Governor Arthur St. Clair 1734-1818

Arthur St. Clair, born in Scotland, served from 1787 to 1802 as the first governor of the Northwest Territory, which included Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota. He established the territorial court system and Ohio’s first nine counties, including Belmont in 1801, and named St. Clairsville its county seat. His promotion to major general in 1777 recognized exemplary service to Washington in New Jersey during American victories at the battles of Trenton and Princeton. He was a delegate to Congress under the Articles of Confederation in 1786 and became its president in 1787, when it adopted the Northwest Ordinance and authorized the convention that wrote the U.S. Constitution. His 1791 attempt to break Indian resistance to American settlement in the Ohio Country ended in bitter defeat. A Federalist, he disagreed with Jeffersonian-Republicans over the timing of Ohio statehood, leading to his dismissal as governor after 15 years in office.

St. Clairsville, Ohio · United States