Our Collection

At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Northwest Ordinance An Ordinance for the government of the territory of United States, northwest of the river Ohio

Order a pdf of this item here.

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC01042 Author/Creator: Northwest Ordinance Place Written: Cincinnati, Ohio Type: Pamphlet Date: 1795 Pagination: 11 p. ; Height: 21 cm, Width: 15 cm Order a Copy

One printed copy of "An Ordinance for the government of the territory of United States, northwest of the river Ohio" dated 1795. Details new laws on property rights. This printing comes from the first section of Laws of the Territory of the United States North-West of the Ohio. The Northwest Ordinance guaranteed residents' property rights as well as other rights such as trial by jury and freedom of religion. Article VI states that slavery will be prohibited in the Northwest Territory.

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources