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

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC01042 Author/Creator: Northwest Ordinance Place Written: [Cincinnati] Type: Pamphlet Date: 1795 Pagination: 11 p. 21 x 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.

Article the Sixth. There shall be neither Slavery nor involuntary Servitude in the said territory otherwise than in the punishment of crimes, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted; Provided always, That any person escaping into the same, from whom labor or service is lawfully claimed in any one of the original States, such fugitive may be lawfully reclaimed and conveyed to the person claiming his or her labor or service as aforesaid.

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