Eli Whitney: Direct Machine

In contrast to the many economical differences of the industrial north and agrarian south, few similarities arise in the struggle of sectionalism. Both the societies consisted of utilization of trade, westward expansion, and the use of unskilled labor. The north's industrial businesses such as textile industries demanded the south's production of cotton in order to maintain its market with oversees buyers. Also, the fight for westward land was among the many conflicts between the north and the south. And the use of unskilled labor was highly shared between these two economies. In the south, the use of untrained African slaves was its main entity to economic success. Like the south, the north used amateur workers in its industries to boost its production.

In Westboro, Massachusetts, December 8, 1765; a boy named Eli Whitney was born. Little did anyone know, his name would be written in history forever.

Eli Whitney was one of the greatest American inventors during at his time. Between 1793 and around 1800 Eli Whitney played an important role during the Market Revolution when he invented the Cotton Gin, which changed the manufacturing of cottons, and the Interchangeable part machines that helped the making of gun parts and luxury items that were easy to produce. Each of his inventions played a very large role in people’s lives for the North and the South. The inventions definitely changed the manufacturing of cotton and the making of gun parts which revolutionized the United States. The Cotton Gin impacted the economy conditions both social and economic; as he fights for his legal rights for his invention, which led him to his invention of the Interchangeable part machines, and signed contract with the government to make as many muskets in a certain period of time.

Cotton became one of, if not the most, profitable crop to grow. Along with the cotton gin’s invention, mass-production became easily accessible, however it required immense labor to achieve it, which of course, was completed by slave labor. This connection is likely the very reason that slavery became such a prominent issue. Before the creation of the cotton gin, rice and tobacco were the staple crops of the region. Many believe that if not for the rapid expansion of the cotton industry, the need for slave labor would have never grown to the level it did, and, at the very least, conflict between the North and South may have never

Many items came from the south such as cotton, sugar, and rice. Because of the high need for these cash crops, slave labor was used. As stated above, the development of the cotton gin “transformed the south and condemned millions of African Americans to slavery”. (Faragher 202)The south relied on the slave labor for their economy as the more slaves the south had, the more crops could be tended to, and ultimately sold to the North. Slavery was essential to the south's economy, and even though the North was against slavery, clearly the North relied on slavery to expedite their need of materials. The Southerners invested in the slave labor instead of the factories and machines like the North. The Southerners were content with buying land, having a small farm and a few

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.

In 1793, Eli Whitney released an invention that changed the South forever. This invention was known as the cotton gin, and it's function was to make removing seeds from cotton easier. The cotton gin caused the cotton industry to spread through the South.

Because of The War of 1812, the United States had no choice but to produce its own cotton, so the demand for cotton stayed high. The great importance of cotton fueled a new textile industry, along with new kinds of transportation to move crops from place to place. Later, land and slaves became more expensive and were not for sale as often because so many people had bought them already and the supply was running out. But still, the demand for cotton was high and farmers continued profiting from growing cotton on their land. At that point, Georgia relied heavily on slavery, the ownership of slaves being one of the reasons for the Civil War.

Due to the fact that cotton had to be separated by hand, it was costly commodity. One person could barely separate a pound by hand over the course of a day. It was not until 1793, when Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin that production of cotton soared. A worker on a plantation could now produce fifty pounds of cotton a day, instead of just one.

Eli Whitney invented a simple machine that influenced history of the united states, he invented the cotton gin that was a popular in the south.the south became the cotton producing part of the country

First, before we get into why the cotton gin kept pushing the need for slavery in the South and kept the economy booming let’s talk about the man that conceived an idea that would change the face of the country. Eli Whitney was an American inventor that gave the world an invention of

The reliance of cotton was a huge deal to the South since it was mainly a single cash crop economy. Without slaves to process the cotton, it would make a loss of money to the landowners. “...slaveholders viewed slaves as property, not as people. (book 387) Because of this, the slaves were not looked at with sympathy, but just as another way to earn money. The North did not rely on slave labor, but had skilled workers who earned money- unlike slaves who had to work without pay.

In the time of the midcentury South three-fifths of America's exports were completely comprised of cotton and due of growth of the cotton industry there were large plantations that grew into the Southwest, inhibiting the growth of up in coming cities and other industries (National Archives, 2018-a). The mass output of cotton literally crippled the rest of American growth, preventing technological advancements and focusing on cotton production. Much of Americas growth and the expansion of slavery came from Eli Whitney’s cotton gin. However, with a wide spread increase of slave labor the treatment and life of slaves worsened.

In the early 1600’s slavery became a part of Northern American colonies, during that time workers were in short supply and the work was harsh. Prior to the cramped Dutch ships sailing in with African American slaves in the early seventeenth century the men and woman working in the land were not sufficient enough to solve their problems. By the end of 1700 's during the time of the American Revolution the slaves became unbeneficial to them and began dying out. Even in the South the slaves became unprofitable to the farmers because the cost of tobacco prices varied. Until in 1793, Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin; a machine for separating cotton from its seeds. Cotton replaced tobacco as the South 's main cash crop and slavery became beneficial again.

Eli Whitney was an American inventor best known for his creation of the cotton gin. His invention proved to be one of the many key inventions of the Industrial Revolution and helped shape the economy of Antebellum South. Born in December 8, 1765, Westborough, MA, Whitney eldest son of Whitney Sr and his wife Elizabeth Fay.