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Land Ordinance of 1785, Northwest Ordinance of 1781, Shay's Rebellion
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“Shaping a Federal Union” June 8, 2003 The Land Ordinance of 1785 was a law that was passed by Congress which allowed land to be sold in the Northwest Territory and set up the standards for the sale of land that became precedents. Among them was the idea to sell mile-square sections of land. The Northwest was surveyed into townships six miles square in north, south, east, west lines. These townships were divided into 36 sections one mile square. The land, which amounted to 640 acres sections, where auctioned off for under $ 1.00 per acre or $640.00 for all of the sections. The goal of the Land Ordinance of 1785 was to bring more settlers, to help the economy grow, and to help raise an extremely low deficit. For several years the question of what to do with the land had been debated. Finally the Land Ordinance would help divide the land accordingly in more precise units of measurements rather than the usual metes and bounds. Surveying began in seven ranges west of the Ohio River. This land had previously belonged to the Indians, but recent treaties had voided their titles to the land. The rectangular pattern used to measure out the land can still be seen from the air. The Congress reserved the income from the sixteenth section to help support the schools even though public schools were rare. In 1787 the Confederation Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance. This act specified how the land was to be divided into states, and helped created a governmental system for the northwest territories.
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