How did the cotton gin relates to slaves?

However, like many inventors, Whitney (who died in 1825) could not have foreseen the ways in which his invention would change society for the worse. The most significant of these was the growth of slavery. read more

Before the cotton gin cotton, deseeding relied heavily on slave labor. The process was very slow and took a lot of manual labor; the gin however was able to do just that. Â However, the machine still needed to be operated by a human or animal and the cotton gin actually increased the need for slave labor. read more

One of the major effects of the cotton gin on slavery was the increased need for slaves to keep up with the profitability that came with its invention. Before the gin was invented, cotton was not considered a money-making crop. read more

With the gin (short for engine), raw cotton could be quickly cleaned; Suddenly cotton became a profitable crop, transforming the southern economy and changing the dynamics of slavery. The first federal census of 1790 counted 697,897 slaves; by 1810, there were 1.2 million slaves, a 70 percent increase. read more