The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 is a fundamental document in the development of the United States. It is outranked in importance only by the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. The immediate purpose of the Northwest Ordinance was to provide government for the largely unsettled lands north and west of the Ohio River. In promising gradual and orderly development of representative government, and guaranteeing eventual statehood on an equal basis, the framers of the Ordinance tied the western territories to the nation with firm legal bonds. The Ordinance asserted the supremacy of the national government in a manner that anticipated the system of federalism of the Constitution. The Northwest Ordinance includes core civic values and principles in the American heritage. It also raises issues in American history, pertaining to slavery, states' rights, western expansion, and individual liberties. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 allows insight into fundamental aspects of the American civic heritage. Thus, it is among the most important legacies Americans have and is worthy of special recognition as part of the Bicentennial celebrations of 1987. (JP)