gee By barnetteg1 Apr 18, 1701 Jethro Tull invents the seed drill Apr 18, 1712 Thomas Newcombe invents the steam engine Apr 18, 1730 Charles Townshed develops four year crop rotation Apr 18, 1760 Robert Blakewell uses selective breeding Apr 18, 1760 The Industrial Revolution begins Apr 18, 1794 Eli Whitney invents the cotton gin Apr 18, 1848 Karl Marx writes the Communist Manifesto