Eli Whitney was born on the eighth of December in the year 1765 in Westborough, Massachusetts. He was known as an engineer and manufacturer; however more importantly he was known as “the third-best American inventor during the pre-atomic age” (Inventor of the Week). Even as a child Whitney showed interest in machinery. During Whitney’s youth, he invented the nail-making machine, and later in life he devised the first milling machine, pain lessening devices for himself, and the idea of interchangeable parts, and “the father of the mass production method” (Whitney Museum). Although he invented a wide variety of machines and devices, the invention of the cotton gin (short for cotton engine) is what he is most known for.
In 1793, Eli Whitney came in contact with a widow named Catherine Greene, whom was once married to Revolutionary War general, Nathanael Greene. At that time, she owned her a plantation near Savannah, Georgia; Mulberry Grove. At the time in which they met, Whitney was on his route to his new tutor job in South Carolina, but when he became aware that his pay would be split in half, he chose to take up Catherine Greene on her offer for him to teach law at Mulberry Grove. While tutoring at the plantation, Whitney could see how inefficient cotton production really was in the South. During the winter of 1792-1793, Eli Whitney spent his time devising a plan to improve cotton production. In the spring of 1793, he had completed his invention of the cotton gin.
Before the invention of the cotton gin, the cotton process had to be done by manual labor. Which meant, men and women slaves had to spend hours picking the seeds out of the cotton by hand and then spinning the cotton into fabric. “To sift out a single ‘point’ of cotto...
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... the fiber and package it into bales before it reaches the textile mill” (History of Cotton Gin). There are many types of cotton, therefore different cotton gins are used. Some use both saw and roller gins, but others may use only one depending on the cotton. The roller gin is used when the cotton fiber is easily damaged by the saw gin.
As once stated, “It wouldn’t have been possible to establish the cotton industry in the South without this device” (Biography). Eli Whitney helped lead cotton to the top of the cash crops. By inventing such an efficient way, he improved cotton production by a numerous amount of time. “The invention of the cotton gin is one of the many inventions during the Industrial Revolution” (Wilmore). Cotton gins can be found throughout the United States in today’s time; therefore it shows that Whitney’s invention truly impacted our society.
Before the American civil war, the Southerner’s economy had almost entirely been constructed on slave and cash crop agriculture. The cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney. The cotton gin was a contraption that transmogrified the fabrication of cotton by significantly making the task of removing seeds from the cotton fiber faster. The invention benefitted the slaves because it saved the slaves
Eli Whitney (A.K.A the Father of Mass Production) realized unlike the long staple, black seed cotton, which seeds came out rather easily, that only grew on the coast, the green seed, short staple cotton’s seed were not out to release from the fibers easily. He and the manager of the plantation constructed a prototype model in a secret garage. It had four compartments; (1) a hopper which feeds the cotton into the gin, (2) a revolving cylinder that had hundreds of short wire hooks set to match fine grooves cut in, (3) stationary breastwork with pulled out the seeds while the fibers flow through, (4) and lastly, a cylinder set with bristles that got the cotton off the bristles. He got that patented in 1794, but kept working at new things. Taking over 10 years to complete, he created a machine that can create muskets from a pile of musket parts. This is what deemed him the father of mass
Eli Whitney was the inventor of the cotton gin and a pioneer in the mass production of cotton. Whitney was born in Westboro , Massachusetts., on Dec. 8, 1765, and died on Jan. 8, 1825. He graduated from Yale College in 1792. By April 1793, Whitney had designed and constructed the cotton gin, a machine that automated the separation of cottonseed from the short-staple cotton fiber.
Thompson, Jennifer. Cotton, Ronald. “Picking Cotton.” Ferris State University. Williams Auditorium, Big Rapids, MI. 15 April 2014. Guest Lecture.
America’s economies and regions were becoming more connected than ever, which also contributed to a resulting better economy. However, the dependence on agriculture and slavery in the South resulted in further sectionalism and isolating ties to England. Though the connection between the Midwest and the North was strong due to numerous railroads, canals, and paved roads, the South was not as included in the new Market Revolution that was taking place. In addition to this, the South barely traded with any of the other regions. In fact, the South exported most of its cotton to England, and imported foreign goods more than any other region. Only connected to England, the South cut off a substantial amount of ties with its American sister regions. Slavery also contributed to the economy of the South. The only region that relied on slaves, the South was the minority when it came to favoring the peculiar institution. The invention of Eli Whitney’s Cotton Gin revived the need for slavery in the South which made the picking and production of cotton faster and more profitable that it was before. In the South, “Cotton was King,” and because of this, the
The reason why slavery spread into the cotton kingdom after revolution is because the tobacco income plummeted as white setters from Virginia and Carolinas forcing the original Native Americans inhabitants farther and farther west where they established plantations. The wide spread use of the cotton gin invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, made these cotton plantations more efficient and profitable. Around 1820, slavery was concentrated in tobacco growing areas of Virginia, Kentucky along coastal region of South Carolina and Northern Georgia and in 1860s it spread deep in the South (Alabama, Texas, Louisiana) following the spread of cotton.
Along with Whitney's cotton gin, inventions in society came about. This was a stark contrast to pre Jacksonian rule out of which few inventions came: The decade ending in 1800 saw only 306 patents, while the decade ending in 1860 saw 26,000 patents. Elias Howe and Isaac Singer contributed to the clothing industry with their 1846 invention of the sewing machine. This contributed to northern industrialization, and when combined with the power of steam to produce an automatic sewing machine, it was capable of producing clothing on its own in large quantities with little supervision. John Deere helped to revolutionize farming once more with his invention of the steel plow in 1837. This plow enabled the "virgin soil" of Western lands to be broken, furthering agriculture. It was also light enough to be horse-drawn, which meant it was easily maneuverable. Cyrus McCormick's 1831 horse-drawn grass reaper enabled one man to do the work of five. This caused an abundance of cash crops to be produced.
The cotton gin is a mechanical device that removes the seeds from cotton without the labor-intensive struggles. The cotton gin was a wooden drum with hooks that pulled
The "technological retardist" theories are strongest in considering the erosion of "King Cotton` s" pre eminence, due in part to America` s competition and, the critics suggest, the British cotton manager` s lack of judgement. It is said that the slow adoption of the ring spindle in spinning, and the low uptake of the automatic loom in weaving seriously hampered those industries` competitive edge.
Well, I may as well begin in the beginning . . . you know what I mean. Mr. Whitney was born on December 8, 1769 in Westborough, Massachusetts. He was one of the first great American inventors. It probably began early on because he always enjoyed toying with objects. He loved to build and take apart items. When he was twelve, he made a violin. Shortly after, when he was in his teens, he established a prominent nail making business.
Lee De Forest was born Aug. 26, 1873, Council Bluffs, Iowa. De Forest was the son of a Congregational minister. His father moved the family to Alabama and there assumed the presidency of the nearly bankrupt Talladega College for Negroes. Excluded by citizens of the white community who resented his father's efforts to educate blacks, Lee and his brother and sister made friends from among the black children of the town and spent a happy although sternly disciplined childhood in this rural community. (Kraeuter, 74). As a child he was fascinated with machinery and was often excited when hearing of the many technological advances during the late 19th century. He began tinkering and inventing things even in high school, often trying to build things that he could sell for money. By the age of 13 he was an enthusiastic inventor of mechanical gadgets such as a miniature blast furnace and locomotive, and a working silverplating apparatus. (A Science Odyssey: People and Discoveries).
The cotton gin was invented in 1793 by Eli Whitney while he was in Georgia working as a tutor for Catherine Greene. After looking at the slaves working tiresomely trying to remov...
In the 1800's the construction of cotton mills brought about a new phenomenon in American labor. The owners needed a new source of labor to tend these water powered machines and looked to women. Since these jobs didn't need strength or special skills th...
Every child has had something that influenced them to become more in life. It could have been a toy car to a doll, a family member or a friend; it made them want to find a higher calling in the world. For Garrett Morgan, it was the sewing machine. Introduced to the sewing machine at a young age, Garrett continued to become more curious about the works of such a compelling contraption. He observed different problems surrounding his community and found a way to make it better. Although he had lacked education and was born a black man in the years of racial oppression, it did not stop him from overcoming the restrictions and hardships that he was born to; therefore becoming one of the greatest known inventors in the world.
Prior to the cotton gin, a laborer could only pick the seeds out of approximately one pound of cotton a day. The cotton gin made it possible to clean up to 50 pounds per day. The farmers could now plant as much cotton as they wanted and not have the worry about the difficulties of seed removal. Eli’s invention spurred the growth of the cotton industry, and the South took up the slogan “Cotton is King.”