Land Ordinance of 1785
E45008
The Land Ordinance of 1785 was a foundational U.S. law that established the systematic surveying, division, and sale of western lands, shaping the grid-based layout of much of the United States.
Statements (47)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
United States federal law
ⓘ
land law ⓘ surveying law ⓘ |
| appliedTo | public domain lands ⓘ |
| appliesToPresentDayStates |
Illinois
ⓘ
Indiana ⓘ Michigan ⓘ Ohio ⓘ Wisconsin ⓘ part of Minnesota ⓘ |
| appliesToTerritory |
Northwest Territory
ⓘ
western lands north of the Ohio River ⓘ |
| country | United States of America ⓘ |
| dateEnacted | 1785-05-20 ⓘ |
| definedSectionArea |
1 square mile
ⓘ
640 acres ⓘ |
| definedSectionsPerTownship | 36 ⓘ |
| definedTownshipArea | 36 square miles ⓘ |
| definedTownshipSize | 6 miles by 6 miles ⓘ |
| establishedUnit |
range
ⓘ
section ⓘ township ⓘ |
| followedBy |
Northwest Ordinance
ⓘ
surface form:
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
|
| governedBy |
Articles of Confederation
ⓘ
surface form:
Articles of Confederation government
|
| historicalSignificance |
created a uniform system for transferring public land to private ownership
ⓘ
first comprehensive federal land policy for the United States ⓘ provided a financial base for the Confederation government ⓘ |
| influenced |
grid-based layout of land ownership in much of the United States
ⓘ
pattern of rural settlement in the Midwest ⓘ westward expansion of the United States ⓘ |
| inForceDuring | Confederation period ⓘ |
| introducedConcept |
Public Land Survey System
ⓘ
rectangular survey system ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| legalStatus | superseded in part by later federal land laws ⓘ |
| legislativeBody |
Congress of the Confederation
ⓘ
surface form:
Confederation Congress
|
| purpose |
to provide a systematic method for surveying western lands
ⓘ
to raise revenue for the Confederation government through land sales ⓘ to regulate the division and sale of public lands ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
Northwest Ordinance
ⓘ
surface form:
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
Land Ordinance of 1784 ⓘ
surface form:
Ordinance of 1784
|
| required |
division of land into standardized units
ⓘ
survey of land before sale ⓘ |
| reservedLandFor | public schools ⓘ |
| reservedSectionNumber | section 16 of each township ⓘ |
| shaped |
rectilinear road and field patterns in the American Midwest
ⓘ
survey lines and property boundaries in many U.S. states ⓘ |
Referenced by (4)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.