At the Battle of White Plains General William Howe’s superior British forces outmaneuvered and outfought the Continental army under General George Washington but failed to crush the revolutionaries. Howe had compelled Washington to move most of his army out of the northern part of Manhattan by landing in Westchester County, threatening to cut Washington off from the mainland. The Continental army, numbering as many as 14,000, dug in along a series of hills at the village of White Plains. While the entrenchments presented a formidable obstacle, Washington initially failed to recognize that they were dominated by Chatterton Hill across the Bronx River and on his right. Just before the battle, Washington realized his mistake and quickly sent troops to fortify the position.
The Continentals began the battle by sending several regiments (about 1,500 men) against the British. This force was driven back by repeated flanking movements. Although Howe planned a frontal assault against the Continental line, it was never carried out. Instead, he sent British and Hessian units against the hastily constructed position on Chatterton’s Hill. The first assault was beaten back, but ultimately the Hessians and some British dragoons swung
Around the far Continental right, routed the militia units in front of them, and swept the revolutionaries off the hill. With a few hours of daylight left, the British, however, did not then take advantage of their position to roll up the entire enemy line. The British suffered 231 casualties. The revolutionary losses are less certain; they numbered anywhere from 150 to 350 men.
A second attack on October 30 was canceled because of a heavy rainstorm. Washington used the cover of the weather to withdraw a few miles farther to stronger positions. But this move also allowed Howe to cut back toward Manhattan, surround Fort Washington, and capture 3,000 revolutionary troops.
See also Revolutionary War.
Further reading: Robert Middlekauff, The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1982).
Whitney, Eli (1765-1825) inventor of the cotton gin, arms manufacturer
Eli Whitney not only invented the cotton gin, but he also pioneered the use of interchangeable parts in the production of firearms. Whitney grew up on a small farm in Westboro, Massachusetts. At age 17 he left home to attend Yale College. After graduating in 1792, he headed south to pursue a teaching career. He accepted a job as a tutor in Savannah, Georgia, where he made the acquaintance of Catherine Greene, widow of Revolutionary War (1775-83) general Nathanael Greene. While visiting her plantation, Whitney saw the need for a machine that could separate the sticky seeds from the cotton-lint in green-seed, short-staple cotton. Demand for cotton to feed English mills was high, and a cheap way to clean cotton was needed to make large-scale production possible in the South. Whitney produced a workable cotton gin in 1793, and he patented it 1794. However, he was unable to protect
Engraving showing slaves operating a cotton gin while owners inspect the cotton (Library of Congress)
His patent, and he and his partner, Phineas Miller, made very little money for the invention. Because he could not protect his patent, unlicensed copies of Whitney’s cotton gin spread throughout the South, helping cotton become the most valuable crop in the region. More ominously, the cotton boom breathed new life in the institution of southern SLAVERY.
Whitney found his way to financial success in the firearms industry while making an important contribution to the development of mass production and industrialization. In 1797, when the United States faced a possible war with France, Whitney won a contract from the federal government to produce 10,000 muskets for the army. Whitney promised to produce the muskets in two years. He built a factory in Hamden, Connecticut, and designed a system of manufacturing parts in standard sizes that could be used interchangeably to build complete muskets. This approach was revolutionary since guns at the time were made separately by individual gunsmiths, which meant that if a part broke, it had to be remade by hand to fit that particular gun. Whitney’s method of making standardized individual parts was ultimately successful, although it took him 10 years instead of the promised two. Whitney convinced many who doubted his methods in 1801 when he arranged a demonstration for incoming president Thomas Jefferson. At that demonstration in Washington, D. C., witnesses picked random parts from scattered piles and then were able to use those parts to assemble complete working muskets. Whitney’s method marked an important step in the development of techniques of mass production.
Whitney married Henrietta Edwards in 1817. They had four children, three of whom survived into adulthood. His son, Eli Whitney, Jr., continued to manufacture arms in the Hamden plant after his father’s death in 1825.
Further reading: Constance McLaughlin Green, Eli Whitney and the Birth of American Technology (Boston: Little, Brown, 1956); Jeanette Mirsky and Allen Nevins, The World of Eli Whitney (New York: Macmillan, 1952).
—J. Brett Adams