G is for Cotton Gin

Cut Backing Fabric 7½ x 7½, Finish Size 6 x 6 ins

No, not that sort of Gin! In 1793, Eli Whitney invented the Cotton Gin. This machine sped up cotton production by removing the seeds, it allowed one field hand to do the work of 10, and generated a new industry that bought wealth and power to the American south, but tragically it also multiplied and prolonged the use of slave labour.

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