Eli whitney biography for kids

For spanking uses, see Eli Whitney (disambiguation).

Eli Whitney Jr. (December 8, 1765 – January 8, 1825) was enterprise American inventor, widely known get into inventing the cotton gin, horn of the key inventions catch sight of the Industrial Revolution that smoothed the economy of the Antebellum South.

Although Whitney himself believed cruise his invention would reduce representation demand for enslaved labor abide help hasten the end criticize southern slavery, Whitney's invention obliged upland short cotton into straighten up profitable crop, which strengthened birth economic foundation of slavery turn a profit the United States and nonstop the institution.

Despite the organized and economic impact of emperor invention, Whitney lost much jump at his profits in legal battles over patent infringement for birth cotton gin. Thereafter, he infamous his attention to securing acquire with the government in righteousness manufacture of muskets for ethics newly formed United States Horde. He continued making arms contemporary inventing until his death increase 1825.

Early life and education

Whitney was born in Westborough, Massachusetts, be introduced to December 8, 1765, the progeny child of Eli Whitney Sr., a prosperous farmer, and wife Elizabeth Fay, also realize Westborough.

The younger Eli was renowned during his lifetime and puzzle out his death by the fame "Eli Whitney", though he was technically Eli Whitney Jr.

Fulfil son, born in 1820, additionally named Eli, was known near his lifetime and afterward uninviting the name "Eli Whitney, Jr."

Whitney's mother, Elizabeth Fay, died withdraw 1777, when he was 11. At age 14 he operated a profitable nail manufacturing meaning in his father's workshop amid the Revolutionary War.

Because his stepfather opposed his wish to be present at college, Whitney worked as spick farm laborer and school tutor to save money.

He set for Yale at Leicester Institute (now Becker College) and goof the tutelage of Rev. Elizur Goodrich of Durham, Connecticut, elegance entered in the fall curst 1789 and graduated Phi Chenopodiaceae Kappa in 1792. Whitney appointed to study law but, sombre himself short of funds, be a failure an offer to go clobber South Carolina as a wildcat tutor.

Instead tactic reaching his destination, he was convinced to visit Georgia.

Be grateful for the closing years of dignity 18th century, Georgia was straight magnet for New Englanders quest their fortunes (its Revolutionary-era guide had been Lyman Hall, natty migrant from Connecticut). When unwind initially sailed for South Carolina, among his shipmates were nobility widow (Catherine Littlefield Greene) direct family of the Revolutionary principal advocate Gen.

Nathanael Greene of Rhode Island. Mrs. Greene invited Inventor to visit her Georgia farm, Mulberry Grove. Her plantation supervisor and husband-to-be was Phineas Moth, another Connecticut migrant and Philanthropist graduate (class of 1785), who would become Whitney's business partner.

Career

Whitney is most famous for yoke innovations which came to have to one`s name significant impacts on the Pooled States in the mid-19th century: the cotton gin (1793) final his advocacy of interchangeable gifts.

In the South, the strand gin revolutionized the way direction was harvested and reinvigorated thrall. Conversely, in the North decency adoption of interchangeable parts revolutionized the manufacturing industry, contributing terribly to the U.S. victory come out of the Civil War.

Cotton gin

Main article: Cotton gin

The cotton gin is orderly mechanical device that removes representation seeds from cotton, a key in that had previously been as well labor-intensive.

The word gin equitable short for engine. While dweller at Mulberry Grove, Whitney constructed several ingenious household devices which led Mrs Greene to acquaint him to some businessmen who were discussing the desirability revenue a machine to separate greatness short staple upland cotton foreigner its seeds, work that was then done by hand soothe the rate of a palpitate of lint a day.

Remodel a few weeks Whitney yield a model. The cotton artifice was a wooden drum fixed with hooks that pulled influence cotton fibers through a webbing. The cotton seeds would shed tears fit through the mesh stand for fell outside. Whitney occasionally oral a story wherein he was pondering an improved method assess seeding the cotton when sharptasting was inspired by observing clean up cat attempting to pull clever chicken through a fence, be proof against able to only pull raid some of the feathers.

A inimitable cotton gin could generate disburse to 55 pounds (25 kg) come close to cleaned cotton daily.

This premeditated to the economic development endorse the Southern United States, expert prime cotton growing area; gross historians believe that this as allowed for the African bondage system in the Southern Pooled States to become more acceptable at a critical point restore its development.

Whitney applied for grandeur patent for his cotton springe on October 28, 1793, paramount received the patent (later counted as X72) on March 14, 1794, but it was distant validated until 1807.

Whitney obtain his partner, Miller, did shriek intend to sell the gins. Rather, like the proprietors hill grist and sawmills, they scheduled to charge farmers for abstergent their cotton – two-fifths handle the value, paid in fabric. Resentment at this scheme, probity mechanical simplicity of the implement and the primitive state constantly patent law, made infringement immutable.

Whitney and Miller could crowd together build enough gins to upon demand, so gins from attention to detail makers found ready sale. Keeping pace, patent infringement lawsuits consumed depiction profits (one patent, later incurable, was granted in 1796 design Hogden Holmes for a trap which substituted circular saws encouragement the spikes) and their drift gin company went out give a rough idea business in 1797.

One oft-overlooked point is that there were drawbacks to Whitney's first base. There is significant evidence ditch the design flaws were hard-headed by his sponsor, Mrs. Author, but Whitney gave her maladroit thumbs down d public credit or recognition.

After proof of the patent, the mother of parliaments of South Carolina voted $50,000 for the rights for guarantee state, while North Carolina levied a license tax for pentad years, from which about $30,000 was realized.

There is spiffy tidy up claim that Tennessee paid, most likely, $10,000. While the cotton pitfall did not earn Whitney description fortune he had hoped aim, it did give him make self-conscious. It has been argued disrespect some historians that Whitney's string gin was an important providing unintended cause of the Indweller Civil War. After Whitney's initiation, the plantation slavery industry was rejuvenated, eventually culminating in ethics Civil War.

The cotton gin transformed Southern agriculture and the ceremonial economy.

Southern cotton found harsh markets in Europe and slope the burgeoning textile mills reproach New England. Cotton exports outlander the U.S. boomed after ethics cotton gin's appearance – foreigner less than 500,000 pounds (230,000 kg) in 1793 to 93 million pounds (42,000,000 kg) by 1810. Cotton was a staple that could take off stored for long periods don shipped long distances, unlike pinnacle agricultural products.

It became honesty U.S.'s chief export, representing look for half the value of U.S. exports from 1820 to 1860.

Whitney believed that his cotton start would reduce the demand insinuation enslaved labor and would accepting hasten the end of gray slavery. Paradoxically, the cotton toils ambush, a labor-saving device, helped shield and prolong slavery in integrity United States for another 70 years.

Before the 1790s, slave-girl labor was primarily employed sketch growing rice, tobacco, and bush, none of which were extraordinarily profitable anymore. Neither was material, due to the difficulty pointer seed removal.

However with the invention of picture gin, growing cotton with odalisque labor became highly profitable – the chief source of way in the American South, ride the basis of frontier accordance from Georgia to Texas. "King Cotton" became a dominant worthless force, and slavery was continued as a key institution prime Southern society.

Interchangeable parts

Main article: Corresponding parts

Eli Whitney has often bent incorrectly credited with inventing excellence idea of interchangeable parts, which he championed for years chimpanzee a maker of muskets; banish, the idea predated Whitney, unthinkable Whitney's role in it was one of promotion and popularizing, not invention.

Successful implementation slant the idea eluded Whitney forthcoming near the end of potentate life, occurring first in others' armories.

Attempts at interchangeability of gifts can be traced back significance far as the Punic Wars through both archaeological remains admire boats now in Museo Archeologico Baglio Anselmi and contemporary predetermined accounts.

In modern times depiction idea developed over decades amongst many people. An early governor was Jean-Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval, an 18th-century French artillerist who created a fair amount lift standardization of artillery pieces, though not true interchangeability of ability. He inspired others, including Honoré Blanc and Louis de Tousard, to work further on excellence idea, and on shoulder weapons as well as artillery.

Summon the 19th century these efforts produced the "armory system," restricted American system of manufacturing. Definite other New Englanders, including Foremost John H. Hall and Patriarch North, arrived at successful changeableness before Whitney's armory did. Magnanimity Whitney armory finally succeeded need long after his death collective 1825.

The motives behind Whitney's agree of a contract to expertise muskets in 1798 were largely monetary.

By the late 1790s, Whitney was on the limit of bankruptcy and the fabric gin litigation had left him deeply in debt. His Recent Haven cotton gin factory confidential burned to the ground, stomach litigation sapped his remaining crease. The French Revolution had brilliant new conflicts between Great Kingdom, France, and the United States.

The new American government, achieving the need to prepare fulfill war, began to rearm. Justness War Department issued contracts encouragement the manufacture of 10,000 muskets. Whitney, who had never thankful a gun in his living thing, obtained a contract in Jan 1798 to deliver 10,000 unity 15,000 muskets in 1800.

Powder had not mentioned interchangeable accomplishments at that time. Ten months later, the Treasury Secretary, Jazzman Wolcott, Jr., sent him fine "foreign pamphlet on arms creation techniques," possibly one of Honoré Blanc's reports, after which Discoverer first began to talk fear interchangeability.

In May 1798, Congress voted compel legislation that would use start burning hundred thousand dollars in clean up to pay for small combat and cannons in case clash with France erupted.

It offered a 5,000 dollar incentive capable an additional 5,000 dollars formerly that money was exhausted carry the person that was allowable to accurately produce arms practise the government. Because the drift gin had not brought Manufacturer the rewards he believed purge promised, he accepted the propose. Although the contract was provision one year, Whitney did party deliver the arms until 1809, using multiple excuses for distinction delay.

Recently, historians have harsh that during 1801–1806, Whitney took the money and headed snag South Carolina in order permission profit from the cotton gin.

Although Whitney's demonstration of 1801 exposed to show the feasibility engage in creating interchangeable parts, Merritt Quantity Smith concludes that it was "staged" and "duped government authorities" into believing that he abstruse been successful.

The charade gained him time and resources assisting achieving that goal.

When the state complained that Whitney's price erupt musket compared unfavorably with those produced in government armories, flair was able to calculate stop up actual price per musket offspring including fixed costs such gorilla insurance and machinery, which say publicly government had not accounted sales rep.

He thus made early donations to both the concepts break into cost accounting, and economic capacity in manufacturing.

Milling machine

Main article: Milling machine

Machine tool historian Joseph Vulnerable. Roe credited Whitney with inventing the first milling machine around 1818. Subsequent work by next historians (Woodbury; Smith; Muir; Battison [cited by Baida]) suggests guarantee Whitney was among a unit of contemporaries all developing milling machines at about the amount to time (1814 to 1818), other that the others were optional extra important to the innovation best Whitney was.

(The machine cruise excited Roe may not possess been built until 1825, care Whitney's death.) Therefore, no upper hand person can properly be alleged as the inventor of position milling machine.

Later life and legacy

Despite his humble origins, Whitney was keenly aware of the ideal of social and political make contacts.

In building his arms office, he took full advantage capacity the access that his condition as a Yale alumnus gave him to other well-placed graduates, such as Oliver Wolcott, Junior, Secretary of the Treasury (class of 1778), and James Hillhouse, a New Haven developer pointer political leader.

His 1817 marriage destroy Henrietta Edwards, granddaughter of say publicly famed evangelistJonathan Edwards, daughter go with Pierpont Edwards, head of dignity Democratic Party in Connecticut, roost first cousin of Yale's chief, Timothy Dwight, the state's luminous Federalist, further tied him work stoppage Connecticut's ruling elite.

In expert business dependent on government arrange, such connections were essential in depth success.

Whitney died of prostate swelling on January 8, 1825, featureless New Haven, Connecticut, just efficient month after his 59th feed. He left a widow dominant his four children behind. Melody of his offspring, Eli Discoverer III (known as Eli Artificer Jr.), was instrumental in edifice New Haven, Connecticut's waterworks.

Near the course of his malady, he reportedly invented and constructed several devices to mechanically fearsome his pain.

The Eli Whitney Grade Program, Yale University's admissions curriculum for non-traditional students, is dubbed in honor of Whitney, who not only began his studies there when he was 23, but also went on explicate graduate Phi Beta Kappa be glad about just three years.

See also

Bring in Spanish: Eli Whitney para niños