Curated OER
Writers and the Old South Myth
Young scholars are introduced to authors of the South. In groups, they compare and contrast the pastoral and counter pastoral traditions present in some forms of Southern literature. They use a database to examine the covers of the...
Curated OER
Nebraska Entrepreneur Success Stories
Students explore entrepreneurs of Nebraska. In this business and social studies instructional activity, students research Nebraska entrepreneurs to discover the history of their successful company.
Curated OER
The Industrial Revolution and Women
Students learn about inventions of the Industrial Revolution and their impact on life. In this Industrial Revolution lesson, students look at how the Industrial Revolution changed the work experience from farms to factories. They tell...
Curated OER
Nebraska Entrepreneur Success Stories
Students study and discuss various entrepreneurs from their home state and then prepare a proposal for a business they would like to own and operate in the future.
National Inventors Hall of Fame
National Inventors Hall of Fame: Eli Whitney: Cotton Gin
Read about Eli Whitney's cotton gin and its importance to the cotton industry.
Other
Eli Whitney/cotton Gin
A collection of websites on Eli Whitney and his invention, the cotton gin.
PBS
Pbs: Africans in America: Part 3: Eli Whitney's Cotton Gin
History of Eli Whitney and his cotton gin. Other links to sites with information on this topic.
Siteseen
Siteseen: American Historama: Eli Whitney Cotton Gin
Presents a summary and list of interesting facts on the Eli Whitney Cotton Gin that revolutionized the cotton industry in the South.
Ohio State University
Osu History Teaching Institute: The Cotton Gin
This instructional activity will help students understand the importance of the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1794.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: Biographies: Eli Whitney
This is a great resource for Eli Whitney. Details his development of the cotton gin, and offers additional information through outside links.
Other
Eli Whitney Museum: Eli Whitney
This is the Eli Whitney Museum online. Provides information on the inventor, his product, his factory, and much more. Also provides information on the museum itself. Flashpoint not needed, but recommended.
US National Archives
Nara: Teaching With Documents: Eli Whitney's Patent for the Cotton Gin
This National Archives and Records Administration site relates the history of Eli Whitney and his remarkable inventions. Links to sites with patent information on the cotton gin. Tons of teacher's resources can be found at this site.
Georgia Humanities Council and the University of Georgia Press.
New Georgia Encyclopedia: History and Archaeology: Eli Whitney in Georgia
Although Eli Whitney was born in Massachusetts, it was in Georgia that he invented the cotton gin in 1793.
US National Archives
Our Documents: Patent for Cotton Gin (1794)
Interactive image of Eli Whitney's plans for the cotton gin, accompanied by an explanation of the cotton gin's purpose and significance in relation to the Industrial Revolution.
Digital Public Library of America
Dpla: Cotton Gin and the Expansion of Slavery
The sources in this primary set document the invention of the cotton gin and the expansion of slavery. Includes teaching guide.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mit: Inventor of the Week: Eli Whitney
This site from the MIT Invention Dimension provides the history of Eli Whitney's cotton gin. Important part of the Industrial Revolution.
PBS
Pbs Who Made America? Eli Whitney
In popular mythology, Eli Whitney has been deemed the "father of American technology," for two innovations: the cotton gin, and the idea of using interchangeable parts.
PBS
Pbs: Who Made America?: Innovators: Eli Whitney
One-page profile of influential innovator, Eli Whitney, whose vision and ideas created the cotton gin and what would later be known as "mass production".
TED Talks
Ted: Ted Ed: How Inventions Change History (For Better and for Worse)
A brief video that describes the unintended consequence of Eli Whitney's cotton gin. [5:14] Followed by a quiz and a list of additional resources to explore.
Science4Fun
Science4 Fun: Cotton Gin
Illustrated article discusses Eli Whitney, the inventor of the cotton gin, and how the cotton gin works.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: The Crowning of King Cotton
Read how an invention made it possible to increase the amount of cotton available for export, thus leading to an increase in the number of acres planted in cotton, and resulting in the need for more and more slaves. Before the invention...
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Cotton and African American Life
But for the invention of the cotton gin, slavery perhaps would have died out in the United States in the early 19th century. Read about why technological advances caused the spread of slavery in the South and read about how slaves clung...
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: Eli Whitney
This Wikipedia online encyclopedia site offers a brief biography of Eli Whitney (1765-1825 CE), inventor of the cotton gin and many other things. The encyclopedia entry provides many hyperlinks to terms as well as an illustration of...
Digital History
Digital History: Pre Civil War South
A comprehensive look at the economy of the South and the changes brought by the cotton gin. Read through five pages that discuss the economy, the tradition of the plantation, and the sectionalism that arises in this time period.