What was the significance of eli whitney to the american economy?

Question

if someone can explain his significance in two short paragraphs, that would be much appreciated. thanks.

Answer 1

Two inventions of Eli Whitney had a great impact on the American economy. The Cotton 'Gin enabled cotton to be cleaned of seeds much faster than by hand. This enabled more cotton to be grown and sold. It also increased the need and demand for slavery as a major labor force in the South.

Interchangeable parts enabled the modernization of weapons and other machine parts. Whitney demonstrated how anyone with little experience could make or replace parts on a weapon when all the parts were made exactly the same. It was a form of mass production.

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Answer 2

He created the cotton gin, which while increasing cotton production, also increased the use of slaves greatly, to man the equipment. A Cotton Boom followed, with the US economy soaring to heights it had never reached.