Introduction
In 1787, when the Constitution was written, many Americans believed that slavery dying out. Many northern states had outlawed slavery. A handful of slave-owners even freed their slaves. Many others believed that slavery was a necessary evil, and in time, slavery would be finished. In 1793, Eli Whitney, a citizen of Massachusetts invented the cotton gin. Cotton, a highly valued fiber, was very difficult to produce because cotton fibers tended to be full of seeds and bits of plant debris. In order to turn cotton into cloth, it had to be cleaned. The cotton gin made cleaning cotton a very simple task. Within a short time, cotton became the number one crop in the United States. This would socially and economically change the United States.
Task
You are going to examine exactly how the cotton gin changed the United States. On your WebQuest, you are going to visit sites related to the cotton gin and its effects on the United States. By the time your quest is over, you will be able to explain how this one invention changed the course of American history!
Goals:
- Each student will understand what the cotton gin was and the economic effect it had in the production of cotton in the United States.
- Each student will understand the effects that the cotton gin had on the institution of slavery.
- Each student will understand the social effects that the cotton gin had on the south.
Process
1. Copy and paste the link below. You will be taken to a short video about the creation of the cotton gin. After you have finished, answer the following questions. How did the cotton gin work and what effect did it have on cotton farming?
http://www.havefunwithhistory.com/movies/cottonGin.html
2. Copy and paste the link below and answer the following question. After the cotton gin was invented, what happened to national cotton production?
http://www.fasttrackteaching.com/ftap/TE-S4-P23&24.html
3.Copy and paste the link below. Answer the following question. How did the change in cotton production affect slavery in the United States?
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Growth_of_Slavery_a…
4. Copy and paste the link below. Look at the map and read the description and identify where in the United States slavery was most common. See if you can figure out what else was common in these regions.
http://lincolnmullen.com/blog/a-better-map-of-slavery-in-1860/
5. Copy and paste the link below and identify what business became common throughout the south as cotton production grew. Analyze how this business was tied to the increase of cotton production.
Conclusion
Based on the sites you have visited, you should now have a very good idea of how pivotal the invention of the cotton gin was in American history. Write a one-paragraph conclusion on how the cotton gin changed the production of cotton and slavery in the United States. Use at least four examples of evidence from your WebQuest to come up with an answer.
