The first modern cotton gin was invented by American inventor Eli Whitney in the year of 1793, and first patented in 1794. The cotton gin was a device that greatly aided Southern cotton plantation owners in the fact that it was able to greatly speed up and reduce the amount of work needed to separate the cotton fibers from the seeds, thus allowing greater productivity, meaning more cotton. The increase in cotton caused by the cotton gin unintentionally led to a growth in slavery, as a demand for cotton workers increased. Due to this growth in slavery that was unintentionally caused by Eli's cotton gin, the machine is known as a stepping stone on America's road to the Civil War.