The Second Continental Congress adopted the Northwest Ordinance on July 13, 1787. The ordinance paved the way for westward expansion and established the policy for admitting future states into the Union, ensuring that they would be on “equal footing” with the 13 original states. The ordinance also established a territorial government, provided for public education, protected civil liberties, and outlawed slavery in the Northwest Territory. These provisions foreshadowed the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
Census data played an important role in the Northwest Ordinance. Once the population of an area reached 5,000 “free male inhabitants of full age,” the area could elect a legislature that would have one representative for every 500 free men. When the population reached 60,000, the legislature could submit a state constitution for approval to Congress. Once approved, the state would enter the Union. Eventually, the territory became divided into five states: Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
Here are a few facts about the Northwest Territory collected by the U.S. Census Bureau:
The Jeffersonville, IN, Census Operations Office, located across the Ohio River from Louisville, KY, opened on July 1, 1958. The facility was first used to process the 1960 census and the agriculture and economic censuses. In 1998, it changed its name to the National Processing Center.
July 21, 2011, marks the 150th anniversary of the Civil War battle of Bull Run/1st Manassas. The battle took place in Prince William County, VA. According to the 1860 census, the county was home to 2,356 slaves and 6,209 free persons. By 2010, the total population had grown to 402,002.
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