The University of Arizona, the first institution of higher learning in Arizona (est. 1885), holds the prestigious and mission-centered designation of being our state’s land-grant university. In recent years, the University of Arizona has acknowledged through words and actions that we sit on Indigenous homelands. Nonetheless, until this project, the intricacies and extent of the "land-grant" concept as it relates to our state's Native nations remained relatively unrealized. Each state, including Arizona, possesses a unique history, experience, and interpretation of the "land-grant" designation, and we endeavor to understand ours.
Since September 2022, the Cracchiolo Law Library has been collaborating with Regents Professor Rob Williams, faculty chair of the College of Law’s Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program, to begin to explore, understand, and share the effect of the university’s land-grant designation on our state’s Indigenous peoples. This project was initiated by the provost in response to the thought-provoking exposé, Land-Grab Universities, by Robert Lee and Tristan Ahtone, published in High Country News, together with their accompanying website, LandGrabU.org. The authors shed light on the Morrill Act of 1862, a pivotal piece of legislation that has significantly influenced U.S. educational policies ever since, and demonstrated how land-grant universities across the country continue to reap the financial rewards of land that was granted to them in the 19th century at the expense of Native nations. (Please see the University of Arizona Land-Grant Project storymap for a detailed timeline of Arizona's 19th c. Indian Land Cessions.)
Under Morrill and subsequent related acts, the federal government transferred millions of acres of Indigenous lands to states for the benefit of land-grant universities. This endowment facilitated the growth, wealth, and ongoing success of these universities, albeit at the expense of displacing Tribal nations who have inhabited the land since time immemorial. The University of Arizona is on the list of land-grant designated universities even though Arizona was neither a state nor a territory at the time of the Morrill Act in 1862. Consequently, our team sought to gain a deeper understanding of our role and designation within this historical context.
After two semesters of research and persistent inquiry, the team determined that the University of Arizona did not receive land directly from the Morrill Act of 1862. Instead, the university sought and received federal funding under the Hatch Act of 1887 and the Second Morrill Act of 1890 so that it could complete construction of Old Main and open its doors to students in 1891. Further, the two primary pieces of legislation that provided land to the state on behalf of the university were (1) an Act to grant lands to territories in 1881 (46,080 acres) and (2) the Arizona-New-Mexico Enabling Act of 1910 (800,000 acres). The latter act facilitated Arizona's entrance into statehood in 1912 and played a more significant role in the university’s land acquisition. (Please see the University of Arizona Land-Grant Project storymap for a detailed timeline of historical legislation and events.)
(Old Main c.1891. Courtesy of University of Arizona Special Collections)
The Arizona State Land Department was established in 1915 and tasked with managing Arizona's extensive land trust, including the parcels that were allocated to, and currently benefit, the University of Arizona as a result of its federal land-grant designation.
Through the Bureau of Land Management's General Land Office Records, the University of Arizona Land-Grant Project Team was able to identify most of the initial parcels of land selected by the state together with the governing authority under which they were granted by the U.S. Congress. In our research, we discovered that the land grant was even larger than previously reported by High Country News. We have thus far mapped on the University of Arizona Land-Grant Project storymap approximately 750,000 acres of land-grant-designated parcels. The revenue generated from leasing and selling this land now benefits all three state universities: the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, and Northern Arizona University.
In undertaking this extensive project, the University of Arizona Land-Grant Project Team collaborated with numerous units within our law library, with each contributing significantly during the research and development phase. We also received support from Main Library’s Special Collections team and other entities at the university and within the state.
With the launch of our web-based story, University of Arizona Land-Grant Project: Tracking the history of Land-Grant Enrichment at the University of Arizona, we are pleased to share this distinctive compilation and scholarly achievement with our community, while acknowledging there is always more work to be done. If you have an interest in furthering this research, please feel free to contact the project team at circulation@law-arizona.libanswers.com.
(Screenshot from University of Arizona Land-Grant Project storymap)
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