USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -What circumstances conspired to cause the Dust Bowl? Economic depression coupled with extended drought, unusually high temperatures, poor agricultural practices and the resulting wind erosion all contributed to making the Dust Bowl.

Detailed explanation-2: -EMMA 352 Page 2 Human Causes People also had a hand in creating the Dust Bowl. Farmers and ranchers destroyed the grasses that held the soil in place. Farmers plowed up more and more land, while ranchers overstocked the land with cattle. As the grasses disappeared, the land became more vulnerable to wind erosion.

Detailed explanation-3: -Crops began to fail with the onset of drought in 1931, exposing the bare, over-plowed farmland. Without deep-rooted prairie grasses to hold the soil in place, it began to blow away. Eroding soil led to massive dust storms and economic devastation-especially in the Southern Plains.

Detailed explanation-4: -Effects of the Dust Bowl The land became bare and mostly useless for agriculture. Over 100 acres of soil was swept away and deposited in other parts of the country, landing as far away as D.C. and New York. Dust piles had the appearance of snowdrifts. Everything in the home was coated in dirt.