What is the cotton gin?

Find out more about the history of Cotton Gin and Eli Whitney, including videos, interesting articles, pictures, historical features and more. Get all the facts on HISTORY.com. read more

A cotton gin is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, enabling much greater productivity than manual cotton separation. The fibers are then processed into various cotton goods such as linens, while any undamaged cotton is used largely for textiles like clothing. read more

The cotton gin made the cotton industry of the south explode. Before its invention, separating cotton fibers from its seeds was a labor-intensive and unprofitable venture. After Eli Whitney unveiled his cotton gin, processing cotton became much easier, resulting in greater availability and cheaper cloth. read more