What object fueled america's economy in the mid/late 1700s much like oil fuels our econmoy today?

TIMBER was the object that fueled America's economy in the mid/late 1700s.

The United States was filled with old-growth forest which attracted the British. Trees were felled and turned into timber or lumber which was used by the early settlers, as they build their settlements. Timber was also exported for overseas trade. Demand for timber grew domestically and internationally fueling the economy of America.

The timber became a primary resource for regional and national building materials, industry, and fuel. It help bring about the industrial revolution as well as the burgeoning railroad industry.

Bwould be my guess |-/