Ohio Company (1786-1796)

Land company founded in Boston in 1786 and organized for the purchase and settlement of lands on the Ohio River. In 1787, the Continental Congress of the United States contracted to sell a large tract of land in southeastern Ohio to the company, an agreement known as the Ohio Company Purchase, with the company ultimately acquiring ca. 1,128,168 acres in two seperate purchases. In 1796 the company divided its shares and ceased to be a significant land company.

Company formed Mar. 1, 1786, by Revolutionary War officers to raise capital for the acquisition and settlement of federal lands northwest of the Ohio River.

Subscribers, who purchased shares for $1,000 Continental specie (often partially in military bounty land warrants) and $10 silver or gold, were formed into divisions comprising twenty shares. Each division appointed an agent to transact its subscribers' business with the company, and the agents in turn voted for the company's officers. While Ohio Company lands were settled slowly, in 1788 the firm was successful in founding Marietta, Ohio, under the leadership of Rufus Putnam.