Statehood

In the Treaty of Paris (1783), which ended the American Revolution, Great Britain relinquished all land that it had formally claimed in modern-day Ohio. The Confederation Congress and, then, the United States government arranged for the surveying and sale of this land. Tensions between whites and American Indians quickly erupted as more and more whites entered the region. Over the next two decades, the federal government, through warfare and treaties, secured the land for the whites. During the first years of the nineteenth century, a sufficient number of whites lived in what is now Ohio for the region to become a state. This officially occurred on February 19, 1803, making Ohio the seventeenth state in the United States of America. Ohio was the first state to join the United States under the Northwest Ordinance's stipulations. Every state established since Ohio has also followed the Northwest Ordinance's requirements with no or only minor variations.

To learn more about this important topic in Ohio's history, please browse these entries at your leisure.

There are 89 entries matching this topic. They are listed below in alphabetical order.

Adena: Adena was the home of Thomas Worthington, one of Ohio's first two United States senators. Worthington also served as the sixth governor of the state. . . .
Baldwin, Michael: Michael Baldwin was an important political figure in the early history of Ohio. He served as the leader of the "Bloodhounds," a group of men who opposed the governor of the Northwest Territory, Arthur St. Clair. . . .
Barlow, Joel: Joel Barlow was an American poet, diplomat and political figure in the early history of the United States. . . .
Battle of Fallen Timbers: The Battle of Fallen Timbers was an important victory for the United States Army against natives in the Northwest Territory. . . .
Burnet, Jacob: Jacob Burnet was a political leader in Ohio in the first half of the nineteenth century. . . .
Byrd, Charles W.: Charles Willing Byrd was an early Ohio political leader and jurist. . . .
Campus Martius: Campus Martius was the name the settlers of Marietta gave to the fortifications they built to protect their new settlement. . . .
Chillicothe, Ohio: Chillicothe is the county seat of Ross County. . . .
Cincinnati, Ohio: From modest beginnings, Cincinnati soon became the "Queen City of the West". . . .
Cleaveland, Moses: Moses Cleaveland was the founder of Cleveland, Ohio. . . .
Congress Lands: The Congress Lands were areas in the Northwest Territory held and sold directly by the United States in the years after the American Revolution. . . .
Connecticut Land Company: The Connecticut Land Company consisted of a group of investors who bought a large part of the Western Reserve of Connecticut in the years after the American Revolution. . . .
Connecticut Western Reserve: The Connecticut Western Reserve was an area in the Northwest Territory held, sold and distributed by the State of Connecticut in the years after the American Revolution. . . .
Cutler, Ephraim: Ephraim Cutler was an early Ohio political leader and educator. . . .
Cutler, Manasseh: Although he did not spend that much time in the state, Manasseh Cutler was a major figure in the settling of Ohio in the years after the American Revolution. . . .
Democratic-Republican Party: The Democratic-Republican Party was one of the first two political parties in United States history. . . .
Dunlavy, Francis: Francis Dunlavy was an early Ohio jurist and political leader. . . .
Enabling Act of 1802: On April 30, 1802, President Thomas Jefferson signed the Enabling Act of 1802. This act called for the admittance of Ohio as soon as possible as a state within the United States of America. . . .
Federalist Party: The Federalist Party was one of the first two political parties in United States history. . . .
Findlay, James: James Findlay was an early Ohio military and political leader . . .
Firelands: The Firelands was part of the Western Reserve of Connecticut in the Northwest Territory. . . .
Fort Defiance: In August 1794, Anthony Wayne ordered the construction of Fort Defiance at the confluence of the Auglaize and Maumee Rivers. Wayne had the fort built during his campaign against Ohio Native Americans to provide his men with protection and as a staging ground for future operations. . . .
Fort Greene Ville: In late 1793, American General Anthony Wayne ordered the construction of Fort Greene Ville, named for his friend and comrade in the American Revolution Nathaniel Greene. Wayne's army was marching against Native Americans along the Maumee River. . . .
French Grant: The French Grant was one of the many land divisions established in the late eighteenth century in what is now Ohio. . . .
Gallipolis, Ohio: Gallipolis is the county seat of Gallia County. . . .
Gilman, Joseph: Joseph Gilman was an early jurist and political leader in the Northwest Territory in the years after the American Revolution. . . .
Girty, Simon: Simon Girty was a notable frontiersman in the Ohio Country in the years before, during, and following the American Revolution. . . .
Harmar's Defeat: In 1790, Josiah Harmar, commander of the American army in the Northwest Territory, was stationed at Fort Washington (present-day Cincinnati). . . .
Harmar, Josiah: Josiah Harmar was born on November 10, 1753, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Although he attended a Quaker school, he did not share the religious beliefs of the Society of Friends. . . .
Harrison Land Act: In 1799, the legislature of the Northwest Territory selected William Henry Harrison to represent the territory in the United States House of Representatives. Upon taking his seat, Harrison immediately asked the House to assist in encouraging settlement of the Northwest Territory. . . .
Harrison Land Act of 1800 (Transcript): Transcript of the Harrison Land Act of 1800 . . .
Harrison, William H.: William Henry Harrison was an American political and military leader and the ninth President of the United States. . . .
Hutchins, Thomas: Thomas Hutchins was an American surveyor, mapmaker and the first "geographer of the United States." . . .
Indiana Territory: The Indiana Territory at its greatest extent included modern-day Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and part of Minnesota. It formerly was part of the Northwest Territory. . . .
Jefferson, Thomas: Thomas Jefferson was the third President of the United States. . . .
Kenton, Simon: Simon Kenton was a legendary frontiersman in Ohio and the Midwest. . . .
Kilbourne, James: James Kilbourne was the founder of Worthington, Ohio and a surveyor, merchant and political leader in the early years of Ohio statehood. . . .
Kirker, Thomas: Thomas Kirker was an early governor of Ohio and political leader. . . .
Land Act of 1804: The United States Congress passed the Land Act of 1804 to create terms for the sale of federal lands in Ohio. This act replaced the Harrison Land Act of 1800, which applied to federal land in the Northwest Territory. . . .
Land Grants and Sales: Ohio lands were surveyed and sold by the federal government, private individuals, and by the states of Virginia and Connecticut. Since parts of the state were surveyed at different times, Ohio was divided into areas called survey "districts" or "land grants." . . .
Land Ordinance of 1785: In the Treaty of Paris (1783), which formally ended the American Revolution, England relinquished the Ohio Country to America. Despite this, the Confederation Congress faced numerous problems gaining control of the land. . . .
Ludlow, Israel: During the 1780s and 1790s, Israel Ludlow was a surveyor and town planner in the Northwest Territory. . . .
Marietta, Ohio: Marietta was the first permanent settlement of the United States of America in the territory north and west of the Ohio River. . . .
Massie, Nathaniel: Nathaniel Massie was a surveyor and land developer who helped to organize the Virginia Military District in Ohio in the years after the American Revolution. . . .
Maxwell's Code: Maxwell's Code was the first comprehensive criminal and civil legal code for the Northwest Territory. . . .
McArthur, Duncan: Duncan McArthur, Ohio's eleventh governor, was born in New York on January 14, 1772. . . .
Meigs, Jr, Return J.: Return Jonathan Meigs, Jr. was a legislator, jurist and the fourth Governor of Ohio. . . .
Morrow, Jeremiah: Jeremiah Morrow was a legislator, political leader and the ninth Governor of Ohio. . . .
North and East of the First Principal Meridian District: The South and East of the First Principal Meridian District and the North and East of the First Principal Meridian District were two land divisions in the Northwest Territory. . . .
Ohio: Ohio is the seventeenth state within the United States of America. . . .
Ohio Company of Associates: In 1786, a group of men in Massachusetts, including General Rufus Putnam and Brigadier General Benjamin Tupper, founded the Ohio Company of Associates, a real estate company. . . .
Ohio Constitution of 1803: The Ohio Constitution of 1803 was Ohio's first state constitution. . . .
Ohio Constitution of 1803 (Transcript): Transcript of Ohio's original constitution, drafted in 1802 and approved by Congress in 1803 . . .
Ohio Constitutional Convention of 1802: The Ohio Constitutional Convention of 1802 drafted Ohio's first state constitution. . . .
Ohio General Assembly: The General Assembly is the legislative branch of Ohio’s government. This body consists of the Ohio House and the Ohio Senate. Ohio’s original constitution, the Constitution of 1803, created the General Assembly. . . .
Ohio Governor's Office: The Ohio Constitution of 1803 established the Ohio Governor's Office. . . .
Ohio Legislature: The General Assembly is the legislative branch of Ohio’s government. This body consists of the Ohio House and the Ohio Senate. . . .
Ohio's Sesquicentennial: In 1953, Ohio celebrated the 150th anniversary of its statehood. The state sponsored a number of events to celebrate this occasion. . . .
Ordinance of 1784: The Ordinance of 1784 was an early effort by the government of the newly formed United States to deal with the territory north and west of the Ohio River. . . .
Parsons, Samuel H.: Samuel Holden Parsons was an American political and military leader in the years following the American Revolution. He was one of the first settlers in the Northwest Territory and one of its most prominent early leaders. . . .
Patterson, Robert: Robert Patterson was a soldier and early settler in Ohio after the American Revolution. . . .
Phelps, Oliver: Oliver Phelps was a political leader, soldier and early investor in land in Ohio after the American Revolution. . . .
Putnam, Rufus: Rufus Putnam was a soldier and early settler of Ohio after the American Revolution. . . .
Real Estate Speculators: Real estate speculators, people who sought to purchase land cheaply and then resell it for a profit, were among the first European settlers of what would become Ohio. . . .
Refugee Tract: The Refugee Tract was one of the early land divisions in Ohio during the late eighteenth century. . . .
Ross County: On August 20, 1798, the government of the Northwest Territory authorized the creation of Ross County. Governor Arthur St. Clair named the county in honor of his friend James Ross. . . .
Sargent, Winthrop: Winthrop Sargent was the first Secretary of the Northwest Territory. . . .
Scioto Company: The Scioto Company was involved in land investment and development in the Ohio Country beginning in 1789. Among the company's stockholders were Winthrop Sargent and Manasseh Cutler. . . .
Seven Ranges: The Seven Ranges was the first area to be surveyed by the American government as part of the Northwest Territory. . . .
Smith, John: John Smith was a clergyman and political leader in the early years of Ohio statehood. . . .
South and East of the First Principal Meridian District: The South and East of the First Principal Meridian District and the North and East of the First Principal Meridian District were two land divisions in the Northwest Territory. . . .
Squatters: Squatters were people who illegally moved onto unoccupied land along the frontier and claimed that land as their own. . . .
St. Clair's Defeat: St. Clair's Defeat was a major confrontation between the armed forces of the United States and the Native Americans of the Northwest Territory. It was the worst defeat of the United States Army at the hands of Native Americans. . . .
St. Clair, Arthur: Arthur St. Clair was a political and military leader in the Ohio country in the years of the American Revolution and the new nation. He was the first governor of the Northwest Territory. . . .
State of Ohio: Ohio is the seventeenth state within the United States of America. . . .
Sullivant, Lucas: Lucas Sullivant was a surveyor, soldier and settler in central Ohio in the years after the American Revolution. . . .
Supreme Court of Ohio: The Ohio Constitution of 1803 established the Supreme Court of Ohio. Initially, the court consisted of three justices. The Ohio legislature initially appointed the justices to the Supreme Court. Plaintiffs and defendants could appeal the decisions of the Court of Common Pleas to the Supreme Court of Ohio. . . .
Symmes Purchase: The Symmes Purchase was an early land division in the region of what would become Ohio. . . .
Symmes, John C.: John Cleves Symmes was a political leader, businessman, and real estate entrepreneur in the years after the American Revolution. . . .
Tiffin, Edward: Edward Tiffin was the first governor of Ohio. . . .
Toledo War: The Toledo War was a border dispute between the State of Ohio and the Michigan Territory during the first several decades of the nineteenth century. . . .
Tupper, Benjamin: Benjamin Tupper was a prominent early settler of the Northwest Territory. . . .
United States of America v. Langham & Johnston: The court case United States of America v. Langham & Johnston illustrates the poor status of the legal system in the Northwest Territory and in the wider United States of America during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. . . .
Virginia Military District: In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, the Virginia Military District was an early land division in what would eventually become Ohio. . . .
Wayne, Anthony: Anthony Wayne was an important American military leader during and after the American Revolution. . . .
Western Reserve: The Connecticut Western Reserve (also known as the Western Reserve) was an area in the Northwest Territory held, sold and distributed by the State of Connecticut in the years after the American Revolution. . . .
Worthington, Thomas: Thomas Worthington was an early Midwestern political leader and the sixth governor of Ohio. . . .
Zane's Trace: Zane's Trace was an early road in the Northwest Territory that connected Wheeling, Virginia, to Limestone, Kentucky (present-day Maysville). . . .
Zane, Ebenezer: Ebenezer Zane was an early settler and town builder in the Ohio Country in the years after the American Revolution. . . .