User:Bclyons/sandbox

In chapter 4 of William Cronon's Nature's Metropolis, it describes Chicago as the center hub for the lumber industry in the 1800s. Chicago was a strategic place at the bottom Lake Michigan that was in between the northern forests and the Great Plains.

Task 1- add to a page
Under the economic motivation part in the topic Sperm Whaling:

The Atlantic Slave Trade and the mass production of sugar also contributed to Sperm whaling in the 19th century. Spermaceti candles were considered as luxury and were shipped and traded through out the slave route.These candles were also very valuable to plantation owners to extend the work days of their slaves. On sugar plantations sugarcane would ferment shortly after being cut, so it was crucial for plantations to get the sugarcane processed immediately. With the commercialization of spermaceti candles, plantation owners were able to keep there sugar mills running for more hours out of the day forcing slaves to work up to 20 hours a day. The high demand for the candles helped fuel the whaling industry until new methods of light were discovered in the mid 1800s.