Which inventor patented the cotton gin in the United States in 1794?

Eli Whitney patented the cotton gin in the United States in 1794.

Whitney’s cotton gin separated cotton fibres from seeds far more quickly than manual cleaning. His machine used a rotating cylinder fitted with wire teeth that pulled cotton through a screen while the seeds were left behind. The invention made short-staple cotton much more profitable to process.

Whitney received the patent on March 14, 1794. Although he designed the machine, the invention was developed in the context of plantation agriculture and enslaved labour. The gin helped expand cotton cultivation across the American South, increasing demand for land and intensifying the United States’ reliance on slavery.

A common misconception is that the gin made cotton production simple in every respect. It mechanised seed removal, but planting, cultivating, and harvesting cotton still required extensive labour. Whitney also struggled to profit because competing machines and patent disputes quickly followed. The term “gin” comes from “engine,” not from a person’s name.