United States law The law of the United States comprises many levels of codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the most important is the nation's Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the federal government of the United States, as well as v ...

, an organic act is an act of the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

that establishes a

territory of the United States A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...

and specifies how it is to be governed, or an agency to manage certain federal lands. In the absence of an organic law a territory is classified as unorganized. The first such act was the Northwest Ordinance, passed in 1787 by the U.S. Congress of the Confederation (under the

Articles of Confederation The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was an agreement among the 13 Colonies of the United States of America that served as its first frame of government. It was approved after much debate (between July 1776 and November 1777) by ...

, predecessor of the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...

). The Northwest Ordinance created the

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolutionary War. Established in 1 ...

in the land west of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

and northwest of the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

and set the pattern of development that was followed for all subsequent territories. The Northwest Territory covered more than 260,000 square miles and included all of the modern states of

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, and the northeastern part of

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

. The

District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801 The District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801, officially An Act Concerning the District of Columbia (6th Congress, 2nd Sess., ch. 15, , February 27, 1801), is an organic act enacted by the United States Congress in accordance with Article 1, Sec ...

incorporated

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

and placed it under the exclusive control of the

. The Organic Act for the

Territory of New Mexico The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of '' Nuevo México'' becoming ...

was part of the

Compromise of 1850 The Compromise of 1850 was a package of five separate bills passed by the United States Congress in September 1850 that defused a political confrontation between slave and free states on the status of territories acquired in the Mexican–Am ...

, passed September 9, 1850. Primarily concerned with

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

, the act organized New Mexico as a territory, with boundaries including the areas now embraced in New Mexico, Arizona, and southern Colorado.

List of organic acts

Territorial organic acts have included (in chronological order): * The Northwest Ordinance * The

Indiana Territory The Indiana Territory, officially the Territory of Indiana, was created by a congressional act that President John Adams signed into law on May 7, 1800, to form an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 4, ...

Organic Act * The

* The

Organic Act of 1804 Organic may refer to: * Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity * Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ Chemistry * Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...

, with respect to the

Territory of Orleans The Territory of Orleans or Orleans Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from October 1, 1804, until April 30, 1812, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Louisiana. History In 180 ...

* The

Michigan Territory The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan. Detroit w ...

Organic Act (1805) * The

Illinois Territory The Territory of Illinois was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 1, 1809, until December 3, 1818, when the southern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Illinois. Its ...

Organic Act (1809) * The Oregon Bill of 1848, created the Territory of Oregon * The

Utah Territory The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah, the 45th state. ...

Organic Act * The

New Mexico Territory The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of ''Santa Fe de Nuevo México ...

Organic Act * The

Kansas–Nebraska Act The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 () was a territorial organic act that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. It was drafted by Democratic Senator Stephen A. Douglas, passed by the 33rd United States Congress, and signed into law by ...

created

Kansas Territory The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Slave and ...

and

Nebraska Territory The Territory of Nebraska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until March 1, 1867, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Nebraska. The Nebrask ...

* The

Colorado Organic Act The Colorado Organic Act was enacted in Colorado Territory in 1861. It passed by Congress and signed by President James Buchanan on February 28, 1861, and established four-year terms for Governor, Secretary and Legislative Assembly of the territo ...

, 1861, created the

Territory of Colorado The Territory of Colorado was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 28, 1861, until August 1, 1876, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Colorado. The territory was organized in the ...

out of eastern Utah Territory, western Kansas Territory, southwestern Nebraska Territory, and a small portion of northeastern New Mexico Territory * The

Nevada Territory The Territory of Nevada (N.T.) was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until October 31, 1864, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Nevada. Prior to the creation of the Nevada ...

Organic Act, 1861 * The Dakota Organic Act of 1861 * The

Arizona Organic Act The Arizona Organic Act was an organic act passed in the United States federal law introduced as H.R. 357 in the second session of the 37th U.S. Congress on March 12, 1862, by Rep. James M. Ashley of Ohio. The Act provided for the creation of the ...

, created the

Territory of Arizona The Territory of Arizona (also known as Arizona Territory) was a territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863, until February 14, 1912, when the remaining extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of ...

in 1863 from western New Mexico Territory * The Montana Organic Act, created the

Territory of Montana The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted as the 41st state in the Union as the state of Montana. Original boundaries T ...

in 1864 * The

District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871 The District of Columbia Organic Act of 1871 is an Act of Congress that repealed the individual charters of the cities of Washington and Georgetown and established a new territorial government for the whole District of Columbia. Though Congre ...

, amalgamated Anacostia, Georgetown and Tenley Town to the City of Washington; and consolidated the County of Washington, City of Washington and District of Columbia into one governmental unit * The

Act Establishing Yellowstone National Park (1872) Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd United States Congress, 42nd U.S. C ...

* The First Organic Act for Alaska, 1884 * The

Oklahoma Organic Act An Organic Act is a generic name for a statute used by the United States Congress to describe a territory, in anticipation of being admitted to the Union as a state. Because of Oklahoma's unique history (much of the state was a place where aborig ...

of 1889, established the

Oklahoma Territory The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as th ...

* The

Hawaiian Organic Act The Hawaiian Organic Act, , was an organic act enacted by the United States Congress to establish the Territory of Hawaii and to provide a Constitution and government for the territory. The Act was replaced by the Hawaii Admission Act on Au ...

, enacted in 1900, established a government for the

Territory of Hawaii The Territory of Hawaii or Hawaii Territory ( Hawaiian: ''Panalāʻau o Hawaiʻi'') was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from April 30, 1900, until August 21, 1959, when most of its territory, excluding ...

* The

Foraker Act The Foraker Act, , officially known as the Organic Act of 1900, is a United States federal law that established civilian (albeit limited popular) government on the island of Puerto Rico, which had recently become a possession of the United State ...

or Organic Act of 1900, established civilian government in

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

. It was superseded in 1917 by the

Jones–Shafroth Act The Jones–Shafroth Act () —also known as the Jones Act of Puerto Rico, Jones Law of Puerto Rico, or as the Puerto Rican Federal Relations Act of 1917— was an Act of the United States Congress, signed by President Woodrow Wilson on March ...

. * The Second Organic Act for Alaska, 1912 * The Organic Act of the Virgin Islands of the United States of 1936 () established a government for the U.S. Virgin Islands, replacing previous temporary provisions (). It was superseded by the

Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands The Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands is a United States federal law that repealed and replaced the previous Organic Act of the Virgin Islands. It was passed on July 22, 1954 by the U.S. Congress to act as the basis for law in the United ...

of 1954 (). * The

Guam Organic Act of 1950 The Guam Organic Act of 1950, ( ''et seq.'', ) is a United States federal law that redesignated the island of Guam as an unincorporated territory of the United States, established executive, legislative, and judicial branches, and transferred fe ...

, codified

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

as an unincorporated territory and established civilian government ending Guam's administration by the U.S. Navy. The

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

: * The

Philippine Organic Act (1902) The Philippine Organic Act (c. 1369, ) was a basic law for the Insular Government that was enacted by the United States Congress on July 1, 1902. It is also known as the Philippine Bill of 1902 and the Cooper Act, after its author Henry A. Coope ...

, creation of an elected

Philippine Assembly The Philippine Assembly (sometimes called the Philippine National Assembly) was the lower house of the Philippine Legislature from 1907 to 1916, when it was renamed the House of Representatives of the Philippines. The Philippine Assembly wa ...

. * The

Jones Law (Philippines) The Jones Law (, . 416, also known as the Jones Act, the Philippine Autonomy Act, and the Act of Congress of August 29, 1916) was an Organic Act passed by the United States Congress. The law replaced the Philippine Organic Act of 1902 an ...

, replaced the 1902 act in 1916 and created a fully elected

Philippine Legislature The Philippine Legislature was the legislature of the Philippines from 1907 to 1935, during the American colonial period, and predecessor of the current Congress of the Philippines. It was bicameral and the legislative branch of the Insular G ...

. Others: * Organic Act of Feb, 10, 1807, founding the Survey of the Coasts (

National Ocean Service The National Ocean Service (NOS) is an office within the U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It is responsible for preserving and enhancing the nation's coastal resources and ecosystems along the of ...

) *Organic Act of 1862, establishing the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...

* The

National Park Service Organic Act The National Park Service Organic Act,An Act to establish a National Park Service, and for other purposes. . or simply "the Organic Act" within the National Park Service, conservationists, etc., is a United States federal law that established the ...

, establishing the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

and the

National Park System The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

in 1916

References

{{Territories of the United States United States federal legislation United States federal territory and statehood legislation

List of organic acts

See also

References