
American settlement in the Ohio Country came after the American Revolutionary War and the formation of the United States, with its takeover of former British Canadian territory. Congress prohibited slavery in the Northwest Territory
Northwest Territory
The Northwest Territory in the United States was formed after the American Revolutionary War, and was known formally as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio. It was the initial post-colonial Territory of the United States and encompassed most of pre-war British colonial territory west of t…
Full Answer
What was the first settlement in the Ohio River valley?
Mid-17th century: Europeans arrive and begin to build permanent settlements. 1670: Rene Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, a French explorer and the first European in the Ohio Country, discovered the Ohio River for Europeans. 1748: The Ohio Company forms in Virginia to settle the Ohio River Valley.
Why did Native Americans move to the Ohio Country?
By the 1730s, population pressure from expanding European colonies on the Atlantic coast compelled several groups of Native Americans to relocate to the Ohio Country. From the east, the Delaware and Shawnee arrived, and Wyandot and Ottawa from the north.
What happened to the Ohio Valley after the American Revolution?
Two years after the Revolution, the US had begun offering people subsidies to move into the Ohio and Tennessee River Valleys to establish farms and virtually all Native people's in the threatened territories joined forces and fought back.
Who explored Ohio in the 17th century?
When was Ohio first discovered?
How many people were in Ohio in 1900?
What was the 17th state?
How did the Ohio River affect the economy?
What was the impact of the Northwest Indian Wars on Ohio?
How did Ohio become a state?
See 4 more
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What opened settlement in the Ohio territory?
The settling of Ohio began in 1788 with the arrival of 48 members of an expedition sponsored by the Ohio Company, who purchased more than one and a half million acres of the Northwest Territory from Congress. They chose what would become the city of Marietta, on the Ohio River, as their first settlement.
How did settlers get to Ohio?
On March 1, 1803, Ohio was admitted to the union as the 17th state. Settlement of Ohio was chiefly by migrants from New England, New York and Pennsylvania. Southerners settled along the southern part of the territory, arriving by travel along the Ohio River from the Upper South.
Why did settlers move to Ohio?
Ohio was settled primarily by those claiming military land bounties or by purchasing small acreages from land speculators. Rufas Putnam's “New Ohio Land Company” alone used 142,9000 military bounty warrants in exchange for land.
Who settled Ohio?
In 1788, General Rufus Putnam led a number of settlers into Ohio and established Marietta as the first permanent settlement. Soon, many more settlers from the United States moved into the land. The population grew until, in 1803, Ohio was admitted into the Union as the 17th state.
When did settlers first come to Ohio?
1788: The first permanent white settlement was established at Marietta. 1794: (August 20,) Battle of Fallen Timbers near Miami River. General Wayne commanding the U.S. forces, this victory ended Indian Wars in the area. 1799: Ohio Territory.
What was the first settlement in Ohio?
MariettaMarietta is the first permanent U.S. settlement in the Northwest Territory in what would become Ohio, established in 1788 with 137 original settlers. Marietta is named for Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, ally in the Revolutionary War.
What nationality settled Ohio?
Initially colonized by French fur traders, Ohio became a British colonial possession following the French and Indian War in 1754. At the end of the American Revolution, Britain ceded control of the territory to the newly formed United States, which incorporated it into the Northwest Territory.
What was the main reason why most settlers moved to the Northwest Territory?
What is the main reason why most settlers moved to the Northwest Territory? To acquire inexpensive farm land.
Who explored the Ohio Valley?
Rene Robert Cavelier Sieur de La SalleRene Robert Cavelier Sieur de La Salle was a French explorer and the first European known to have seen the Ohio River. La Salle was born in Rouen, France in 1643.
What is Ohio known for?
Ohio is known for Cedar Point, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and Pro Football Hall of Fame. For a day in nature, visit Hocking Hills. Ohio's inventions are the phonograph, gas-powered automobile, golf balls, and Superman. Then there's Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the moon.
What historical events happened in Ohio?
ContentsPrehistoric Period: 13000 B.C.-A.D. 1650.Early Historic Period to Statehood: 1650-1803.Early Statehood: 1803-1846.American Civil War: 1860-1865.Industrialization and Urbanization: 1866-1900.The Progressive Era: 1901-1928.The Great Depression and World War II: 1929-1945.More items...
What nationality settled Ohio?
Initially colonized by French fur traders, Ohio became a British colonial possession following the French and Indian War in 1754. At the end of the American Revolution, Britain ceded control of the territory to the newly formed United States, which incorporated it into the Northwest Territory.
Who were the first people to live in the Ohio Valley?
13,000-8,000 B.C: Paleoindian Period - Ohio's first human inhabitants. 8000-800 B.C: Ohio's Archaic Period - Most indigenous people live as hunters and gatherers. 800 B.C-A.D. 1200: Ohio's Woodland Period - The region's indigenous populace increasingly relies on agriculture to sustain themselves.
What is the oldest city in Ohio?
MariettaEstablished in 1788, Marietta is the oldest city in the state of Ohio, and the first official American settlement territory north and west of the Ohio River. Known as the “Riverboat Town,” it is located at the confluence of the Ohio and Muskingum rivers.
Why is Ohio so populated?
Its population is representatively diverse, stemming from internal migration from the North and South and European influences. A state in which agriculture has been the mainstay for more than 150 years, it now represents the urbanized, industrialized American of the early 21st century.
Timeline of Ohio History - Ohio History Central
Prehistoric Period: 13000 B.C.-A.D. 1650. 13,000-8,000 B.C: Paleoindian Period - Ohio's first human inhabitants. 8000-800 B.C: Ohio's Archaic Period - Most indigenous people live as hunters and gatherers.; 800 B.C-A.D.1200: Ohio's Woodland Period - The region's indigenous populace increasingly relies on agriculture to sustain themselves.. 800-100 B.C: Early Woodland Period
52 Interesting Facts About Ohio - The Fact File
Last updated on March 21st, 2022. Ohio is the 7 th most populous and the 34 th most extensive of the 50 states of the United States. It is a Midwestern state in the Great Lakes region of the United States. The state attained statehood on March 1, 1803, becoming the 17 th state to join the union. Its five bordering states are Michigan, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, Kentucky.
Ohio Early History: Ohio First Inhabitants - eReferenceDesk
Ohio First Early Inhabitants Timeline. 13,000 - 7000 BC - Paleoindians were the hunting and gathering peoples who originally discovered the Americas. They lived in Ohio in the last centuries of the Ice Age. They hunted now extinct species of big game animals such as mammoth and mastodon.
Who explored Ohio in the 17th century?
In 1663, it became part of New France, a royal province of French Empire, and northeastern Ohio was further explored by Robert La Salle in 1669.
When was Ohio first discovered?
The recorded history of Ohio began in the late 17th century when French explorers from Canada reached the Ohio River, from which the " Ohio Country " took its name, a river the Iroquois called O-y-o, "great river".
How many people were in Ohio in 1900?
With the rapid increase of industrialization in the country in the late 19th century, Ohio's population swelled from 2.3 million in 1860 to 4.2 million by 1900. By 1920, nine Ohio cities had populations of 50,000 or more.
What was the 17th state?
In 1803, Ohio was admitted to the union as the 17th state. Settlement was chiefly by migrants from New England, New York and Pennsylvania. Southerners settled along the southern part of the territory, arriving by travel along the Ohio River from the Upper South.
How did the Ohio River affect the economy?
The Ohio River aided the agricultural economy by allowing farmers to move their goods by water to the southern states and the port of New Orleans. The construction of the Erie Canal in the 1820s allowed Ohio businesses to ship their goods through Lake Erie and to the east coast, which was followed by the completion of the Ohio and Erie Canal and the connection of Lake Erie with the Ohio River. This gave the state complete water access to the world within the borders of the United States. Other canals included Miami and Erie Canal. The Welland Canal would eventually give the state alternative global routes through Canada.
What was the impact of the Northwest Indian Wars on Ohio?
Ohio's population increased rapidly after United States victory in the Northwest Indian Wars brought peace to the Ohio frontier.
How did Ohio become a state?
With Ohio's population reaching 45,000 in December 1801, Congress determined that the population was growing rapidly and Ohio could begin the path to statehood. The assumption was the territory would have in excess of the required 60,000 residents by the time it became a state. Congress passed the Enabling Act of 1802 that outlined the process for Ohio to seek statehood. The residents convened a constitutional convention. They used numerous provisions from other states and rejected slavery.
Who claimed the Ohio region?
The Iroquois League claimed the region by right of conquest. The rivalry among the two European nations, the Iroquois nations, and the Ohio natives for control of the region played an important part in the French and Indian War from 1754 through 1760. After initially remaining neutral, the Ohio Country Indians largely sided with the French.
What tribes settled in Ohio?
With them came those Shawnee who had historically settled in the east. Other bands of the scattered Shawnee tribe began to return to the Ohio Country in the decades that followed. A number of Seneca and other Iroquois peoples also migrated to the Ohio Country, moving away from the Anglo-French rivalries and warfare south of Lake Ontario. The Seneca were the westernmost of the original Five Nations of the Iroquois based in New York. In 1722, the Tuscarora, an Iroquoian-speaking tribe from the Carolinas, completed a migration to the area and were allowed to settle near the Oneida. They were considered cousins to the Iroquois and became the sixth nation in the confederacy, known as the Haudenosaunee .
What tribes occupied the Ohio River?
In the 17th century, the area north of the Ohio River was occupied by the historic Algonquian -speaking Shawnee and some Siouan language -speaking tribes, such as the Omaha and Ponca. Around 1660, during a conflict known as the Beaver Wars, the Iroquois nations seized control of the Ohio Country, driving out the Shawnee and Siouan peoples. Those tribes moved further northwest and west, with the latter two eventually settling west of the Missouri River in present-day Nebraska. The Iroquois conquered and absorbed the Erie, who also spoke an Iroquoian language. The Ohio Country remained largely uninhabited for decades, and was used primarily as a hunting ground by the Iroquois.
What is the Ohio country?
The Ohio Country (sometimes called the Ohio Territory or Ohio Valley by the French) was a name used in the mid- to late 18th century for a region of North America west of the Appalachian Mountains and north of the upper Ohio and Allegheny rivers, extending to Lake Erie.
How did the British defeat the French?
The British defeated the French in the war via a series of campaigns. Meanwhile, other British forces drove the French from Fort Duquesne at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers. They built Fort Pitt, which developed as the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at this confluence, forming the Ohio River.
What was the purpose of the Ohio Company?
The English intended to gain control by number of settlers on the ground.
When did the states of Ohio and Michigan become the Northwest Territory?
After negotiation with the federal government, these states ceded their claims to the United States between 1780 and 1786. In July 1787, most of Ohio Country, the southern peninsula of what is today the state of Michigan, and western Illinois Country were incorporated as the Northwest Territory. In 1803, most of what was formerly Ohio country north ...
Who discovered the Ohio River?
1670: Rene Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle , a French explorer and the first European in the Ohio Country, discovered the Ohio River for Europeans. 1748: The Ohio Company forms in Virginia to settle the Ohio River Valley. ca. 1745–1765: Emigrant Tribes come to Ohio, requiring new alliances and “Wampum Diplomacy”.
When did the Lenape tribes come to Ohio?
ca. 1745–1765: Emigrant Tribes come to Ohio, requiring new alliances and “Wampum Diplomacy”. The Lenape (Delaware) emigrate during this period, negotiating with the Seneca, Wyandot, and Miami for new lands in Ohio.
What was the name of the treaty that gave the Haudenosaunee the right to a?
1768: Treaty of Fort Stanwix –Signed by British officials and Haudenosaunee leaders, the treaty relinquishes Haudenosaunee claims to lands south of the Ohio River. While the Iroquois agree to give up this land, other tribes living in Ohio do not, including the Lenape, Seneca–Cayuga, and Shawnee Tribes.
How many people died in the Ohio flood of 1913?
1913: Flood of 1913 – at least 428 Ohioans die and properties across Ohio are destroyed.
What was the name of the battle between the Haudenosaunee and the Six Nations?
1640: Beaver Wars –The Haudenosaunee, also called the Five Nations (later called the Six Nations in 1722), start a campaign called the Beaver Wars, during which they fight other American Indian groups, including those in Ohio Country, for their lands and territories in order to gain access to their fur–bearing animal game, especially beavers and deer.
What was the name of the treaty that ended the American Revolution?
1783: Treaty of Paris –officially ends the American Revolution. England recognizes American independence and cedes all lands in the Ohio Country. 1785: Land Ordinance of 1785 –Establishes methods for surveying and dividing land in the Ohio Country.
What is the culture of Ohio?
A.D. 1000-1650: Ohio's Fort Ancient Culture flourishes in central and southern Ohio. Other Late Prehistoric cultures in Ohio include the Sandusky Culture (northwestern), Whittlesey Culture (northeastern) and the Monongahela Culture (eastern).
Who was the first white settler in Ohio?
New York, NY: AMS Press, 1973. Cutler, Julia Perkins. The Founders of Ohio: Brief Sketches of the Forty-eight Pioneers Who, Under Command of General Rufus Putnam, Landed at the Mouth of the Muskingum River on the Seventh of April, 1788, and Commenced the First White Settlement in the Northwest Territory.
What was the first land to be sold by the Continental Congress?
Northwest Ordinance. The map illustrates the first tract of Ohio land to be sold by the Continental Congress. The Ohio Company of Associates, composed of former Revolutionary War officers and soldiers, acquired the land. The company established the first permanent settlement at Marietta in April 1788.
What was the final phase of the Northwest Ordinance?
No "squatters" or residents who did not own property were permitted to vote. The final phase was actual statehood . The Northwest Ordinance stipulated the creation of at least three but not more than five states out of the Northwest Territory.
What rights did the Northwest Ordinance provide?
The state constitution had to guarantee basic rights to its people, including religious freedom, trial by jury, the right to bail except in capital cases, and several additional rights . The states were to encourage education, but the Northwest Ordinance did not require states to provide public education.
What legislation did the Northwest Territory have?
Earlier legislation such as the Ordinance of 1784 and the Land Ordinance of 1785, had only said that the territory would some day become states and had described how the federal government would sell the land to private citizens.
How many people could apply for statehood?
Once sixty thousand people resided in a territory, they could apply for statehood. The people could form a constitutional convention, draft a state constitution, and then submit the document to the United States Congress for approval.
How many acres of land did a legislator have to have?
To serve on the legislative council a person had to be an adult male who owned five hundred or more acres of land.
Who explored Ohio in the 17th century?
In 1663, it became part of New France, a royal province of French Empire, and northeastern Ohio was further explored by Robert La Salle in 1669.
When was Ohio first discovered?
The recorded history of Ohio began in the late 17th century when French explorers from Canada reached the Ohio River, from which the " Ohio Country " took its name, a river the Iroquois called O-y-o, "great river".
How many people were in Ohio in 1900?
With the rapid increase of industrialization in the country in the late 19th century, Ohio's population swelled from 2.3 million in 1860 to 4.2 million by 1900. By 1920, nine Ohio cities had populations of 50,000 or more.
What was the 17th state?
In 1803, Ohio was admitted to the union as the 17th state. Settlement was chiefly by migrants from New England, New York and Pennsylvania. Southerners settled along the southern part of the territory, arriving by travel along the Ohio River from the Upper South.
How did the Ohio River affect the economy?
The Ohio River aided the agricultural economy by allowing farmers to move their goods by water to the southern states and the port of New Orleans. The construction of the Erie Canal in the 1820s allowed Ohio businesses to ship their goods through Lake Erie and to the east coast, which was followed by the completion of the Ohio and Erie Canal and the connection of Lake Erie with the Ohio River. This gave the state complete water access to the world within the borders of the United States. Other canals included Miami and Erie Canal. The Welland Canal would eventually give the state alternative global routes through Canada.
What was the impact of the Northwest Indian Wars on Ohio?
Ohio's population increased rapidly after United States victory in the Northwest Indian Wars brought peace to the Ohio frontier.
How did Ohio become a state?
With Ohio's population reaching 45,000 in December 1801, Congress determined that the population was growing rapidly and Ohio could begin the path to statehood. The assumption was the territory would have in excess of the required 60,000 residents by the time it became a state. Congress passed the Enabling Act of 1802 that outlined the process for Ohio to seek statehood. The residents convened a constitutional convention. They used numerous provisions from other states and rejected slavery.

Overview
The history of Ohio as a state began when the Northwest Territory was divided in 1800, and the remainder reorganized for admission to the union on March 1, 1803 as the 17th state of the United States. The recorded history of Ohio began in the late 17th century when French explorers from Canada reached the Ohio River, from which the "Ohio Country" took its name, a river the Iroquois called O-y-o, "…
Prehistoric period
A fossil which dated between 11,727 and 11,424 B.C. indicated that Paleo-Indians hunted large animals, including Jefferson's ground sloth, using stone tools. Later ancestors of Native Americans were known as the Archaic peoples. Sophisticated successive cultures such as the Adena, Hopewell and Fort Ancient, built monumental earthworks such as massive monuments, some of which hav…
European colonization
In the 17th century, the French were the first modern Europeans to explore what became known as Ohio Country. In 1663, it became part of New France, a royal province of French Empire, and northeastern Ohio was further explored by Robert La Salle in 1669.
During the 18th century, the French set up a system of trading posts to control …
Territory and statehood
Rufus Putnam served in important capacities in both the French and Indian War and the American Revolutionary War. He was one of the most highly respected men in the early years of the United States.
In 1776, the Continental Army had encircled the British Army in Boston, but could not dislodge it, and a long stalemate ensued. Putnam created a method of buil…
Industrialization
Throughout much of the 19th century, industry was rapidly introduced to complement an existing agricultural economy. One of the first iron manufacturing plants opened near Youngstown in 1804 called Hopewell Furnace. By the mid-19th century, 48 blast furnaces were operating in the state, most in the southern portions of the state. Discovery of coal deposits aided th…
Social history
Rural Ohio in the 19th century was noted for its religious diversity, tolerance and pluralism, according to Smith (1991). With so many active denominations, no one dominated and, increasingly, tolerance became the norm. Germans from Pennsylvania and from Germany brought Lutheran and Reformed churches and numerous smaller sects such as the Amish. Yankees brought Presbyterians a…
Civil War
During the Civil War (1861–65) Ohio played a key role in providing troops, military officers, and supplies to the Union army. Due to its central location and burgeoning population, Ohio was both politically and logistically important to the war effort. Despite the state's boasting a number of very powerful Republican politicians, it was divided politically. Portions of Southern Ohio followed the Pea…
Ohio politics
In 1820, the legislature then passed legislation which nullified the federal court order as well as the operations of the Bank of the United States within their borders. The state ignored further federal court orders, writs, and denied immunities to the federal government. Their actions were considered the complete destruction of federal standing in the state and an attempted overthr…
Overview
The Ohio Country (sometimes called the Ohio Territory or Ohio Valley by the French) was a name used in the mid- to late 18th century for a region of North America west of the Appalachian Mountains and north of the upper Ohio and Allegheny rivers, extending to Lake Erie. The area encompassed roughly northwestern West Virginia, Western Pennsylvania, all of the present-day state of
French and Indian War
With the arrival of the Europeans, both Great Britain and France claimed the area and sent fur traders into the area to do business with the Ohio Country Indians. The Iroquois League claimed the region by right of conquest. The rivalry among the two European nations, the Iroquois nations, and the Ohio natives for control of the region played an important part in the French and Indian War from 1754 through 1760. After initially remaining neutral, the Ohio Country Indians largely si…
Colonial era
In the 17th century, the area north of the Ohio River was occupied by the historic Algonquian-speaking Shawnee and some Siouan language-speaking tribes, such as the Omaha and Ponca. Around 1660, during a conflict known as the Beaver Wars, the Iroquois nations seized control of the Ohio Country, driving out the Shawnee and Siouan peoples. Those tribes moved further northwest and west, with the latter two eventually settling west of the Missouri River in present-day Nebras…
American Revolution
On June 22, 1774, Parliament passed the Quebec Act and annexed the region into the province of Quebec. Colonists in the Thirteen Colonies considered this one of the Intolerable Acts passed by Parliament, contributing to the American Revolution.
Despite the Crown's actions limiting westward expansion, frontiersmen from the Virginia and Pennsylvania colonies began to cross the Allegheny Mountains and came into conflict with the S…
States' claims
Considered highly desirable, the area was subject to the overlapping and conflicting territorial ambitions of several eastern states:
• Connecticut claimed a strip of land across the northern part of the region, delineated by the westward extension of its northern and southern state boundaries, called the Connecticut Western Reserve.
Incorporation in the Northwest Territory
After negotiation with the federal government, these states ceded their claims to the United States between 1780 and 1786. In July 1787, most of Ohio Country, the southern peninsula of what is today the state of Michigan, and western Illinois Country were incorporated as the Northwest Territory. In 1803, most of what was formerly Ohio country north and west of the Ohio River was admitted to the union as the state of Ohio.
See also
• Nanfan Treaty
• Illinois country
• Illinois County, Virginia
External links
• Ohio History Central: The Ohio Country
• Ohio Lands in the History Community at RootsWeb
• Ohio Territory Grant Map
• National Archives: Historical Documents Celebrating the 200th Anniversary of Ohio Statehood