On what date did the Northwest Ordinance create the Northwest Territory?

The Northwest Ordinance created the Northwest Territory on July 13, 1787.

Officially titled An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio, the law governed land north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi River. It was enacted by the Congress of the Confederation before the Constitution took effect.

The ordinance established a process by which territories could become states. It also provided for representative government, encouraged public education, and prohibited slavery in the Northwest Territory. The region later produced the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin, along with part of Minnesota.

The law did not erase Indigenous nations' claims or resolve the violent conflicts that followed American expansion. Its importance lies in creating a durable framework for territorial growth and future statehood. It is therefore a key bridge between the Revolutionary era and the expanding United States remembered by America250.