Indiana Admitted to the Union
Indiana became the 19th state to join the United States, officially admitted to the Union on December 11, 1816. Initially part of the Northwest Territory, Indiana's history is marked by the influence of various Indigenous cultures, particularly the Miami tribe, and later, British colonial control. Following the American Revolution, it transitioned to U.S. governance through the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, which laid the groundwork for its political structure and eventual statehood. As the population grew, so did the complexity of its politics, particularly around the contentious issue of slavery. Although a prohibition against slavery was included in Indiana's first state constitution, existing indentured servitude contracts were recognized to gain support from pro-slavery factions. The emergence of distinct regional interests led to a division of territory, ultimately shaping Indiana's governance and societal landscape. The capital moved to Indianapolis in 1824, reflecting the state’s growth and development. Indiana's admission to the Union is a significant event in U.S. history, illustrating the evolving dynamics of governance, territory, and societal values during the early 19th century.
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Indiana Admitted to the Union
Indiana Admitted to the Union
Indiana began as part of the Northwest Territory, located north and west of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi River. Originally settled by prehistoric Mound Builders, and then by the Miami tribe, the area became a British possession in 1763 by the terms of the Treaty of Paris which ended the French and Indian War. On February 25, 1779, during the American Revolution, colonial militiamen under Lieutenant Colonel George Rogers Clark captured Vincennes, the region's most important town. The United States took title to the area by the Treaty of Paris of 1783, which concluded the Revolution.
On July 13, 1787, the Continental Congress (still functioning under the Articles of Confederation that predated the Constitution) passed the Northwest Ordinance, placing the territory under a federally appointed governor, secretary, and supreme judiciary of three judges. Congress provided that when 5,000 free male adults had taken up residence in the region, the people could establish an elected bicameral legislature. Eventually, as planned in the ordinance, three to five states would be carved from the Northwest Territory. As history played itself out, five states were created: Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, while a remaining portion was allotted to Minnesota.
General Anthony Wayne's victory over the native Miamis under their leader Little Turtle on August 20, 1794, at Fallen Timbers, what is now Toledo, removed an obstacle to the settlement of the Northwest Territory. Immigrants quickly moved into the secured land, and on October 28, 1798, Arthur St. Clair, the first governor of the Northwest Territory, authorized the election of a legislature. Both houses of the new body met for the first time on September 24, 1799, and on October 3 they chose William Henry Harrison as the territory's delegate to Congress.
Harrison brought to Congress's attention the inability of the three federal judges to provide adequate court service for the sprawling Northwest Territory. At his suggestion, on May 7, 1800, Congress subdivided the region. The part including modern day Ohio and part of lower Michigan retained the title of Northwest Territory, and the remainder of the vast area became the Indiana Territory, with its capital at Vincennes. President John Adams appointed Harrison, the descendant of two well-known Virginian families, to be the first governor.
Slavery became a major issue in Indiana politics during the first decade of the 19th century. With the support of Governor Harrison, a convention met at Vincennes in December 1802 and petitioned Congress to repeal the clause of the Northwest Ordinance that outlawed slavery in the territory. When Congress rejected the appeal, the territorial government evaded the ordinance by enacting a system of black and mulatto indentured servitude based on assignable contracts between masters and servants.
Indiana's population grew steadily, and in accord with a proclamation by Governor Harrison the people of the territory elected their own assembly on January 3, 1805. Antislavery forces were strong in the legislature, and in October 1808 the second territorial assembly refused to petition Congress for a modification of the ban on the institution. Harrison, who continued to associate himself with the pro-slavery faction, found himself increasingly at odds with a number of the delegates.
On January 11, 1805, Congress had detached the Michigan Territory from Indiana. Settlers in the western part of the Indiana Territory likewise sought their independence. Eastern Indianans, who opposed the pro-slavery attitude of the territory's western residents, also favored separation. Indiana's representative in Congress, Jesse B. Thomas, obtained a solution agreeable to all. Thus, on February 3, 1809, Congress again divided Indiana, creating the Illinois Territory from its western portion.
The fifth Indiana General Assembly, which met from August 15 to September 10, 1814, petitioned Congress to grant statehood to the territory. On April 19, 1816, President James Madison approved an enabling act authorizing Indiana to devise a state constitution and promising admission to the Union. In quick response to Madison's action, 43 Indianans on June 10, 1816, began a constitutional convention at Corydon, which had become the territorial capital in 1811.
The Indiana constitution clearly banned slavery from the proposed state. To placate the pro-slavery forces and ensure their support for the document, however, the framers validated existing indenture agreements. As was common in that period, many whites felt an aversion to blacks that was equal to their distaste for slavery, and blacks were forbidden to vote or serve in the militia.
Indiana's constitutional convention completed its work on June 29, 1816. On December 11, 1816, President Madison approved a congressional resolution admitting Indiana to the Union. Shortly thereafter, Jonathan Jennings became the state's first governor. Indianapolis became the capital of Indiana in 1824, replacing the less conveniently located Corydon.