Land-grant Colleges and Universities
Land-grant Colleges and Universities, public institutions of higher education in the United States that were endowed by the federal government with public lands. These institutions, of which every state has at least one, are maintained through state and federal funds.
The Land-Grant College Act of 1862. called the Morrill Act after its sponsor, Justin S. Morrill, granted lands to each state for establishing or supporting a college to teach agriculture and engineering, then called mechanic arts. The amount of land was based on the state's representation in Congress. Most states founded new colleges, known as A & M's, with their endowments. In a few cases the grants went to existing schools.
The land-grant institutions received further federal support under later legislation, including the Hatch Act of 1887, the Morrill Act of 1890, and the Smith-Lever Act of 1914.