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People were homeless, dirty, and without food or water. They needed to go and find a place they could be safe. The dust bowl actually made the great depression last longer. It also made the harvest fail. Also health was affected pretty bad because of starvation.

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7y ago
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10y ago

The dust bowl the occurred in prairie states which included Kansan and Oklahoma. The prairies were covered with prairie plants, mostly grass. This formed a natural sod which was rather deep. The sod kept the soil in place during times of low rainfall. When farmers came to this area they plowed up the sod exposing the soil. For this reason they were called 'sod busters'. In the 30s a large drought occurred. When winds blew, soil was picked up and blew about. More and more soil was picked up and blown about. This time was called the dirty 30s. Sometimes people would get the soil blown in their eyes and never saw again. The dirt was blown as far as Washington DC. Washington finally came up with the Soil Conservation Act. Farming practices were changed to preserve the soil.

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11y ago

the dust bowl was caused by farmers plowing the ground to deep and it would break the roots of grass wich held the dirt in place.but then winds started picking up loose dirt on the ground and thats how the dust bowl happened

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12y ago

From 1935-1940 the Dust Bowl affected Americans all over the Great Plains. Farmers since the founding of the United States did not practice crop rotation. Which made the dirt dry and unfit for any type of vegetation. During World War I (when grain prices were high), farmers plowed up thousands of acres of natural grassland to plant wheat. On top of this, a drought struck the Great Plains (from 1934-1937). All of these factors came into play when some high winds came in. The Great Plains were no longer grasslands so there were no roots to hold the soil in place. All of the topsoil blew away and all that was left was dry, unhealthy dirt. Thus, the name "Dust Bowl". Many people left the Great Plains and migrated to the city. Unfortunately, at the same time, there was the Great Depression happening and there were no jobs to be found.

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13y ago

The Dust Bowl of the 1930s lasted about a decade. The dust bowl winds began in 1932 but the Dust Bowl got its name from the horrendous winds beginning in 1935. The primary area it effected was the southern Plains. The northern Plains were not hit so badly but the drought, the blowing dust, and the decline of agriculture in the region had a nationwide effect. The wind "turned day into night" and was so strong it picked up the topsoil on the ground and blew it away in large clouds of dust. The farmers who worked the Great Plains had been breaking up the sod and soil on the plain states since the time of the Homestead Act. Poor farming techniques and years of depleting the soil led to the soil becoming susceptible to the winds.

The loss of agricultural production helped to lengthen the Depression, not only in the US but worldwide. The displaced farmers became the migrants described in John Steinbeck's, Grapes of Wrath. Families from Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Nevada and Arkansas, packed what they could in cars and trucks and headed west. Most were aiming for California where they would become a class of migrant farmers, following the crops during the harvesting season.

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12y ago

From 1935-1940 the Dust Bowl affected Americans all over the Great Plains. Farmers since the founding of the United States did not practice crop rotation. Which made the dirt dry and unfit for any type of vegetation. During World War I (when grain prices were high), farmers plowed up thousands of acres of natural grassland to plant wheat. On top of this, a drought struck the Great Plains (from 1934-1937). All of these factors came into play when some high winds came in. The Great Plains were no longer grasslands so there were no roots to hold the soil in place. All of the topsoil blew away and all that was left was dry, unhealthy dirt. Thus, the name "Dust Bowl". Many people left the Great Plains and migrated to the city. Unfortunately, at the same time, there was the Great Depression happening and there were no jobs to be found.

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Q: What is the cause of the dust bowl?
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