How Did Drought, and Dust Storms Compound Depression Era Problems for Farmers?

What is the Dust Bowl? Severe Drought Dust Storms Farm Failures

Where was the Dust Bowl? Great Plains Region Colorado, Texas Kansas, North & South Dakota Hit the most in Oklahoma

What caused the Dust Bowl disaster? Nature-Made  Severe drought (no rain), Fierce Heat Man-Made  Overgrazing by cattle, Over plowing of the soil for decades. Open Landscape  High winds create dust storms

Wheat production continued to decline.

“The lands were planted to wheat year after year without a thought as to the damage that was being done. Grasslands that should have never been plowed were plowed up. Millions of acres of farm land in the great plains were broken was dry but most of the farmers made a wheat crop. In 1931 the wheat crop was considered a bumper crop with over twelve million bushels of wheat. Wheat was everywhere, in the elevators, on the ground and in the road. The wheat supply forced the price down from sixty-eight cents/bushel in July 1930 to twenty-five cents/bushel in July Many farmers went broke and others abandoned their fields. “ / dustbowl.html

Scenes from the Dust Bowl Dust Storm over Oklahoma

Scenes from the Dust Bowl Dust Storm over Texas

Scenes from the Dust Bowl Dust Storm over Kansas

“During 1936, the number of dirt storms increased and the temperature broke the 1934 record high by soaring above 120 degrees in parts of Kansas was another year of unprecedented dirt storms. Day after day, Dust Bowl farmers unwillingly traded farms as the land moved back and forth between Texas and Kansas was the year of the "snuster". The snuster was a mixture of dirt and snow Reaching blizzard proportions.”

“When the wind blew in the dust bowl, something as ordinary as breathing became a challenge...it (dust) would just coat the inside of your nose literally. And sometimes your mouth would just get cottony dry because...you spit out dirt...It looked like tobacco juice...But just thought that was part of livin.’ ” eLifeDuringTheDustBowl.pdf

“The blowing dirt made daily routines burdensome and depressing. Whether one was trying to keep house, run a small business, go to school, or go to church, the impact of The dust was serious.” “Everything that had a surface became dusty. Clothes hanging on the line to dry ended up stiff with dirt. Families went to sleep on clean sheets and pillowcases and awoke to find everything dirty but the spots where they had lain.”

Who did the drought hit the hardest? How did they react? Few stayed to stick it out and hope that their homes and farms were not ruined forever...

Who did the drought hit the hardest? How did they react? Migrant workers –P–P–P–Poor farmers from Oklahoma and Arkansas headed west to escape the Dust Bowl –M–M–M–Many moved to the west coast to find jobs on farms –T–T–T–They were not welcomed by locals –L–L–L–Locals feared that the migrants would take local jobs –M–M–M–Migrant workers lived in poor conditions (tents, no water or electricity)

Many of the migrants struggled to reach their destinations and met obstacles along the way. The experiences of these “Okies” and “Arkies” became the basis for John Steinbeck’s novel, The Grapes of Wrath.

Conclusion: How did drought, and dust storms compound depression era problems for farmers? Farmers were already struggling through the economic depression (due to overproduction of crops) Lack of rain and the overuse of land made farmers problems worse Conditions forced farmers of the Great Plains to migrate west where they were unwelcome and faced an even harder life Many were left displaced/homeless as farm land became useless

“The Dust Bowl taught farmers new farming methods and techniques. The 1930's fostered a whole new era of soil conservation. Perhaps the most valuable lesson learned form the Dust Bowl - take care of the land.”

The Soil Conservation Service (SCS)—now The Natural Resources Conservation Service began to stress soil conservation measures. Through their efforts, the first soil conservation districts came into being, and demonstration projects were carried out to show the benefits of practices such as terracing, contour plowing, conservation tillage and the reintroduction of windbreaks.

Contour Plowing Wind Break or Shelter Belt

Now watch the following clip on the Dust Bowl Now watch the following clip on the Dust Bowl Based on everything you learned, answer the question on the back of your note sheet! Based on everything you learned, answer the question on the back of your note sheet!