Standard:
SS8H5 The student will explain significant factors that affected the development of Georgia as part of the growth of the United States between 1789-1840. 

SS8H5 Notes:


Warm- Up Activities:

BrainPOP:

https://www.brainpop.com/socialstudies/ushistory/trailoftears/

https://www.brainpop.com/socialstudies/famoushistoricalfigures/andrewjackson/

Georgia Stories: King Cotton       

GPB’s Georgia Stories: “King Cotton”


Questions for video
1. What is a cotton gin?
A cotton gin is a machine that separates cotton seeds from the fiber (the fluff).
References - Reports, Documents, & Miscellaneous 


Memoir of Eli Whitney, Esq. Denison Olmsted. The American Journal of Science.

The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography

Cotton and Cotton Oil. Daniel Augustus Tompkins.
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2. Who invented the cotton gin?
Good question! The debate has only grown since Eli Whitney received his patent for the cotton gin in 1794. Even then, many accused Whitney of having lifted the idea from others. It has become fashionable to suggest that Catherine Littlefield Greene, with whom Whitney boarded during the time he constructed his device, invented the cotton gin. However, these rumors cannot be corroborated. The only written evidence we have is the patent, and that patent went to Whitney.
References - Reports, Documents, & Miscellaneous 
The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography

Cotton and Cotton Oil. Daniel Augustus Tompkins.
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3. What was the significance of the cotton gin and what was its impact?
It allowed vastly more cotton to be processed more effectively and in a much shorter period of time (hard to complain about a machine that does that). This meant the growth of two things: cotton plantations and slavery.
References - Reports, Documents, & Miscellaneous


Memoir of Eli Whitney, Esq. Denison Olmsted. The American Journal of Science. 1832.
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4. What are patents supposed to do? How well did the patent protect the cotton gin?
Patents are supposed to protect a person's idea or invention from being copied by others. This protection also allows a person to charge a fee for the use of his or her idea. Whitney's cotton gin was so easily copied however (it was a very simple device to construct), that it was difficult to enforce the patent. Whitney spent so much money collecting fees for the use of his cotton gin, in addition to fighting copy-cat gin manufacturers in court, that he lost a large amount of money—and his faith in the ability of the patent to protect all ideas.
References - Reports, Documents, & Miscellaneous


The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography

Memoir of Eli Whitney, Esq. Denison Olmsted. The American Journal of Science. 1832.
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5. Why did so many people ignore the patent on the cotton gin?
Whitney evidently wished to monopolize the cotton industry. Monopolies are generally looked upon with little favor. Additionally, Whitney couldn't produce enough gins to keep up with the demand for them, so many people took to making their own. These machines were relatively easy to construct.