Public domain (land)

Land that cannot be sold Public domain land is land controlled by a government that either legally belongs to the citizenry and cannot be sold or can be sold. Public domain land is managed by a public entity—such as a state, region, province or municipality—directly or by institutes or state companies. It is called dominio público (Spanish), domínio público (Portuguese), domaine public (French) or demanio pubblico (Italian). United States Map of all federally owned land in the United States. In the United States, land is public domain if it has belonged to the federal government since the 13 original colonies bought it from indigenous tribes or from other countries, and has not been dedicated to a specific use. For most of the nation's early history, the federal government sought to promote settlement of the expanding frontier by deeding the public domain to states and private interests through the auspices of the United States General Land Office. The authority for this came under laws such as the Homestead Act, the Timber and Stone Act, and the Morrill Act. Creation of the first public domain of the United States, the Northwest Territory, began an epoch in American politic