In the new states created out of the Northwest Territory, slavery was outlawed.

Quick Scoop

The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 set the rules for how new states like Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin would be formed.

One of its most important rules was that there would be ā€œneither slavery nor involuntary servitudeā€ in this territory, except as punishment for a crime.

What exactly was outlawed?

  • Slavery as a legal institution was banned in the Northwest Territory and therefore in the new states formed from it.
  • The text states there shall be ā€œneither slavery nor involuntary servitudeā€ in the territory.
  • This meant new states north of the Ohio River were to be ā€œfree states,ā€ creating an early line between slave and free regions in the U.S.

Important nuance

  • The ban did not free enslaved people who were already there under earlier arrangements; some enslaved labor continued under legal loopholes and local practices.
  • The ordinance also allowed enslaved people who escaped into the territory to be captured and returned to the person claiming their labor (a fugitive slave clause).

Why this mattered later

  • It set a major precedent: the federal government could limit the spread of slavery in new territories.
  • It drew an early boundary between slave and free areas along the Ohio River, foreshadowing tensions that would build up to the Civil War.

In short, when you see a question asking ā€œwhat was outlawed in the new states created by the Northwest Ordinance,ā€ the answer is slavery.

TL;DR: The Northwest Ordinance outlawed slavery (and involuntary servitude, except as criminal punishment) in the new states formed from the Northwest Territory.

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