What 1787 law created the Northwest Territory and set rules for admitting future states?

The Northwest Ordinance was the 1787 law that created the Northwest Territory and set rules for admitting future states.

The Confederation Congress enacted it on July 13, 1787. The territory covered land north and west of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi River, including areas that later became several Midwestern states. It was the first organized incorporated territory established by the United States after independence.

The ordinance created a path from territorial government to statehood. It provided for an appointed governor at first, later allowed an elected territorial legislature, and stated that a territory with at least 60,000 free inhabitants could seek admission as a state. Ohio became the first state formed from the territory, entering the Union in 1803.

The law also prohibited slavery in the Northwest Territory and protected rights including religious freedom, trial by jury, and access to education. It is often confused with the Land Ordinance of 1785, which primarily established a system for surveying and selling western lands.