Westward Expansion: Major Invention Of Peanuts In The 1800s

Westward Expansion Essay

Topic: Products made from peanuts One of the major inventions of the 1800s was peanut products. Although it may not seem that important, it played a huge role in the advancement of society. From saving soil to preventing poverty, peanuts influenced American culture greatly. Before the innovation of peanut products, cotton and tobacco were the main agricultural products of the South. However, as the farmers realized, these products were killing the soil. It was George Washington Carver who figured out what was actually happening. He observed that cotton and tobacco actually sucked the nutrients out of the soil, however peanuts actually restored the nutrients. Carver knew that the farmers would all lose their jobs without a successful crop, so he invented many

With a crop that restored nutrients in the soil, farmers were able to rotate crops without killing the soil. This gave the farmers a chance to run a multi-crop company, while bringing in a bigger profit. Peanuts also gave the townspeople a change of pace. These new peanut hand lotions were new to everybody, and they were an exciting new food. Using peanuts were more efficient as well; you could harvest one crop and make an endless stream of products. In fact, George W. Carver invented over 300 new peanut products. To many people, this new food group seemed unnecessary. They already had plenty of food, why were these new peanut products needed? In fact, they were quite important in the advancement of American culture. These ‘unnecessary peanuts’ prevented many farmer’s company destruction. Without their cotton and tobacco, farmers would have no crop to sell. Peanuts took that place, making farmers able to plant many different crops. Another thing peanuts prevented was poverty. If farmers weren’t making a profit with their crop, they would have no way to pay for bare necessities, like food or