In the late 1700s, the passage of the Northwest Ordinance allowed for the

The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 set up a government for the Northwest Territory and described how territories could become states. The territory covered land claimed by the United States that was also home to Indigenous peoples, so the ordinance enabled the creation of territories and states on Indigenous land. It did not establish the Oregon Trail, which came later.

AI-written and checked against the verified answer.