Between the 17th – 20th century whale oil became very popular and was used in a variety of man-made chemicals, materials & tools such as lamp oil, margarine & transmission oil.
Because of the popularity of whale oil several species were hunted into near extinction and are now considered endangered.
In addition to the oil found in some of the larger baleen whale species whalers also hunted the sperm whale (a toothed whale) which possessed spermaceti oil that can be found located in its head.
It assisted in facilitating increased growth and production of cotton as a crop.
It also then paved way for massive production of cotton in the United States as well as creating a niche where cotton production became a profitable business.
