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Eli Whitney was born
Born in Westboro, MA
Oldest child of Eli Whitney Sr. and Elizabeth Fay -
Death of Eli Whitney's mother
Eli Whitney was the youngest of 4 childern.
Eli Whitney was 11 when his mother died -
Attended Yale University
Attended Yale from 1789 to 1792.
Planning to be a lawyer. -
Cotton gin was patented
The cotton gin was invented in 1793 and got a patent 3/14/1794.
The cotton gin was used to remove seeds from cotton
Benefits:
-Cotton gin improved US economy
-Became the US chief export
-Cotton gin was simple and was copied.
-Patent lawsuits caused company to close
-Preserved slave labor
-Cotton becam profitable
Drawbacks:
-Some believe it helped revive slavery and eventually caused civil war -
Obtained Musket Contract
Whitney had never made a gun but received a contract to make 10-15,000 muskets by 1800.
Arms weren't delivered until 1809.
Championed interchangeable psrts -
Married Henrietta Edwards
They had 4 children together between 1817 and 1821 -
Eli Whitney Died
Eli Whitney died in New Haven, CT
Died of prostate cancer
