Madison Sayre History Major College of Arts and Sciences THE DUST BOWL

 Introduction of the Dust Bowl  Description  Two Major Causes  The Effect of the Dust Bowl  Short Term Effects  Large Term Effects  A Historical Analysis of the Dust Bowl OUTLINE OF DISCUSSION

WHAT WAS THE DUST BOWL? A Drought that occurred between the years of 1934 and 1941, accompanied by dust storms

DUSTERS “A windstorm kicked up dust…the weather bureau people didn’t know what to make of it or how to define it. Wasn’t a sandstorm…And it wasn’t a hailstorm, though it certainly brought with it a dark, threatening sky…it rolled like a mobile hill of crud, and it was black. When it tumbled through, it carried static electricity, enough to short out a car. And it hurt, like a swipe of coarse sandpaper on the face. The first black duster was a curiosity.”

 Largest Duster  200 miles wide  Moved North to South  The Temperature in Denver dropped 25°F within an hour  Utter Darkness  Couldn’t use lamps  No shelter  People believed it was the end of the world April 14, 1935 BLACK SUNDAY

 National Drought  Covered 2/3 of the country  Two of the driest years on record and 1936  NASA’s Model  Lower than normal Pacific Ocean temperatures  Higher than normal Atlantic Ocean Temperatures  Weakened Jet Stream travelled farther South than normal MAJOR CAUSES OF THE DUST BOWL FACTOR #1: WEATHER

 Farming Practices  Stripped Land of all nutrients  Continued to till over and over  Exhausted the former grass lands  The Shear Number of Farmers  The “Bread Basket” acted as a safety valve MAJOR CAUSES OF THE DUST BOWL FACTOR #2: HUMANS

SHORT TERM EFFECTS Dust Pneumonia

 Poverty  Failed Crops  Dying Livestock  Depression SHORT TERM EFFECTS

LONG TERM EFFECTS  More Dust Pneumonia  Inability to plant  Ghost Towns  Environmental Realization  Hugh Bennett- head of the Soil Erosion Service  Saved the land by having the Civilian Conservation Corporation plant grass  More conscious farming methods  No Till Farming still exists in areas today  Alternating fields

HISTORICAL ANALYSIS The Individuals in the lower class were most effected by the dust bowl and saw FDR as their only beacon of hope, but he couldn’t do it alone 1.“Suitcase Farmers” could bare the first bad crop 2.Franklin Roosevelt’s “Common Man” Speech Opportunity brings equality An Enlightened Administrator would re-establish foreign markets and maintain resources 3.The personification of this “Enlightened Administrator” was so complex, that he needed others i.e. Bennett

SUMMARY  The Dust Bowl existed due to:  Extreme Weather Conditions  Human Actions  There were both short and long term effects of the Dust Bowl  It effected poor people most and FDR had a great impact

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