1. The Dust Bowl

2. What is a Dust Bowl??!??
The term “Dust Bowl” refers to the time period of agricultural devastation during the Great Depression.
The Dust Bowl occurred in the early 1930’s & ended in the early 1940’s.
A drought hit the Midwestern & Western states where many thought the Midwestern & Western states were blowing away

3. Why did this happen?
Poor farming methods used up many of the nutrients in the soil.
The overgrazing of cattle led to having less grass on the plains.
A long period of drought & high winds cause the top soil to start “blowing away”

4. What states were severely effected?
Texas
Oklahoma
Colorado
Kansas
New Mexico
Even though the states in yellow were not severely effected, they did suffer damage from the storms.

5. Black Sunday
April 14, 1935
Dust storms turned day into night all over the Midwest & Western states.
Many people panicked & thought the world was coming to an end

6. How did people survive?
Many people moved West to California to look for work.
Houses had to be sealed or boarded up to avoid dust getting inside.
Fires were very common because the land was so dry.
Crops could not be grown due to lack of water.

7. How did people survive?
When people went outside they had to cover their nose & mouth to avoid dirt getting in their lungs
Dirt in lungs = pneumonia & other health problems
Can you guess how old the woman is in the picture…..?

8. Could You Imagine….

9. Sources
Paul Bonnefield. “The 1930’s Dust Bowl.” July 27, 2003.
Ingolf Veogler. The Great Plains. “The Dust Bowl.”
“The Dust Bowl.” Dust Storm Damage.