District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801

E2053

United States federal statute organic act

The District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801 was a U.S. federal law that formally organized the District of Columbia under direct congressional control, removing it from the jurisdiction of Maryland and Virginia and establishing its unique federal status.

Aliases (1)

Organic Act of 1801 ×2

Statements (46)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	United States federal statute → organic act →
affectedPopulation	residents of Alexandria within the District of Columbia → residents of Georgetown → residents of Washington City →
alsoKnownAs	Organic Act of 1801 →
appliesToJurisdiction	District of Columbia →
codifiedIn	2 Stat. 103 →
country	United States of America →
created	separate legal identity for the District of Columbia →
dateEnacted	1801-02-27 →
definedTerritoryPreviouslyCededBy	Maryland → Virginia →
dividedDistrictInto	Alexandria County → Washington County →
effect	placed residents of the District of Columbia under exclusive authority of Congress → removed residents of the District of Columbia from the political jurisdiction of Maryland and Virginia → residents of the District of Columbia lost voting representation in Congress as citizens of Maryland or Virginia →
establishedDirectControlBy	United States Congress →
establishedStatusAs	federal district →
followedEvent	creation of the District of Columbia from land ceded by Maryland and Virginia →
governs	civil jurisdiction in the District of Columbia → criminal jurisdiction in the District of Columbia →
historicalSignificance	established the District of Columbia as distinct from any state → marked the beginning of formal congressional governance of the District of Columbia →
implemented	organizational framework for courts in the District of Columbia → organizational framework for local administration in the District of Columbia →
jurisdictionTypeEstablished	exclusive federal jurisdiction →
language	English →
legalBasis	Article I Section 8 Clause 17 of the United States Constitution →
legislativeBody	United States Congress →
locatedInTimePeriod	early national period of United States history →
precedes	retrocession of Alexandria to Virginia in 1846 →
presidentAtEnactment	John Adams →
providedFor	direct congressional governance of the District of Columbia → division of the District of Columbia into counties → organization of local courts in the District of Columbia →
relatedTo	District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871 → Residence Act of 1790 →
removedFromJurisdictionOf	Maryland → Virginia →
signedBy	John Adams →
subjectMatter	federal district administration → governance of the District of Columbia →
topicOf	debates over representation and home rule in the District of Columbia →
yearEnacted	1801 →

Referenced by (6)

Subject (surface form when different)	Predicate
Article I, Section 8, Clause 17 of the United States Constitution → District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871 →	relatedTo
District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801 ("Organic Act of 1801") →	alsoKnownAs
Washington County (District of Columbia) ("Organic Act of 1801") →	createdBy
Residence Act →	implementedBy
Alexandria County →	legislativeActCreatingDCCounties