Under the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, a territory needed a population of 60,000 to qualify for admission as a state.
The Confederation Congress enacted the Northwest Ordinance on July 13, 1787, creating a framework for governing the Northwest Territory, the land between the Ohio River, the Mississippi River, Pennsylvania, and the Great Lakes. The law established a process by which territories could eventually become equal states rather than remaining permanent colonies.
The ordinance initially provided for a territorial government led by a governor, a secretary, and three judges. When the free population reached 5,000 adult male inhabitants, residents could elect a territorial legislature. A population of 60,000 free inhabitants was the important threshold for requesting admission as a state.
The ordinance also promised civil liberties, encouraged public education, and prohibited slavery in the territory. Ohio became the first state formed from the Northwest Territory, entering the Union in 1803. The 60,000 figure applied to the ordinance’s statehood framework, not to the number required to create the territory itself.