Organized territory
In the history of the
United States, an
organized territory is a territory for which the
United States Congress has enacted an
Organic Act.
The provisions of an Organic Act typically include the establishment of a
Bill of Rights for the territory, as well as the framework of a
tripartite government. Such a territory is said to be
organized. Historically, an organized territory differed from a
state in that although the organic act allowed for limited self-government, a territory had no
constitution and ultimate authority over the territory was held not by the territorial government but by the
United States Congress. Some contemporary organized territories have constitutions, but such constitutions are distinct from state constitutions in that they do not qualify the territory for becoming a state of the union.
The first organized territory in the United States was the
Northwest Territory, organized in
1787 by the passage of the
Northwest Ordinance, which is the prototype for subsequent organic acts.
Historically, the organization of a territory by the passage of an organic act was typically a prelude to
statehood. In the current lexicon of the United States political
insular areas, a "
commonwealth" is considered a special case of an organized territory. At present, there are two—
Puerto Rico and the
Northern Mariana Islands. Neither of these, however, is an
incorporated territory.
Currently, the following are examples of U.S. territories:
Guam and the
United States Virgin Islands.
*
Historic regions of the United States*
Unorganized territory*
Incorporated territory*
Enabling act (United States)*
Department of the Interior Definitions of Insular Area Political Organizations
