Question

What was the dust bowl? How did it affect the lives of Americans in the 1930s?

Answer 1

Hint: Serious dust storms were witnessed in the United States in the 1930s. There were crushing effects of these occurrences on the economic and social front for the people and therefore, the regions affected by them were named so.

Complete answer: The Southern Plains of the United States were stricken with drought in the 1930s. The reasons for these droughts were the economic and administrative failures. These drought stricken regions started to witness dust storms in the dry weather conditions. Thus, they came to be known as the Dust Bowl.

Due to the Great Depression of the 1920s and early 30s, the economy of the United States was in ruins. This drove a lot of farming families into financially drained situations. This led the people to leave farming and look for alternative sources of income.

The region was left drained for years and several economic methodologies had been undertaken by the government of President Roosevelt to lift people out of poverty. The effects of the Great Depression and the increased demand of wheat and corn during World War I had dramatic effects on the lives of people living in the Dust Bowls.

Note: The 1930s are also called the ‘Dirty thirties’ due to the dust storms that plagues the region of the Southern Plains. They had effects all over the country and are therefore, still seen as a great disaster in the history of the US.