Which 1787 law created a government for the United States Northwest Territory?

The Northwest Ordinance created a government for the United States Northwest Territory in 1787.

The Confederation Congress adopted the law on July 13, 1787. It organized lands north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi River, establishing a process by which territories could become states.

The ordinance divided the territory into stages of administration. A governor and judges initially governed it; when the population reached a specified threshold, settlers could form an elected legislature. Once a territory reached 60,000 free inhabitants, it could seek admission as a state on an equal footing with existing states.

The law also protected certain civil liberties, encouraged public education, and prohibited slavery in the territory. That prohibition did not end slavery in the United States, but it created an important boundary for the institution’s expansion. The territory eventually produced Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota.