Line of Public Works legislation of 1826 ) promoting commerce or transportation infrastructure development by private companies , such as the Cumberland Road turnpike , the Lehigh Canal , the Schuylkill Canal , and the many railroads that tied the young United States together . </P>
what are two ways that land grants help expand the united states
incentives to develop unused land in relatively unpopulated countries promoting commerce or transportation infrastructure development by private companies