Marietta

An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North-West of the River Ohio (Northwest Ordinance), July 13, 1787 — National Archives

The foundational legislation establishing the framework under which Marietta was settled. The Northwest Ordinance guaranteed property rights, civil liberties, and public education in the new territory--and prohibited slavery.

Biographical and Historical Memoirs of the Early Pioneer Settlers of Ohio — H.W. Derby & Co. (Samuel P. Hildreth)

Hildreth's invaluable record of the Ohio Company founders, drawing on personal acquaintance with the original settlers. The primary biographical source for the Revolutionary War veterans who founded Marietta.

General Rufus Putnam Papers, 1775-1824 — Marietta College, Legacy Library

Papers of the Continental Army general who led the Ohio Company settlers and became Superintendent of Indian Affairs. Central to understanding Marietta's founding as a Revolutionary War veterans' enterprise.

Hopewell Culture National Historical Park: Marietta Earthworks — National Park Service

NPS documentation covering the Marietta earthworks (Mound Cemetery), including the history of the first permanent American settlement of the Northwest Territory and the preservation of the ancient earthworks by the settlers.

Ohio Company of Associates: Organizational Records and Land Grant Documents, 1786-1790 — Ohio Historical Society (now Ohio History Connection)

Records of the Ohio Company of Associates, the veteran-led organization that purchased 1.5 million acres and founded Marietta. Documents the Revolutionary War officers who organized the company and their land grant allocations.

Campus Martius Museum: First Settlement of the Northwest Territory — Ohio History Connection

Museum on the site of the original Campus Martius fortification, with collections documenting the Revolutionary War veterans who settled Marietta, their land grants, and the founding of the Northwest Territory's first government.

Life, Journals and Correspondence of Rev. Manasseh Cutler, LL.D. — Robert Clarke & Co. (William P. and Julia P. Cutler)

Biography and papers of the principal lobbying agent for the Ohio Company in Congress, whose negotiations secured both the Northwest Ordinance and the Ohio Company land grant that made Marietta possible.

Ohio History Connection: Marietta and the Northwest Territory — Ohio History Connection (formerly Ohio Historical Society)

State historical society archival and interpretive resources on Marietta's founding, including the Ohio Company land records, the first territorial government's records, and the Campus Martius Museum collections.

The Frontier Republic: Ideology and Politics in the Ohio Country, 1780-1825 — Kent State University Press (Andrew R.L. Cayton)

Scholarly study of Ohio's early political development with substantial coverage of Marietta as the center of Federalist, veteran-officer governance in the early Northwest Territory.

The Land Office Business: The Settlement and Administration of American Public Lands, 1789-1837 — Oxford University Press (Malcolm J. Rohrbough)

Scholarly study of public land administration with important coverage of the Ohio Company purchase and Marietta's establishment as the model for subsequent Northwest Territory settlement.

Marietta, Ohio -- Wikipedia — Wikimedia Foundation

General reference overview of Marietta's founding as the first permanent settlement of the Northwest Territory. Cross-reference with Hildreth and Ohio History Connection for specific details about the veteran settlers.

Visit Marietta Ohio: History and Heritage — Marietta Washington County CVB

Tourism resources for Marietta including Campus Martius Museum, Mound Cemetery (where Rufus Putnam and other founders are buried), and the Ohio River Museum, with practical visitor information.