Eli Whitney
1765–1825Eli Whitney was an American inventor best known for the creation of the cotton gin, one of the key innovations of the Industrial Revolution. Whitney was born in Massachusetts, and after the death of his mother in 1777, he began working as a nail manufacturer in his father’s workshop. His stepmother opposed his going to college, but Eli earned the funds himself and attended present-day Becker College, graduating in 1792. He next went to Georgia, a common destination for recent graduates looking for opportunity, and there he met Phineas Miller, his future business partner. Whitney’s two greatest innovations would positively affect both regions of the United States: the cotton gin would reinvigorate slavery in the South, while his promotion of interchangeable parts would later help the North win the Civil War
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Whitney was not the inventor of interchangeable parts, an idea that had been circling for decades, but he greatly increased the popularity of such after he championed its use in making muskets. After the downfall of his cotton gin company, Eli, now greatly in debt, accepted a job as a manufacturer of weapons in the aftermath of the French Revolution. In 1798, he was offered a contract to deliver 10,000 muskets to the War Department within a year and given an incentive of $800,000. While Whitney did deliver the guns, he did not do so until eight years later; in 1801, he gave a demonstration of his interchangeable parts in order to gain more time. Finally, however, the guns were delivered.
Eli Whitney died of prostate cancer in 1825 while staying in New Haven, Connecticut. During his illness, he invented several products to help ease his pain, but these items were never made available to the public. The Eli Whitney Students Program, a Yale admissions program for non-traditional students, was founded in his honor.
Key events during the life of Eli Whitney:
| Born. | |
| Mother died. | |
| Operated a nail manufacturing business in his father's workshop. | |
| Entered Yale College. | |
| Graduated from Yale. | |
| Patented the cotton gin. | |
| Whitney's cotton gin company went out of business. | |
| Accepted a contract to build 10,000 muskets by 1800. | |
| Delivered the muskets to the War Department. | |
| Died of prostate cancer. |
Other Resources
| Eli Whitney & the Invention of the Cotton Gin in | Great Inventors and Their Inventions by Frank P. Bachman |
| Eli Whitney in | America First—100 Stories from Our History by Lawton B. Evans |
| A Wonderful Invention in | Story of the Great Republic by H. A. Guerber |
| Eli Whitney, and the Cotton-Gin in | Historical Tales: American II by Charles Morris |
| Eli Whitney in | Heroes of Progress in America by Charles Morris |
| Eli Whitney in | Four American Inventors by Frances M. Perry |
| Whitney and Howe in | Builders of Our Country: Book II by Gertrude van Duyn Southworth |
Image Links | ||
|---|---|---|
 Birthplace of Eli Whitney in Great Inventors and Their Inventions |
 Whitney and the Watch in Great Inventors and Their Inventions |
 Whitney Repairing the Children's Toys in Great Inventors and Their Inventions |
 Whitney at Work in Story of the Great Republic |
Eli Whitney in Four American Inventors |
 Eli Whitney in Builders of Our Country: Book II |
 A Section of the Cotton Gin in Builders of Our Country: Book II |
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| George Washington | Leader of the Continental Army of the U.S. during the Revolutionary War, and first President. |
| Helped found the state of Texas by leading 300 families to settle in the region. | |
| World renowned painter and collector of birds. | |
| John Quincy Adams | Diplomat who spent much time in Europe before becoming the sixth U.S. President. |