Dust Bowl: Causes, Definition & Years

Overview

• The Dust Bowl was a severe environmental disaster affecting the southern plains of the United States during the 1930s.
• It involved severe dust storms, caused by drought and poor farming practices.
• Impacts included loss of life, failed crops, and intensified economic struggles during the Great Depression.

Causes of the Dust Bowl

• Federal Land Policies and Settlement:
  • Post-Civil War land acts encouraged farming in the Great Plains (Homestead Act, Kinkaid Act, Enlarged Homestead Act).
  • Influx of inexperienced farmers who believed in "rain follows the plow."
• Manifest Destiny and Climate Misunderstanding:
  • False belief tied to Manifest Destiny that agriculture could change the semi-arid climate.
• Economic Factors:
  • Rising wheat prices and WWI demand led to over-cultivation of land.
  • The Great Depression caused further desperation and poor farming practices.
• Environmental Mismanagement:
  • Over-plowing led to loss of deep-rooted prairie grasses, crucial for soil stability.
  • Drought beginning in 1931, leading to dust storms.

Timeline

• 1930-1939: Major period of the Dust Bowl, known as the Dirty Thirties.
• 1931: Onset of severe dust storms.
• 1934: 35 million acres of farmland destroyed; 125 million acres losing topsoil.
• 1939: Return of regular rainfall, but long-term economic and population impacts persisted.

Black Blizzards

• "Black blizzards" were severe dust storms that affected the Great Plains and beyond.
• Notable storms:
  • 1934: A dust storm traveled to the East Coast, affecting areas like Washington, D.C.
  • 1935: Black Sunday, with 3 million tons of topsoil blown away.

Government Response

• New Deal Programs:
  • Initiatives to combat soil erosion and plant windbreaks (Soil Erosion Service, Prairie States Forestry Project).
  • Promoted new farming techniques.

Migration and Impact

• Massive migration from affected states (Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, etc.), termed the "Okie Migration."
• Discrimination and economic hardship faced by migrants in places like California.

Cultural Impact

• Arts and Literature:
  • John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath" depicted Okie struggles.
  • Photographer Dorothea Lange documented the plight of migrants.
  • Woody Guthrie's "Dust Bowl Ballads" captured the era’s hardship.

Sources

• Various historical and cultural sources, including FDR’s Roosevelt Institute, University of California, Smithsonian, and PBS documentaries.