Cession of Jurisdiction by Original States

New York surrendered its claim in 1781.

Virginia surrendered its claim to the Northwest in 1784, but held on to the area west of the Appalachians until the new federal government was in place. That area became the state of Kentucky in 1792, when Virginia formally vacated its claim.

Massachusetts surrendered its various claims in 1785 and 1786. East of the Appalachians, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New York claimed Vermont, which became a state in 1791.

Connecticut surrendered its claim in 1786 but reserved an area of nearly 3.7 million acres west of Pennsylvania and south of Lake Erie. In 1792, Connecticut granted 500,000 acres of the Reserve, later known as the “firelands," to state residents who had lost their property during the War for Independence. The remainder of the area, approximately named the Western Reserve, was sold to the Connecticut Land Company in 1795.

New York ceded its claim to a large tract in 1782.

North Carolina attempted to surrender its western claims in 1784 but the United States did not accept the cession until 1790.

In 1787, South Carolina gave up its claim to a narrow strip of land running from its western boundary to the Mississippi River. A portion of this claim was added to northern Georgia.

Georgia, possessor of the weakest claim to western lands, did given up until 1802.

These cessions were accompanied by legislation adopted by Congress to provide a government in the ceded areas, the Northwest Ordinance.

Bibliography

"State Cessions of Western Land Claims" in Gates, Paul W. History of Public Land Law Development (Washington D.C., Government Printing Office, 1968) 49-57.