How did the invention of the cotton gin change the economy of the South and the North?

Question

Hailey Adams · Accepted Answer

The invention of the cotton gin was a boost to both the economies of the north and the south.

Prior to the development of the cotton gin, only long thread cotton could be produced economically and in a restricted number of places. The cotton gin made it possible to grow short thread varieties of cotton profitably throughout the South, giving rise to the phrase "cotton is king," which made the plantation owners wealthy and the region's economy dependent on cotton. Large supplies of now-relatively cheap cotton from the south made textile mills feasible in the north; these mills, which employed cotton from the south, were the backbone of the north's industrialization, generating enormous wealth and drawing immigrants from Europe. The cotton gin transformed the South's economy from one centered mostly on agriculture to one centered mostly on cotton and slavery. The cotton gin transformed the northern economy, transforming it into an industrial factory economy that needed skilled laborers from European countries. Low import taxes were desired by the southern economy in order to combine the purchase of manufactured goods with agricultural products. In order to shield their new industries from competition from Europe, the northern economy desired high import duties.