Technological Developments

The U.S. Grows

In 1789, George Washington was elected the first president of the United States. His presidency also marked the beginning of U.S. expansion. Between 1789 and 1840, the United States expanded its borders. The U.S. took land from Native Americans and then forced Native Americans to relocate to less fertile land in the West. In 1803, the U.S. completed the Louisiana Purchase, which was a huge piece of land owned by France that included present-day Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and large portions of Canada. The purchase gave western farmers access to the Mississippi River. It also opened up new land for farming.

When Cotton Was King

Cotton farming was the main source of money in the South. It was the largest crop that the South grew and sold. A number of inventions helped people work with cotton. Changes in the cotton industry also created changes in the development of Georgia. The fly shuttle made the thread generating process more efficient and sped up the weaving process. The spinning jenny could spin sixteen cotton threads at the same time. The old spinning wheels could only make one thread at a time. The cotton given pulled the fiber from the seeds and separated the seeds from the lint. The machinery invented textile and cotton production allowed more goods to be produced for less money. A common person might have owned one or two outfits before clothes started being mass produced. Now average people could afford many more clothes.

Eli Whitney’s Cotton Gin

The invention of the cotton gin changed Georgia forever. Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin in 1793. The cotton gin separated the seeds for the cotton plant twice as fast as a person could do it by hand. The cotton gin worked so quickly that plantation owners needed more people than before to grow and pick cotton. The South became even more dependent on slavery because there was a great need for cotton in the U.S.

If the South did not have slavery, it would not have been able to grow, produce, and profit from cotton as much as it did. Enslaved people did the hard work needed to grow the cotton, and they did it without pay. Wealthy plantation owners used enslaved people in record numbers at this time, which changed the population of the state. Soon, more than half of the population was an African living in slavery.

Georgia Gold Rush

In 1829, gold mines were discovered in northern Georgia. This area was home to the Cherokee Indians and was known as the Cherokee Nation. Thousands of U.S. miners arrived with dreams of becoming rich quick. This began what was called the “Great Intrusion” and contributed to the forced removal of the Cherokee Indians.

The center of Georgia’s gold rush was in the area of present-day Lumkin County. In 1833, the name of the county seat was changed from Licklog to Dahlonega. Dahlonega was taken from the Cherokee word “tahlonega,” which means “golden.” The gold pulled from these deposits was converted into currency at the Dahlonega mint, which was established in 1838. Many viewed the mint, established by the U.S. government, as a sign of Georgia’s successful growth during the 1830s. The success and riches brought to Georgia by the gold rush, however, were not shared with the Cherokee Indians.

Canals to Rails

Good transportation was necessary for the growth of Georgia. Up until the 1820s, Georgia relied on its river system to carry products long distances. Since people moved inland from the rivers, a new system was needed. In the 19th century, canals were built across the U.S. to connect waterways. Canals connected markets in the east and west. In 1825, the Erie Canal was completed, connecting Lake Erie to the Hudson River. The Erie Canal also helped New York City become a premier port and commercial city.

Many people in Georgia believed that a canal system would bring wealth to Georgia. Between 1826 and 1846, Georgia planned four major canals. After many attempts to plan the canals, however, the state decided against the plan. Instead, the state decided railroads would better satisfy the state’s transportation needs. In 1840, there were still no commercial railroads west of the Mississippi, and only one was in the South (in Charleston, South Carolina). Building railroads would be a big part of Georgia’s future.

1)The invention of the cotton gin made it quicker to remove the seeds from cotton. Think of something that you that takes a long time. Come up with an invention that makes doing this task quicker. Describe how this new invention would change the way you do your work and what benefits you would get as a result. Consider whether others could benefit from your invention and how you would get other to use it.

2)Between the American Revolution and the Civil War, advances in which field contributed MOST to the growth of Georgia’s economy?

  1. Agriculture
  2. Mathematics
  3. Education
  4. Entertainment

3)The invention of the cotton gin made it necessary for plantation owners to use more

  1. Enslaved people
  2. Tractors
  3. Cattle
  4. Silos

4)The Louisiana Purchase gave farmers access to

  1. Several gold mines
  2. New options for crops
  3. The Mississippi River
  4. More enslaved people

5)Who invented the cotton gin?

  1. John Calhoun
  2. Eli Whitney
  3. Abraham Lincoln
  4. Harriet Tubman