The Benefits of the Cotton Gin
The Benefits of the Cotton Gin
The cotton gin was invented in 1793 by Eli Whitney to clean cotton fibers from the seeds (cotton gin). It was an invention created to reduce work and make cotton production quicker (Cotton Gin).
It caused great reduction in the time it took to clean cotton. The cotton gin could drastically reduce the time it took to clean the cotton fibers. “…the cotton gin was a machine that could clean the seeds from 50 pounds of cotton in one day, whereas previously a laborer could clean only one pound a day,” (cotton gin). With the cotton gin, slaves could work much faster. “A laborer working by hand could once expect to produce only one pound of cleaned cotton per day. With the help of a cotton gin, fifty pounds could be cleaned in a day,” (Cotton Gin). The cotton gin helped do what slaves couldn’t, which sped up the process of cleaning cotton. “The machine, which extracted the seeds from raw cotton fiber, revolutionized cotton growing and changed the American South forever,” (Eli Whitney: An American Inventor).
The cotton gin was responsible for the boom in the economy in the mid-1800’s. “The cotton gin was largely responsible for revitalizing the plantation system and making the United States the dominant world supplier of cotton by the 1820s,” (cotton gin). The cotton gin helped supply most of the world’s cotton demands. “By 1850, the South was growing 75% of the world 's cotton and exporting most of it to the Northern states and to England,” (King Cotton, 1790-1850). The cotton gin helped the U.S. be one of the largest suppliers of cotton in the world. “The United States became a powerful global force as the crop grew. Southern exports of cotton filled more than half of the world 's demands,” (Cotton Gin).
Although Eli Whitney didn’t make the first cotton gin, he made one that was more productive than past ones. Past attempts at a cotton gin were not successful. “The machine that existed at that time, however, did not work
The cotton gin was invented in 1793 by Eli Whitney to clean cotton fibers from the seeds (cotton gin). It was an invention created to reduce work and make cotton production quicker (Cotton Gin).
It caused great reduction in the time it took to clean cotton. The cotton gin could drastically reduce the time it took to clean the cotton fibers. “…the cotton gin was a machine that could clean the seeds from 50 pounds of cotton in one day, whereas previously a laborer could clean only one pound a day,” (cotton gin). With the cotton gin, slaves could work much faster. “A laborer working by hand could once expect to produce only one pound of cleaned cotton per day. With the help of a cotton gin, fifty pounds could be cleaned in a day,” (Cotton Gin). The cotton gin helped do what slaves couldn’t, which sped up the process of cleaning cotton. “The machine, which extracted the seeds from raw cotton fiber, revolutionized cotton growing and changed the American South forever,” (Eli Whitney: An American Inventor).
The cotton gin was responsible for the boom in the economy in the mid-1800’s. “The cotton gin was largely responsible for revitalizing the plantation system and making the United States the dominant world supplier of cotton by the 1820s,” (cotton gin). The cotton gin helped supply most of the world’s cotton demands. “By 1850, the South was growing 75% of the world 's cotton and exporting most of it to the Northern states and to England,” (King Cotton, 1790-1850). The cotton gin helped the U.S. be one of the largest suppliers of cotton in the world. “The United States became a powerful global force as the crop grew. Southern exports of cotton filled more than half of the world 's demands,” (Cotton Gin).
Although Eli Whitney didn’t make the first cotton gin, he made one that was more productive than past ones. Past attempts at a cotton gin were not successful. “The machine that existed at that time, however, did not work
Cited: "Cotton." The Civil War. Ed. Emily Hill and Jane Scarsbrook. Vol. 2. Danbury: Grolier, 2004. 65-67. Print. "Cotton Gin." UXL Encyclopedia of U.S. History. Sonia Benson, Daniel E. Brannen, Jr., and Rebecca Valentine. Vol. 2. Detroit: UXL, 2009. 399-400. Student Resources In Context. Web. 18 Mar. 2013. "cotton gin." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2013. Web. 18 Mar. 2013. "Eli Whitney: An American Inventor." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2013. Web. 18 Mar. 2013. "King Cotton, 1790-1850 (Overview)." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2013. Web. 22 Mar. 2013. Masters, Nancy Robinson. The Cotton Gin. New York: Scholastic, 2006. Print. Inventions That Shaped the World. "Patent drawing of a cotton gin." Image. National Archives. American History. ABC-CLIO, 2013. Web. 20 Mar. 2013. Schur, Joan Brodsky. "Teaching With Documents: Eli Whitney 's Patent for the Cotton Gin." National Archives. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2013.