click image for close-up In October of 1793, Eli Whitney sent a drawing of his new invention, the cotton gin, to Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson in application for a patent. Jefferson replied ...

On June 20, 1793, Eli Whitney, who had graduated from Yale the previous year, wrote to Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, requesting a patent for his new invention, the cotton gin. The gin ...

Eli Whitney does not own slaves according to any historical evidence. His parents failed to provide him with enough money to support his education as a young man. Whitney created an improved ...