Mechanical reapers look like robots wielding a scythe for people's souls, but in reality they are agricultural tools used to harvest grain . Invented by Cyrus H. McCormick in 1831, it was the first such machine that changed, after hundreds of years, what people did with the sickle and scythe. (Casson 208) The mechanical reaper consisted of a divider separating the stalks of grain, a reel to pull them against a blade, and two blades that cut the grain. (Carey 257) McCormick forever changed the face of not only agriculture, but the United States itself, with his invention. With his mechanical reaper, McCormick changed the United States by reducing the amount of labor needed for agriculture in addition to producing higher yields than ever before, changing marketing through his sales tactics then revolutionaries and freeing substantial numbers of agricultural workers in the North. who would later fight in the Civil War. McCormick's mechanical reaper increased grain production for less labor and in less time, thereby increasing efficiency and lowering costs in the long run. According to Charles W. Carey, "the mechanical reaper allowed farmers to harvest as much grain in one day as they could harvest by hand in two weeks." (257) The need for workers to harvest grain was reduced and, therefore, the funds needed to hire workers could be allocated to other things, freeing up funds as well as people. Total grain production soared thanks to the efficiency of the mechanical reaper. Herbert Newton Casson said that "the United States produced wheat at the rate of ten bushels per capita, instead of four, as was the case in 1847, when McCormick built his first mill in Chicago." (189) ...... middle of paper ...... collected. Works Cited Bushman, Claudia L. and John Walker. In Old Virginia: Slavery, Agriculture, and Society in the Journal of John Walker. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 2002. Print. Carey, Charles W. American Inventors, Entrepreneurs and Visionaries. New York: Facts on File, 2002. Print. Casson, Herbert Newton. Cyrus Hall McCormick: his life and work. Freeport: Books for Libraries, 1971. Print. Gatling, James Edward. Nation building. Np: Iuniverse, 2011. Print.Hutchinson, William T. Cyrus Hall McCormick: Harvest, 1856-1884. New York: D. Appleton-Century Company, nd Print. McCormick, Cyrus H. Century of the Reaper. Boston: Houghton, nd Print.Selcer, Richard F. Civil War America, 1850 to 1875. New York: Facts On File, 2006. Print.Smith, Andrew F. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America . Oxford: Oxford UP, 2004. Print.