Dust Bowl Research Paper

The Dust Bowl was a terrible experience during a horrible time. In the 1930s post World War I America had a total collapse of the stock market causing the Great Depression affecting the economy on a global scale, but hitting hardest at home in the United States. However, the economy wasn’t the only thing that was hit hard during this time; seemingly unstoppable dust storms ravaged farming land from the west to east coast hitting hardest in the great plains in the middle section the the US became known as the Dust Bowl. The Dust Bowl was not entirely a causation of bad luck on nature, it was caused by an increasing demand for crops, advancements in farming technology, while the final nail in the coffin was a lack of rain.

During the Great Depression a Midwestern phenomenon called the Dust Bowl affected many lives of newly settled Americans throughout the Great Plains region. Otherwise known as the “Dirty Thirties”, a storm of dry weather caused farmers and villagers to abandon their homes in hope to survive the deadly threat of the storm. The Dust Bowl was a big contributing factor to the Great Depression agriculturally, and economically.

Also known as the dirty thirties, The dust bowl years were the years that dust storms greatly damaged thousands of homes, lives, and the economy. Originally the Dust Bowl was the name given from the Great Plains region, consumed by the so called drought in the 1930’s. Many who had gone through the Dust Bowl; pointed fingers at the dought, little did they know that The Dust Bowl originally was caused by heavy mechanism, and heavy mechanism came from farmers over doing farms.

The Great Depression was a devastating period in United States History, the economy collapsed, and a staggering 25% of the population was unemployed. During this time, there were large wage disparity gaps that were very prevalent, there was no middle class, you were either wealthy or you were poor. It was hard for family life to continue, parents had to take up two and three jobs to make sure their kids were staying safe, and well. Most of these jobs were odd-jobs, and were temporary with no sense of security. It was a struggle to find work, and no job was too demeaning for you to do, because you may not find work again. James J. Braddock, who is the main character in Cinderella Man, knows the struggle of the Great Depression, and how he did not take any chance for granted. A similar film, Rocky, which shows Rocky Balboa as an underperforming boxer, who gets his one shot at fame and does not squander it. The purpose of these two films were to show social class disparity. Through hard work and a bit of fortune, anyone can make it in the United States, as portrayed in these films. The use of lighting, camera angles, and sounds allowed for the accurate portrayal of these events.

“With the gales came the dust. Sometimes it was so thick that it completely hid the sun. Visibility ranged from nothing to fifty feet, the former when the eyes were filled with dirt which could not be avoided, even with goggles ”( Richardson 59). The Dust Bowl was a huge dust storm in the 1930s that stretched from western Kansas to New Mexico. People that lived in that area could not step outside or they would get dust in their lungs. Livestock could not breath or find food sources. Thousands of people lost their homes due to the storm. Changes in farming and agriculture in the early 1900s altered the landscape and soil creating the perfect environment for the Dust Bowl and impacted living conditions and economic policy.

The Great Depression and the Dust Bowl were devistating time for American citizens followed by another terrible time called the dust bowl. Both were devastating times for america. The great depression caused the dust bowl because farmers lost their money and property which cause many to move to urban america in search of work.

The dust bowl was considered the “Worst hard time” in american history. The Dust Bowl was a big cloud of dust that took place during the 1930’s in the middle of the Great Depression. The dust bowl was located in the southern great plains as it affected states like Kansas, Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado. The three main causes of the Dust Bowl were drought (Doc E), amount of land being harvest (Doc D), and the death shortgrass prairie (Doc C).

The dust bowl was of the most devastating environmental disaster in the US history. The drought and poor farming practice lead cause this tragedy. The dust transformed the landscape of the Great Plains and also transformed our relationship with the

In short term it ended the dreadful crisis that almost ruined the US finance. This also reopened banks within a few days. In long term, it got rid of America’s weakest and most unstable banks, and made sure that this would never occur again. The New deal did not solve all the problems the Great Depression had but it sure reduced it. The biggest problem was to put people back to work and the new deal sure did that; it made agencies like the CCC, PWA, etc. to help fulfill that aim. Therefore, Problems and hardships were faced during this time period, but were solutions trying to be made to help this dreadful

The dust bowl is very serious.“But in the summer of 1931, the rains disappeared. Crops withered and died. There had always been strong winds and dust on the Plains, but now over plowing created conditions for disaster. There was dust everywhere, because the people couldve worried about others than themselves. The one thing the people could be doing is just hope and stick together and maybe things will all plan out and it would be done very soon. Afterward, there was dust everywhere—in food, in water, in the lungs of animals and people. The dust was to big to handle so you could not do anything animals had nowhere to go and nothing to eat. Animals were found dead in the fields, their stomachs coated with two inches of dirt. People spat up clods of dirt as big around as a pencil. An epidemic raged throughout the Plains: they called it dust pneumonia.” Everybody was dying, even

Although the Great Depression impacted the society negatively, the government and people learned how to adapt to the unfortunate situation. Even though many people were impacted, the society has grown and become a stronger one because of it. Now the United States knows how to work with this mishap, they now know how to predict it and learn how to advance, and work with the problems in the future from this

“ The story highlights a very real and relatable experience about a family driven out of their home due to economic hardship and drought. Also known as “The Dirty Thirties,” the Dust Bowl was a period of severe dust storms causing major agricultural damage to the American west—especially the Oklahoma panhandle area, Kansas, and northern Texas. Farming methods at the time contributed to the severity of the problem. The arrival of farmers to the Great Plains created conditions for significant soil erosion during naturally occurring periods of cool sea surface water temperatures that regulate precipitation. “

The Great Depression was not only one of the defining moments in American history, but also one of the most difficult hardships Americans faced. During the Great Depression, which was ignited by the stock market crash of 1929, people faced unemployment, poverty, and changes in government the ultimately shaped America today.

Dust Bowl, The Southern Plains in the 30’s written by Donald Worster and published in 1979, is an informative text on the Great Plains during the Great Depression. Donald Worster is a credible author because he not only earned a Ph.D. from Yale in environmental history, but he also had previously written a book on the environment and the economy.

The Dust Bowl was a period of severe dust storms causing major ecological and agricultural damage to American and Canadian prairie lands from 1930 to 1936, however in some places it lasted until 1940. The Dust Bowl was caused by a severe drought also coupled with decades of extensive farming without crop rotation or other techniques to prevent erosion. Deep plowing of the top soil of the Great Plains had killed the natural grass that normally kept the soil in place and trapped moisture even during the period of droughts and high winds.