Essay On Cotton Gin

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During the industrial revolution of the 17th to 18th century, a man named Eli Whitney invented a farming device called the Cotton Gin. Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin in 1793 resulted in massive growth in the cotton industry in the Southern states of America. This invention changed the textile industry in a massive way and impacted the whole world and led to inventions and ideas that still impact us today. Any piece of clothing or fabric you see that is made of cotton, wouldn't exist if it wasn't for this invention and this man. There are many results in the making of this machine. One of them being the textile “Boom”. Another being one of the the possible starters of the Civil War. And also the expansion of the slave community. …show more content…

The Cotton Gin was a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, a job that otherwise had to be performed painstakingly by hand, most often by slaves. This leads to an increase of cotton production and contributes to the demand of slaves, being that the cotton industry became more profitable. A congressional ban on the importation of slaves from Africa in 1808 also increased the demand for domestic slaves on cotton plantations, hindering the work of abolitionists who sought to end slavery. The domestic slave trade exploded, providing economic opportunities for whites involved in many aspects of the trade and increasing the possibility of slaves. The more the cotton industry grew, the more slaves the landowner needed. Due to its profound effect on American slavery, the growth of the cotton industry is frequently cited as one of the causes of the American Civil War. The more slaves there were, the more people got upset with how the country was being run. This caused many inner conflicts within the country, which unfortunately lead to the Civil War. This of course was not Eli Whitney's fault. When making the Cotton Gin Whitney had nothing but good intentions of making a hard job easier. His great invention happened to cause not so great

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