Please join us at East Muskingum Park in front of the Start Westward  Memorial at 10:30 am Thursday, July 13 for a program commemorating the Northwest Ordinance of 1787. WEAR DEM SHIRTS OR GEAR TO SHOW OUR PRIDE.

General Info:

1 . The Ordinance was passed in 1787. It predates the Constitution.

2 It was the first legislation that framed a plan for governing the territories “North West of the River Ohio.”

3. From this act 7 states were admitted to the Union. Ohio was the first.

4. The legislation contained  language the banned slavery, supported public education for all and  religious  and civil freedoms. 

“The Northwest Ordinance, officially titled "An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States North West of the River Ohio," was adopted by the Confederation Congress on July 13, 1787. Also known as the Ordinance of 1787, the Northwest Ordinance established a government for the Northwest Territory, outlined the process for admitting a new state to the Union, and guaranteed that newly created states would be equal to the original thirteen states. Considered one of the most important legislative acts of the Confederation Congress, the Northwest Ordinance also protected civil liberties and outlawed slavery in the new territories.” (Library of Congress)