Review by Choice Review
Vandergriff was a pivotal figure in the post-WW II development of cotton gins for machine-picked cotton, in the evolution of modern high-capacity gins, and, hence, in cotton's continued popularity in textiles. His autobiography, however, provides only occasional glances at the general economic and social context of the American cotton industry; it is primarily hardware history. Vandergriff first provides a brief overview of his life and career, focusing on his work as inventor, engineer, and executive officer in the three companies that still manufacture cotton gins in the US. In the remainder of the book he recounts his technical improvements to the gin. Vandergriff devotes a chapter or portion of a chapter to each major component involved in processing raw cotton, such as hull extracting, gin rib design, and duffing. In each of these sections he provides a brief history of technical developments and then reviews in detail his work in improving that component. These chapters have numerous illustrations, not always of good quality, and many of the illustrations, like much of the text, will be fully intelligible only to those already familiar with cotton ginning. Graduate students through professionals. T. S. Reynolds; Michigan Technological University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
