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July 13
The Confederation Congress passes the
Northwest Ordinance.
With the Northwest Ordinance, the Congress estab-
lished by the Articles of Confederation (see entry for
1781) creates a plan for governing the Old Northwest
(now Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin,
and portions of Minnesota). The ordinance calls for
the lands to be organized first as a territory managed
by a governor appointed by Congress. As its popula-
tion grows, the territory is eventually to be divided
into the three to five states that will join the Union
with the same rights and privileges as the original 13.
In its third article, the ordinance attempts to
clarify the rights of Indians in the Old Northwest.
It promises that the government will deal with In-
dians in good faith and guarantees that their lands
will not be taken from them without their consent.
In practice, however, non-Indian settlers will largely
ignore this congressional pledge, as will most future
administrations.
“The utmost good faith shall al-
ways be observed towards the
Indians, their lands and property
shall never be taken from them
without their consent; and in
their property, rights and lib-
erty, they never shall be invaded
or disturbed, unless in just and
lawful wars authorized by Con-
gress; but laws founded in justice
and humanity shall from time
to time be made, for preventing
wrongs being done to them, and
for preserving peace and friend-
ship with them.”
—from the Northwest Ordinance
of 17871788June 21The U.S. Constitution is ratified.
With its ratification, the U.S. Constitution supersedes
the Articles of Confederation (see entry for 1781) as
the blueprint for the government of the United States.
The document includes only two references to Indi-
ans. In Article 1, Section 2, “Indians not taxed” are
excluded from the population figures used to deter-
mine how many representatives each state can send
to Congress. The clause will be interpreted to mean
that these Indians are not U.S. citizens. In Article
1, Section 8, Congress is given the exclusive right to
“regulate Commerce with foreign nations, and among
the several states, and with the Indian Tribes.” This
section will lead to the passage of a series of Indian
Trade and Intercourse Acts (see entry for 1790).1789January 9The United States takes control of Ohio
country with the Treaty of Fort Harmar.
At Fort Harmar, near the present-day town of Mari-
etta, Ohio, Iroquois leaders meet with representatives
of the U.S. government. There they negotiate a treaty
in which the Iroquois cede most of what is now Ohio,
even though the region is primarily the territory of
other tribes, including the Shawnee and Miami. The
movement of white settlers into the Ohio country
following the treaty will outrage these Indians, lead-
ing to a series of violent confrontations with the U.S.
Army (see entries for OCTOBER 1790; NOVEMBER 4,
1791; and AUGUST 20, 1794).July 7Congress authorizes funds for the purchase
of Indian lands.
On the recommendation of Secretary of War
Henry Knox, Congress allocates $20,000 for the