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Questions 1-3 refer to the following quotation. “With the [cotton gin], a sin...

Nov 16, 2023

Questions 1-3 refer to the following quotation. “With the [cotton gin], a single operator could clean as much cotton in a few hours as a group of workers had once needed a whole day to do . . . Soon cotton growing spread into the upland South and beyond, within a decade the total crop increased eightfold . . . The cotton gin not only changed the economy of the South, it also helped transform the North. The large supply of domestically produced fiber was a strong incentive to entrepreneurs in New England and elsewhere to develop an American textile industry.” Alan Brinkley, American History: Connecting with the Past, 2014 1. Based on this analysis, which of the following best describes the political and economic developments of the North and the South in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries? (A) The North and the South cooperated politically and economically to develop a successful textile industry. (B) Both the North and the South depended upon legislation supporting slavery. (C) The North and the South further separated because of rapid industrialization in the North and heavy dependence on agriculture in the South. (D) As the South began to develop industrially, it became politically and economically independent of the North.

Key Concept

KC-4.2.II The innovations in the cotton industry, such as the cotton gin, and the consequent rise of cotton as a key cash crop in the South, led to the increased demand for slave labor. Meanwhile, the North experienced the rise of a mixed economy of agriculture and industry, and the beginnings of industrialization, especially in textile manufacturing.

Explanation

The quotation describes the impact of the cotton gin on both the Southern and Northern economies. The cotton gin greatly increased the efficiency of cotton processing, which led to a boom in cotton production in the South. This agricultural boom reinforced the South's dependence on slave labor and agriculture. Meanwhile, the North began to develop a textile industry due to the availability of raw materials, which contributed to its industrial growth. This led to a divergence in the economic paths of the North and South, with the North moving towards industrialization and the South becoming more entrenched in agriculture, particularly cotton farming and slavery. This economic divergence contributed to the political tensions between the two regions.

2. The cotton gin’s impact on society is analogous to the impact of all of the following innovations EXCEPT (A) the assembly line (B) the telegraph (C) the sewing machine (D) the application of steam power to factories

Key Concept

KC-5.2.II The innovations of the Industrial Revolution were transformative as they reshaped the United States’ economy and its society.

Explanation

The cotton gin, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, greatly impacted society by increasing the efficiency of cotton processing, which in turn revitalized the economy of the South and expanded the institution of slavery. The assembly line (A), the sewing machine (C), and the application of steam power to factories (D) are all innovations that similarly transformed production methods and increased efficiency in various industries. However, the telegraph (B), while an important innovation, had a different kind of impact; it revolutionized communication rather than directly transforming production processes. The telegraph allowed for instant communication over long distances, which had profound effects on business practices, news dissemination, and personal correspondence, but it did not directly increase the production capacity of an industry as the other options did.

3. Which of the following was a direct effect of the invention of the cotton gin? (A) The invention of the steel plow (B) The spread of the plantation system into Northern states (C) The development of the Lowell factory system in New England (D) The introduction of the factory system in the South

Key Concept

KC-5.2.II The innovations in the textile industry in Great Britain and the United States spurred the Industrial Revolution, which in turn, led to various social and economic changes.

Explanation

The invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793 significantly increased the efficiency of cotton processing, making it easier to separate cotton fibers from seeds. This led to a greater demand for cotton, which in turn increased the need for labor to grow and pick the cotton, particularly in the Southern United States. This demand was met by an expansion of the system of slavery. However, the cotton gin also provided a large supply of cotton for textile mills, which were rapidly developing in the North, particularly in New England. The Lowell factory system, established in the early 19th century in Lowell, Massachusetts, was a direct result of the increased availability of cotton and the need to process it into cloth. The Lowell system was characterized by the employment of young women, known as "Lowell girls," in a vertically integrated system where all stages of textile production were conducted under one roof. This was a significant development in the Industrial Revolution in the United States.