Eli Whitney was one of the most influential industrialists and one of the greatest pioneers of the Industrial Revolution in early American history. He lived in the south for only a few years, yet, during this time, he created an invention that would revolutionize the agricultural industry. The creation of the cotton gin, an machine that could pick the seeds out of cotton, breathed new life into the dying southern economy. Whitney was driven to bankruptcy after his invention's patent was stolen. This did not deter him though. He moved back to the north where, under the patronage of the United States government, he altered the very face of manufacturing with his factory that mass-produced guns. This new manufacturing methodology introduced the revolutionary concept of interchangeable parts.

Whitney's was born in Westborough, Massachusetts on December 8, 1765. He was brought up by his parents, Eli, Sr. and Elizabeth. Disaster struck when his mother became terribly ill after the birth of her fourth child. She died in 1777. Whitney, Jr., only tw

Whitney was at his wit's end. The court conflicts had made him jaded. He abandoned the business and moved north to get away from the frustration, returning to the South only briefly when trials in South Carolina seemed to be going well. In the mean time, though utterly defeated and without any money at the age of forty, he was ready to tap into his entrepreneurial spirit and mechanical abilities. He heard that the U. S. government was looking for a private contractor to help them build up their supply of weapons. At the turn of the century, renewed conflict in Europe made America nervous. Whitney presented the government with a risky, but promising idea. He believed he could build a factory that would produce gun parts that were so identical to one another that they would fit any gun. With this proposal, Whitney had come up with the revolutionary concept for interchangeable parts.

The two business partners refused to sit idly by while others stole their patent. They brought their case before several southern courts. Their court battles were long and arduous and often frustrating. After a few years of combat in the courts, they only received $90,000, a mere portion of what they could have made if the plans had never been stolen. Neither man was able to enjoy the money at all as it went to lawyers' bills and court fees. In 1803 some of the states actually reneged on their judgements and asked for the money back.

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