Northwest Ordinance
E38719
The Northwest Ordinance was a 1787 act of the U.S. Congress that established the process for governing and admitting new states from the Northwest Territory, setting important precedents for westward expansion and the prohibition of slavery in that region.
Aliases (4)
Statements (62)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
United States federal law
→
foundational territorial ordinance → organic act → |
| allows | fugitive slave rendition from the Northwest Territory → |
| alsoKnownAs |
Northwest Ordinance
→
surface form: "An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio"
Northwest Ordinance →
surface form: "Ordinance of 1787"
|
| appliesToTerritory | Northwest Territory → |
| articleCount | 6 → |
| constitutionalStatus | considered one of the organic laws of the United States → |
| containsProvision | Bill of Rights for inhabitants of the territory → |
| country | United States of America → |
| dateEnacted | 1787-07-13 → |
| declares | religion, morality, and knowledge necessary to good government and happiness → |
| definesTerritorialGovernmentFor | Northwest Territory → |
| encourages | schools and means of education → |
| establishesPopulationThreshold |
5000 free male inhabitants for territorial legislature
→
60000 free inhabitants for statehood application → |
| establishesProcessFor |
creation of territorial governments
→
transition from territory to statehood → |
| geographicScope |
lands east of the Mississippi River
→
lands north of the Ohio River → lands south of the Great Lakes → |
| guaranteesRight |
due process of law in the Northwest Territory
→
freedom of religion in the Northwest Territory → habeas corpus in the Northwest Territory → proportionate representation in the legislature → right to trial by jury in the Northwest Territory → |
| historicalSignificance |
first major federal restriction on slavery
→
model for later territorial ordinances → set precedent for westward expansion → |
| influencedBy |
American Revolutionary principles
→
Enlightenment philosophy →
surface form: "Enlightenment political thought"
|
| influences |
United States territorial law
→
surface form: "United States territorial policy"
admission of Midwestern states → |
| laterAffirmedBy |
United States Congress
→
surface form: "United States Congress under the Constitution"
|
| leadsToCreationOf |
Illinois
→
surface form: "State of Illinois"
Indiana →
surface form: "State of Indiana"
Michigan →
surface form: "State of Michigan"
Ohio →
surface form: "State of Ohio"
Wisconsin →
surface form: "State of Wisconsin"
part of the State of Minnesota → |
| legalStatus | organic law of territorial expansion → |
| legislativeBody | Congress of the Confederation → |
| predecessor | Land Ordinance of 1785 → |
| principle |
encouragement of public education
→
federal sovereignty over territories prior to statehood → new states admitted on equal footing with original states → |
| prohibits |
cruel and unusual punishments in the Northwest Territory
→
excessive fines in the Northwest Territory → slavery in the Northwest Territory → |
| ratifiedUnder | Articles of Confederation → |
| relatedDocument |
Land Ordinance of 1784
→
United States Constitution → |
| relatedEvent | American westward expansion → |
| section |
Article I
→
Article II → Article III → Article IV → Article V → Article VI → |
| setsPrecedentFor | admission of new states on equal footing → |
| yearEnacted | 1787 → |
Referenced by (15)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form: "Ordinance of 1787"
this entity surface form: "An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio"
this entity surface form: "Northwest Ordinance of 1787"
this entity surface form: "Northwest Ordinance of 1787"
this entity surface form: "Ordinance of 1787"
this entity surface form: "Ordinance of 1787"
this entity surface form: "Northwest Ordinance era"
this entity surface form: "Northwest Ordinance of 1787"
this entity surface form: "Northwest Ordinance of 1787"
this entity surface form: "Northwest Ordinance of 1787"