Eli Whitney - America’s Cotton Aficionado

...

Whitney might have been naïve to trust so many people around him. He didn’t what the profits of his invention would amount to; he was more concerned about perfecting the idea. However, he gave a demonstration of his first model before a few of his “friends,” who were cotton planters. They witnessed the work of one day being churned out by Whitney in a mere hour. Whitney said that he would patent the machine and produce a few more, but the planters were impatient. They immediately ordered huge amounts of cotton to be planted, and even Whitney’s workshop was invaded and the machine was inspected to make illegal copies. Eli Whitney and Phineas Miller entered a partnership agreement on May 27, 1793. (Gin.)This was nearly a year before Whitney actually received a patent for his invention in 1794. These two men were very optimistic about their future and Whitney began production of more gins while Miller handled the business aspects, like advertising. The plan was to rent the machines to the planters, instead of selling them. This was mainly because hard cash was a rare and they couldn’t afford the purchase of a machine that cost four hundred to five hundred dollars. The payment for the gins would be roughly two-fifths or forty percent of their crop. Whitney and Miller really didn’t know how wealthy they could become from such and enterprise and if Whitney got the patent, they could have a monopoly on the cotton ginning industry. (Staff)

However, planters were infuriated by such a demand, and many denied payments to Whitney and Miller. Miller’s workshop in New York was burned in a disastrous fire, and he lost parts for around twenty gins. Whitney’s partner, Miller, had been faithful to him throughout their business venture, but scandal came about. Phineas Miller had been involved in some fraudulent land transactions dubbed the Yazoo scandals. This reduced Miller’s name credibility and planters refused to deal with him. With assets slowing down, Whitney’s gin production was slowed as well. Planters encouraged their own carpenters to inspect the rented gins and they begin to build models of their own A rumor was also started that the Whitney gin damaged the cotton fibers with its spiked teeth and this drastically reduced their profits. They went to court, but the courts they entered were in cotton country. In 1808, South Carolina appropriated $50,000 to Whitney for his invention. North Carolina followed with $30,000, along with donations from other states. In total, Whitney received around $90,000 for his invention, which was not enough to pay for expenses. The government refused to renew the patent and even some states tried to sue Whitney after they had awarded him money. He barely survived total ruin, and left the South forever. (Treasury)

Bibliography

Bellis, Mary. About Money. 2016. 9 11 2016. .

Benson, Sonia,. "Development Of The Industrial U.S." Stock., Jennifer York. Almanac. 2005. 9 11 2016. .

Britton, Karen Gerhardt. "Bale O' Cotton: The Mechanical Art of Cotton Ginning." Britton, Karen Gerhardt. Bale O' Cotton: The Mechanical Art of Cotton Ginning. n.d. 13.

Editors, Biography.com. Eli Whitney Biography. 8 7 2014. A&E Television Networks. 9 11 2016. .

Gin., “Correspondence of Eli Whitney Relative to the Invention of the Cotton. "” The American Historical Review,." Vol. vol. 3. no. 1. 1897. pp. 90–127. .

Staff, History.com. History.com. 2010. 9 11 2016. .