The Southwest Territory: Land South of the Ohio River (1790–1796)

The territory south of the Ohio River was organized as the Southwest Territory in 1790 under the Northwest Ordinance framework. It encompassed present-day Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, and Mississippi. Governed by a presidentially appointed governor and three judges, it was a step toward statehood. In 1796, it was split: the eastern portion became the state of Tennessee; the western part became Mississippi Territory (later Alabama and Mississippi). Kentucky had already separated as a state in 1792. The Southwest Territory was a crucial laboratory for federal territorial governance.