Final answer:
The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 was passed to organize the Northwest Territory and set rules for statehood and land division, banning slavery and providing for education.
Step-by-step explanation:
Following the cession of the Northwest Territory by several states, the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 was passed to organize and govern the territory. This key legislation provided a structured way for the settlement and eventual statehood of the Northwest Territory, which included what would become the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. The ordinance mapped out a strategy for development, established a Bill of Rights for the settlers, created an orderly method for the admission of new states to the Union, and importantly, it banned slavery within the territory. The land division, such as the Land Ordinance of 1785 which preceded it, set forth a systematic township grid that would deeply shape the pattern of settlement in the region and secure provisions for public education with lands set aside in each township for schools.