Invention of the Cotton Gin
Asidefrom interchangeable parts, Whitney is also credited with the invention of the cotton gin, a machine that separated the seeds from the raw cotton fibers. The gin operated by waterpower. The cotton gin would have a vast impact on American society, especially in the South, where the economy was centered around cotton. As a result, southerners saw the following changes occur:
- The profit per pound of cotton rose by about 6,000 percent between 1790 and 1815.
- Many southern plantation owners now relied almost exclusively on cotton as their main source of income.
- Land was being purchased in vast quantities throughout all of Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and eventually Texas, so planters could grow more cotton.
- To keep up with the demand of growing cotton, plantation owners looked towards slavery as a cheap source of labor, one that would not interfere with their profits.
Some view the South’s dependence on cotton as a catalyst for slavery. As the demand for cotton rose, so did the number of slaves brought to the United States.
