[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 14879]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNIZING THE 225TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ADOPTION OF THE NORTHWEST 
       ORDINANCE BY THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JEAN SCHMIDT

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 20, 2012

  Mrs. SCHMIDT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize that 225 years 
ago the Continental Congress of the United States enacted the Northwest 
Ordinance, which in 1787 established a system of government that made 
the territory north and west of the Ohio River the first commonwealth 
in the world whose organic law recognized every man as free and equal.
  Encompassing 265,878 square miles, the Northwest Territory included 
the future states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, and 
part of Minnesota.
  In addition to prohibiting slavery, the Northwest Ordinance 
guaranteed religious freedom and civil rights throughout the territory. 
This federal mandate preceded by several years the Bill of Rights--the 
first 10 Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. The Northwest Ordinance 
was adopted by the Continental Congress on July 13, 1787.
  The Continental Congress appointed Arthur St. Clair the first 
governor of the Northwest Territory on October 5, 1787. Governor St. 
Clair was based in Losantiville, a town he renamed Cincinnati on 
January 4, 1790.
  The first delegate of the Northwest Territory to the U.S. House of 
Representatives was William Henry Harrison of Hamilton County, who 
served from March 4, 1799, to May 14, 1800. He successfully promoted 
the Harrison Land Act, which allowed people of modest means to buy land 
in the Northwest Territory directly from the federal government. This 
contributed to the rapid growth in Ohio's population.
  The Northwest Ordinance established a process for new states to join 
the Union, and in 1803 Ohio became the first state formed out of the 
Northwest Territory.
  The Northwest Ordinance also established the township form of 
government, which continues to be favored by many local communities in 
Ohio.
  Mr. Speaker, Ohioans appreciate their state's history and their 
heritage of equality under the law.
  Today, I want to recognize the 225th anniversary of the adoption of 
the Northwest Ordinance, which resulted in the great state of Ohio and 
ensured liberty for all its residents.

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