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Essays about the dust bowl
Essays about the dust bowl
Life during the great depression era
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The three main causes of the Dust Bowl was Drought, amount of land being harvested on, and death of the shortgrass prairie. All of these reasons have to tie in with soil and water. The Dust Bowl was truly the Worst Hard Time in American history. It affected the great plains of america forever and would go down in
The poor farming practices that were put in place by profit farmers disregarding the state of the land coupled with the sudden explosive growth in farming technology allowing these farmers to farm much larger plots of land with much more ease left the topsoil completely vulnerable. While it was natural phenomena that sparked the Dust Bowl, it was not the cause, as these natural phenomena on their own would not have been nearly enough to cause anything on the scale of the Dust Bowl. The Dust Bowl was a direct causation of the poor farming methods of the farmers of the
Devastation pervaded the decade of the 1930s, which left many people struggling with hardships. High unemployment and homelessness rate preceded the nation. This destruction became known as the Dust Bowl. During the Dust Bowl, high winds referred to as the black blizzards wreaked havoc on the land. A principal, infamous author, Donald Worster, demonstrates in his book, “Dust Bowl The Southern Plains in the 1930s” the living conditions and obstacles people had faced along with the various explanations for the Dust Bowl.
Some of the states severely affected were Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado. Cattle became blinded during dust storms and ran around in circles, inhaling dust, until they fell and died, their lungs caked with dust and mud. Newborn calves suffocated. Three reasons for the Dust Bowl: Loss Of shortgrass prairie, mechanization of farming and lack of rainfall. The Dust Bowl was caused by the loss of short prairie grass.
These poor weather conditions led to the Dust Bowl because without consistent rainfall, crops were unable to grow. Without crops growing, acres of farmland were solely covered in dry dirt that was easily kicked up and blown away. If more rain were to have fallen yearly, crops would have had a much higher chance of growing, eliminating the uncontrolled amount of dirt.
Donald Worster is an environmental historian and his book Dust Bowl: The Southern Plains in the 1930s helped to define the environmental history movement as it was the first environmental history book published. He breaks the stereotype of how the Dust Bowl was viewed by writing it from an environmental standpoint instead of writing a social history by focusing solely on the people and their experiences. How it helped to define the environmental history movement is that it opened up this avenue for others to write about environmental issues. He is also an anti-capitalist and this book combines his interest in the environment with the effect that capitalism has on the environment.
The drought was a big cause for the dust bowl and impacted a lot but another Main cause as the disappearing of the root system it impacted the dust storm heavily and to Americans. The disappearing of the root system withouts any of roots there would be a lot of Dust coming into the air which impacted the environment a lot and was one of the main things That probably created the storm. Some might say it was not because the roots probably wouldn´t Impact that much but in reality with no roots no protection over the dirt. The mechanics of farming also impacted the dust bowl a lot of the mechanics
During the Dust Bowl some people made the decision to stay at their farms. Huge drifts of dirt piled up on homesteaders’ doors, came in the cracks of windows and came down from the ceilings. Barnyards and pastures were buried in dirt. After about 850 million tons of topsoil was blown away in 1935 alone. The government responded to this by saying “Unless something is done, the western plains will be as arid as the Arabian desert.”
The drought killed the grass which made the soil lack the roots as an anchor, “So the winds easily picked up the loose topsoil and swirled it into dense dust clouds, called black blizzards”(“Dust Bowl”). This dust wasn't just destructive it was also deadly. The dust could kill if people inhaled enough of it. The dust was more deadly to infants and elderly people.
At the beginning, Egan used the phrase, “the Great Plowup.” He meant the era of large success for the people, who settle in the Great Plains, by changing the grasses with crops of wheat and corn. Those people settled in the Great Plains after moving of the Indians, killing a lot of animals, and removing the few trees on the land. They plowed a million acres and replaced the grass which covered the land with the crops. These crops like a lot of water.
THE DUST BOWL Hello if you're not familiar with me I'm William j. Holloway and Many of you all wonder how the dust bowl started or how it killed thousands. Well I'm here to tell you just how . The Dust Bowl started from years of farming. You're probably wondering, how could all this farming start this?
The effects of the Dust Bowl ““Black blizzards” or windblown soil blocked the sun and piled the dirt in drifts. Occasionally the dust storm swept completely across the country to the east coast. Thousands of families were forced to leave the region at the height of the great depression in the early and mid 1930’s.” The Dust Bowl was a devastating time period that affected many americans. In the 1930’s many Americans were affected by the dust bowl.
The Dust Bowl was an economic event that happened in the Great Plains during the Great Depression in the 1930’s. The causes of the Dust Bowl was the dry farming technique, the drought, and high winds. The dry farming technique helped the farmers grow more food in the Great Plains because the land was somewhat dry. The drought made the soil loose, and turn into a powdery substance. The high winds started blowing in 1934, which carried the dirt through the air.
During World War I, The government urged farmers to grow more crops to help the war effort, which lowered the price of crops. Farmers needed to harvest more for the same amount of profit and small family farms turned into large enterprises. This mass elimination of Five million acres of prairie grass to make farmland became known as the Great Plow-Up. With all the grass gone, there was nothing left to keep the soil from blowing. New ways to farm also harmed the land.
The Struggle Through the Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl left the Great Plains with dry land and nowhere to farm. This led many people to move in search of jobs or new technology purchased using credit. Although everyone struggled, African Americans took the hit harder, as they were discriminated and lost jobs to whites. All residents of the Great Plains were affected, but African Americans were most significantly impacted.