Mini-Qs in Texas History VoLUME 1, UNIT 8 What Caused the Dust Bowl? MINI-Q” LESSON PLAN ‘Step One: Hook Rete’ to the Step One teacher notes inthe Min-O. Read the directions alous, The purpose is to get students engaged, talking, and wanting todo the Mini-©. ‘Step Two: Background Essay Refer to the Step Two toacher notes in the Min-O, Students can write out answers to the BGE questions oF the questions can simply be discussed ‘Step Three: Understanding the Question and Pre-Bucketing The task of recognizing and E) Normal ain n Scuthern Plains was between 16 and 18 inches. (Doc E) In 19908 many aieas in Southern Plans got between 10 and 15 inches a year [Argument Lack of ain ceused huge dust storms. Dust bow to Washington, D.C. Paragraph #5 Conclusion: Restaterentof main idea along with possible insight or wrinkle Result of ro shotgrass, machinery, ard lack of rain was a near disaster, Many people moved. “eokabbi stew. able cloths fo keep dust of fod. Dust pneumonia. Finish wih Avs Cason quote (Doe a) 330Dust Bow! Min-c From Thesis to Essay Writing Mini-Q Essay Outline Guide Working Title Paragraph #1 Grabber Background Stating the question with key terms defined ‘Thesis and road map. Paragraph #2 Baby Thesis for bucket one Evidence: supporting detail fom documents with document citation Argument: connecting evidence to the thesis Paragraph #3 Baby Thesis for bucket two Evidence Argument Paragraph #4 Baby Thesis for bucket three Evidence Argument Paragraph # Conclusion: Restatement of main idea along with possible insight or wrinkle menace ne This page may bo reproduce lor lato use °ust Bow! Min-@ Min-a Sample Essay: Non-Proticient Essay What Caused the Dust Bow? It has been called the Worst Time Ever. twas nthe 1990s andi sproad across America, It had ls of caus ‘ke the prairie grass and the antl. ‘The frst cause was the pare grass. was called shorigrass praiie and it was about four inches tal It was ‘excelent for eat to eat but not so good for wheat arming, You had to dig up which was a problem. (Dee 8) “The second big cause was tho farm machinery. helped the frmors plow quickly andi could even pull a omine which means they could separate tha wheal rom the saw which en a hot day saves lot of tine, “The third big cause was th rainfall it just dnt very much. You need atleast 90 inches a year to farm and farmers wera lueky te got hat, But was tel faut because a man named Powell warned them all about it (Doe E) ‘America is a great country but sometimes it doesn't all work out But thas OK. Tibet most a he farmers understand, They believe inthis county whichis the bes. ini-0 Sample Essay: The Body Shop Proficient Essay ‘What Caused the Dust Bowl? thas been called the "Werst Hard Tima” This was the docado of tho 1980s, when the Souther Plains were hit by 800 cust storms, What caused these terre storie? Thore ware free main reasons: the oss ch ral grass, new farm machinery, and low ran (One cause ofthe Dust Be storms was the loss ofthe shortgrass prio. An old Toxas sheephierder sald that “Grass what hold the earth together (Doc 8) That tue. The rots Keep the sol rom blowing away, Won wheat farmers moved in ad repaced cate ranchers, tiey plowed up the grass andi the soi unprotected, | second cause of the Oust ow! was machings tke the ractor and the combine. These helped wheat farm fr ike Fred Folkers to pla up more grass and plant more crops. k seemed good for him but was bad for the land. (Doe ©) Between 1800 and 1929, tho numberof acres harvested inthe Great Pains about dou ted. (Doe 0} The machines made the shortgrass praia disappear even faster. ‘final cause othe dust storms was the low rinfal The normal yearly average inthe region was between 16 and 18 inches Inthe 19908, ths dropped to benween 10 and 15 inches, (Doc E) The sal got even drier and the wind ust picked up ana blew away. itis prety clear why there were such tombe storms and why people had to eat under tablecoths and put washcloths over hee faces when they slop. There was to ite grass, too many tractors, and oo Ite rain, The sad recut was the Dust BowDust Bow! Mink Student Mini-@ Lined Paper ‘oomo re teo mies This page may bo epoduce fr elasroom useDust Bowl Min. Mini-@ Sample Essay: High Proficiency What Caused the Dust Bowl? Historian Timothy Egan called it“The Worst Hard Timo” These were the Dust Bow years that Pearly smothered the Southern Plains in the 1930s. The Texas and Oklahoma panhandles were fespocally hard hit, Ourng thase years, the entire nation was knocked about by the Depression but the Southern Plains recewved a double blow, an economic depression and then a series of more than 300 dust storms that just wore people down. The question i, what caused these storms? It ‘was really a combination of man's mistakes and nature doing what nature had been doing for thousands of years. There were three main reasons for the storms and the Dust Bowl that was Created! the loss of the shortgrass pra, the heavy use of farm machinery, and a lack of rai, “The loss ofthe shortgrass prairie that carpeted the Southern Plains was a main cause of the Dust Bowl An old Texas shoapherder speaking inthe mid-1830s said t best: "Grass is what holds the ‘earth together” (Doe B) The grass only stood about four inches high, but the roots held the sol in place. In the late 1800s, it was most eatle ranchers that settiod on the Southern Plains. The tattle ate the grass, bul the grass grew back. The problem came when a new Enlarged Homestoad ‘Retin 1909 encouraged wheat farmers to sate, (Background Essay) The shortgrass prairie began {o disappear as it was plowed up for wheat farms. The dirt was no longer protected from the winds. ‘The shorigrass prairie might have survived iit were not forthe new farm machinery. Take the case (Of Fred Folkers of Boise Cily, Oklahoma, In the 1920s Folkers bought a new tractor and a combine. ‘The tractor and combine did the work of ten horses. (Doc C) It greatly increased what Folkers could grou It also grealy increased the amount of shortgrass prairie he tore up. And Fred Folkers: was not alone, Between 1899 and 1929, inthe eight states that made up the Great Plains, the hhumber of zores harvested more than doubled. (Doc D) To make matters even worse, the plow that Folkers and others used pulverized the soll. [tft ite crumbs of soll that could more easily biow ‘away, More machinery meant lass grass and less grass meant more dry dirt for the winds to pick Up and blow away. “The final reason forthe Dust Bow! disaster was drought. According to John Wesley Powell, farmers Inthe Plains needed atleast 20 acres of rain in a year to make a wheat crop. (Doc E) Southern rains wheat farmers wore already living on the edge with normal annual precipitation between 16 fand 18 inches, (Doc E) In the 1930s drought hit, with average annual rainfall running between 10, ‘and 18 inches, Dry sollwas easily picked up by the winds and blown hundreds of miles, some- times as far as Washington, D.C. “The result ofthe loss ol the shortgrass praiie, the widespread use of machines, and the lack of fainfal was a near disaster, Many farm families moved to neighboring states or to California, ‘Those that stayed in th region, and it was the majority, lived behind water-soaked curtains and aie jackrabbit stew from under a tablecloth. Children died from dust pneumonia, People slept with ‘washcloths over their noses. Describing such nights, Avss Carson recalled, “After a while, if we aro ‘900d sleepers, we forget” (Doc A) But Americans today should not forget. The land is delicate. It {ve are careful how we farm and where we farm we can reduce the chances of another Dust Sow! inthe future, 334Dust Bow Mino Student Mini-Q Lined Paper “ero 1 b00 Pf This page may be reproduced for classroom tse oeDust Bow! Mini-a TEACHER DOCUMENT LIST (CV) “There are 5 documents in this Min-O. Students are provided withthe same document list but I isnot dhided into analytical categories or buckets. Students may develop buckets that are aitferent from these. Context Document A: Dusters Geography Document 8: Grass Mechani Document: Fred Folkers and His Tractor (with photograph) Document: Acreage Under Plow (chart) Weather Document: Rainfall on the Plains in the 1930sDust Bout Min. © What Caused the Dust Bowl? Dust stom sppreacing Stato, Texas, Api 18, 1086. NOAA Pho Litany, Heston NWS Colleton, ‘Overview: In the 1930: America was hit by very bad times. These were the years ofthe Great Depression. In cities ant in small towns across the land, bunks were filing, businesses were closing, and workers were being fired. But in some ways farmers were hit hardest of all, and few farmers were hit harder than these inthe Southern Great Plains, which extended into northern and central ‘Texas. This region has come to be known asthe Dust Bow. The question for this Mini-Q is what ‘caused the Dust Bow tragedy. The Documents: coast eat bee CC: Fred Folkers and his tractor (with photograph) AA Mini Document Based Question (Mini-Q) sr comm meteor Ths page may be reproduced fr elasioom useDust Bow! Min-@ The Hook ‘Teacher Note: The purse of the Hook Exercis isto create some inital interest in the Min. Divide the class into pais. lead The Background aloud. Give the students about five minutes to talk thraugh and make their decision. Tell them this is based on a true story ‘Open the discussion tothe whole class. Both the Osteen family and Baca County, Colorado, in the far southeastern part ofthe state, are very roa. After the class finishes their discussion, you may want to tell them that Ike lft. He didn't tak any money from (Oscar for his share of he farm. For more on Ike Osteen, see Timothy Egan's, The Worst Hard Time.ust Bow! Mine Hook Exercise: The Dust Bow! Sehr eal pan! nbc Wa igh Sie oa teil ne ye sno co a Tea a Decision: You are Ike Dsteen. You are 17 years old, Its dawn on May 28, 1935. You have ‘8 bundle of clothes ted up in an old shirt, a paper bag with two jackrabbit sandwiches, inside, and a canteen of Water. You ate siting at the table, writing a note to Oscar, saying the can have the farm, tat you are walking up to Springlield to try to get a job with the railroad. But you stop writing. Is this what you rally want to do” The job is long shot. ‘You look out the open door a the fields of dust and dirt. You don’t have a dollar to your ‘Your Task: With a pariner, talk through Ike's situation. Will you leave? You love your brother, but you've gotto be tue to yourself. Jot down your reasons for leaving or staying Reasonsto Stay Reasons to Leave Your Decision: 0 Tis page may be ropredued lo easton useust Bou! Min-@ Establishing the Context + Find the SoutForn Great Plains area on a map. * Pre-teach the 2oldaced vocabulary. + Have students read the Background Essay, or ead it aloud + Have students answer the Background Essay questions, ‘Specific Considerations “The main purpose of the Background Essay Is to create a context for the Min-@ exercise Its job isto provide a sense of time, place, and story, and to introduce important vocab lary and concepts. Doirg this well gives all students a more equal chance to succeed with the Mini-Q. Time: 1e sure students review the Timeline on the Background Essay Questions page Place: Review the mar in the Hook Exercise. In 1607 when the first sets arrived at Jamestown, most of the eastern United States was covered with forest. An ‘exception was linois and parts of Indiana and southern Wisconsin, where taligrass prairie was the dominant feature. The grasses could reach heights of Seven feet. Between the Mississippi iver and the Rocky Mountains, grass height Tessened and gradually became the shortgrass prairie of the Northern and ‘Southern Plains, ‘Story: Consider reading the Background Essay aloud. We believe its good for many ‘students, even good readers, ta hear the words as they see them. For many itis important te hear the cadence of the language, io experience pauses and emphasis. Vocabulary and Concepts ‘You may want to pre-teach the five bold faced terms inthe essay. Our feeling about ‘vocabulary is that some pre-teaching is good, but keep the word lst short Understanding vocabulary is another reason for reading aloud. Final Note “The term “dust bow" can be a bit confusing because historians and geographers use it to dosignate both a place (the Southern Plains) and an event (the drought and harsh cond tions of the 1930.)Background Essay ust Bow! Min-@ What Caused the Dust Bowl? (On Thursday, April 18, 1935, a huge, black, billowing cloud piled up on the western horizon For Stratford, Texas, and thousands of farms and small towns, it was the arrival of another dust storm, one of more than 300 that would make an unwelcome visit to the Southern Great Plains uring the 1930s. For thousands of years the Southern Plains were covered by shortgrass prairie and provid Wheat fever was in the ait. The railroad sent ‘ut branch lines to small towns, and more wheat could get to market, World Wat I, which brought so much pain to Europe, was good for Plains farmers. A hungry Europe bought Kansas wheat, ‘Wheat that sold for 93 cents bushel in 1914 was close to $2.50 in 1919. More families ‘moved in. Small towns popped up like spring flowers. Boise City, out near the end of the Oklahoma panhandle, spor. ce home to vast herds af 20 0F 30 milion but In ca ates, a newspaper, a a sea tne ea Bags fae and artved. First came the chnnin TI tee,’ | several cates, “Apice, the Comanche and fe But thea woubl came the Kiowa, Sholy ae the a ‘The Great Depression ofthe Civil War, there eame Serre 7" ounone | 1930s was the first blow. few thousand cowboys and alte | Unemployment back east several milion cate. Then ade ie harder to sell came the farmer. Be wea Sadly. the ‘The first farmers arived a Depression did not come ta teens wa ka LC alone. What mate lie on goten out hack east tat the | fi Teer] the Souths Pins anos Southern Great Plains was 200d for wheat, Yes, rainfall was abit spoty. but the land was eheaper than farmland i Arkansas or Ilinois, Besides, it was said that rain would follow the plow. Grow erops and loads would form, With few tres for lamber, many ofthese carly farmers lived in seddies, houses made of earth and grass. Soddies were soon replaced by Wood frame houses, A severe drought inthe 1890s caused some farmers to move away, but then the federal governzieat sweetened the pot A new Enlarged Homestead Act passed in 1909 offered 320 acres of land to anyone who ‘could hang on for three years, Thousands of new farm families took up the offer. In addition, the giant XIT ranch on the Texas panhandle sold off much of it three-million-acre spread to wanna-be farmers. Wheat would replace cattle a the new king of the Southern Plains, ‘storms. In the middle thirties, these wind-driven. dusters darkened the midday sky and cated off nillions of tons of precious topsoil as far as ‘Washington, D.C, and New York City, Daring the 1930s more than three millon plains setlers left their farms ~ some for town, some for a neighboring state, some for California. Many more, however, stayed put, covering their windows with a water-soaked shee, eating Jackrabbit stew at a kitchen table where an “eating” cloth covered all the plates and drink- ing cups. Chiklren died from breathing in dust They called it “dust pneumonia” Writer ‘Timothy Egan has tiled is book on Dust Bow! history as The Worst Hard Time But exactly what happened to cause this, ‘worst hard time? Examine the dacuments that follow and do your best 1 answer the question before us: What caused the Dust Bowl? sat This page may bo reproduced fr classroom useDust Bont Min Document A: Dusters Content Notes: Fist there were two kinds of dusters. There were ‘the mere continual sand:bearing winds that blew from the west that butt up drt Gunes agains bud ings and fences. Sand sorms stayed low. Second, thre were the great, ilowing 7,000 to 8.000 toot igh tack clouds of dus that were carted in by a polar air mass. These were sometimes attondod by {thunder and ighining are could be tightening. More than afew dary aecouns speak o the end of the werd “+ Dust storms inthe Souther Plains occured betore the 1990s and they certainly have occurred since. \Winat made the 306 deren s the frequency. A Soll Conservation ServiaTrequoncy report pro vides these dust storm rarer forthe Southern Plains: rose 14 199998 1934 22 199540 1096 68 1997 72 1908 61 1929 20 s940 17 + Health consequences othe dust storms were ‘serous. In the mnt folowing Black Sunday (Apr 4, 1995), fou smal hospitals in Meade (County, Kansas, reports that over hat of thet ‘admissions were respiratory cases. Of these, &3 jeope ded. Gauze macks and Vaseline around {he nostri were not eneugh to protect the most wuleable,especaly babies and te elder. ‘The cause of death was usualy given as “dust preumonia® + Margaret Bourke White was a famous photographer ‘or Lite Magazine ‘Teaching Tips: + Discuss the Document Analysis questions: 4, Does this document conan primary souro= ‘materia? Explain, ‘The document includes atleast one primary source quotation, the recolstion ‘of Avs Carlson, The Bourke- Whi quote {sess cleary primary 2, What doos the author mean when he says the earth ran ame"? ‘To"Tun amok’ Isto be out of control ‘8. What problem was shared by both poopie ‘and ato? Both animals an people breathed indus. Inooud be deadly. (See Contont Note.) 4. Does ths document do a beter job of deserting dust storm conetions or explain ing causes behind the dust storm problem? “The document describes contions:it does not explain causes 5. In a short essay ened, What Caused the Dust Bow?” how might you use this ‘document? (One use would be fo ove some back ‘ound information in an inteductory Paragraph, “+ Ask students to rete te the photo onthe cover page. Read them th fist Content Note that {itinguishes betwoon the “sand storm dusters” fad the towering black bizzard dusters. Which is Showin inthe plo? (black Dizzard duster) Can ‘Students sympathize wah Plains people who feared the end ofthe world?Dust Bow min-c Document A @ sence: cust ut ov Te Soe Pane ts Ox ey Pe 78 ‘The story f the southern plains in the 1930s is esentally about dust storms, when the earth ran amok. And not once or twice, but over and over for the beter part of a decade: day after day, year after year, of sand rattling against the window, of fine powder caking one's lips, of springtime turned to despair. Inthe memory of older plains sesi- ents, the blackest year was 1935.... Oa 15 March, Denver reported that a serious dust storm was speeding eastward ‘Kansans ignored the radio warnings, went about thei business as usual, and {own printer Nae White was at the pic e ture show when the dust reached Smith Center: as he walked out the exit it was 4s if someone hud put a blindfold over his eyes; he burped into telephone poles, later wondered what had hit them. Small- skinned his shins on boxes and cans in the alleyway, fell to his hands and knees, and crawled along the curbing to a dim houselight Livestock and wildlife did not have even ... crude defenses, “In arising sand storm,” wrote Margaret Bourke-White, “cattle quickly become blinded. They run around in circles until they fall and breathe so much dust that they die. ‘Autopsies show thei lungs caked with dust and mud" Avis Carlson told what it was ike at night “A trip to warer to rinse the grit {rom our lips. And then back to bed with washcloths over our noses. We try to lie still, because every tur stirs the dust on the blankets. After a while, if we are 00d sleepers, we forget.” monet ne “This page may be reproduced or elstoom use oaDust Bow! Mi. Document B: Grass Content Notes: + Uni 200 years ago, the great American grasslands fextendod ftom Otto to the Rocky Mountains. nthe fastor paris, the grass received more rain and {ew lll as high ae seven foot Inthe Southern And Westem Plains wher rina was under 20 ‘ches po year, the lanc was covered by several Species of shor grasses In the Dust Bow region the most common ofthese was buffalo grass. +The tees that existed inthe Southern Plains grew ‘mostly along ho ver betoms ~cotlonwood, wi tow, wild pum, +The ob of the butfalo grass, and its other short- ‘grass Iiends, was fo Hot the sol in place and ‘epfure the sun's energy, converting Iino 8 food ‘Source for tons of milors of butala, end perhaps fas many as 20 milion penghor antalope. Unimately al up and down the food chain, wile ‘depended onthe shorigass prairie. This included Carnvores tke wolies,oyote and eagles 2s well fs smaller cers ike carats, pai dogs, pocket gophers, rice, elesnakes, skunks, and roles. +The shortgrass prairie has ebbed and flowed over the cantunes, Drought Fas caused itt recede, wet periods have caused i> expand, I had beon [oun for hundreds of Pousands, perhaps milions ‘of years, withstanding much of what Mother Nature threw at her The shor-ass praiie was the ‘ecological underpinning ofthe Southern Pains Setters would tampor wih ia ther pel Teaching Tips + Review the Document Analysis questions: + What do you suppose the Texas shoopherder moans when he says thal grass “saves US ar? Wie are dependent onthe grass for oUF ‘ety Ives fed the Bufalo which ‘Sustained the Plains Inchans. Today it {feeds boo! cae which sustain the ‘American fastfood ust, which keeps twanagors alive. 2. The aheepherdor aso says thal grass “holds the earth ogee’ What does he mean? ‘The shergrass priie acts as @ giant spongy ma thal absorbs rainwater and provonts erosion Il covers tho soll and holes in place. '8, How doas this document help answer the ‘queston, "What caused the Dust Bow!" Ignoring the importance ofthe shortrass prairie could cause probiems if powes folds wore to dry up and din was to blow around 4-The visual in Document Bis typical vow of the “ase” desoroed by Chase: What i ely te happen once the grass is removed Io plant crops? “The sol wil eventually tu eto dust there ie nt enough rin to sustain the planted crops. + Selectively sharo tho Content Notes with students Inthe Chistian Bible, Genesis 1:20, God says to ‘Adam and Eve, Be fut and mutpy, and Feplenish tho earth, and subdue ft: and have Gominin over tha fish of he Sea, and over te fmt ofthe ay, and over every ving hing that moveth ‘pon the earth Ask students what hoy think is ‘aseage means st possible fo have dominion Eyer the land and conserve the land at the same tine?Dust Bow! Min- Document B @ secre: stephenie ant or andy Sua Ce, Naw Yo MES 1828 “Grass is what counts. I's what saves us all - far as we get saved... Grass is whet holds the earth together’ ‘The most commen sor grass in the Dust Bowl elon was bute graze. tony Gre about four inches Th a produced ough grey ma ht looked te wel pared mesaom os ‘omen oso This pago may be rprodued er aesoom useDust Bowl Mini Document C: Fred Folkers, Content Notes: + Orginal from Missouri Fred Folkers ved on farm ouside of Boise Ciy onthe Oxlahoma panhandle, When Folks arrived, the panhandle tras called No Marrs Lend” because was not yet fan ofl part of any tory or sal. +The one-way dk pow that Fokers and thousands fof ether wheat farmers bought did not cut Seep asthe old moldbsard plow. t moved thvough the earth quick. It left a more pulverized sol, which beter absorted the precious rain wate, butin drought years was vunerabe to blowing “The combine did wo js at once. cut the wheat ‘and then threshed i thats, separatd the wet {alm trom the straw stom. By 1920, more than halt {he farmers in he wheal groing pins owned a combina, oF more accurately, took cut a lean fo buy a combine +The etc ofthe new machines on wheat farmers vwas sometimes clase to giddiness turned the ‘lime sodbuster into" operator” "mechanic" ‘Teaching Tips: “Discuss the Document Analysis questions: 1. Why did Fred Fokrs need a tractor, @ plow, And a combine? What did each do? “The tractor piled frm implements ike ows and combines. The plow broke the {a8 od and lured the Sol ave, ‘making the sol ready for planing. The ‘combine id two Things: ut the wheat ‘and separate the wheat gai rom the stalk 2.The author says thatthe tractor ‘changed everything’ What does he mean? “The tractor changed everthing by Fekucing the time raquied 0 farm sn acre of wheat. I meant irger farms athe loss of more and more shortgrass pra 8. How doas this document help answer tho ‘question, “What caused tho Dust Bow?" suggests that machines tke the tractor land th train might have coniruted to the Sestructon ofthe protective layor of grass that ald the soi in place. 4. What deta tom the photo might you use to support the dla inthe quote about Fred Fomore? ‘The machines that Sion Fishman isso ‘bvieusly proud of seem powerful and eficent. The pai didnot stand a tango, and the Fred Folkers of the world ‘may have beon great businessmen inthe short run, but eventual they were going {o dostoy the grass that held the so in the earth + Fred Folkers, ske mary Plans wheat farmers, bored monoy from his local bark o buy his machinery. Does this mako the bark pay responsible fr stripping the gra ‘caso a Dust Bowl? 1990, As students 1 imagine ‘owned tn shares of stock in Caso Intorational Harvester, the company that sold Fred Folkers his ‘combine. Would hey, a irwestors, havo shared the blame for stripping the butlalo grass of he prairie ‘and causing the Dust Bow? Who is responsible for taking care ofthe envronmont?Dust Bow! min. Document C © sec: ry aT tt Tra Hog tn apa wi 208 ‘With « horse-drawn plow, Fred Folkers produced nearly enough to stay afloat ‘What changed everything for him, and other dryland farmers, was the tractor... [A tractor did the work offen horses. With his new combine, Folkers could cut ‘and thresh the grain in one swoop, using just a fraction ofthe labor... Folkers plowed neatly his entire square mile, and then paid to rent nearby property and ripped up that grass as well. By the late 1920s, his harvest was upto ten thouw- sand bushels of wheat ~a small mountain of grain. What's more, there was now an easy way (o get the wheat of Fred Folkers... to the rest of the world, In 1925, a train finally artived in Boise City \heat king Simon Fishnan(n cost nd te) and his elayees working the lar. recy County, Kanan, 1926, oar aera ran “This page maybe reproduce or lsstoom useDust Bow! Min. Document D: Acreage Under Plow (chart) Content Notes: + Frankin Roosevelt's letter othe Great Plains Drought Area Commies members in 1935 bogan as flows 1am witing 1 a8 you to serve as a ‘member of a Gest Plains Orought Area Commitee to cary ona study looking toward he most ficient tization of tho halural resources of the Great Plains area, fand espacalytovard practeable measures for remodying the condtions which have brought widespread losses and stress to so many nabs of the Missour, Pate land Arkansas valeys, the Panfandles of Gldahoma and Texas, and contgous areas. “The actual numbers (rounded) represented bythe rawings areas fellows 1. 12,000,000 acts 53,000,000 acres «6. 108,000,000 acres “The charts for all crop and inthe eight Great Pains states — North Dakoa, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklzhora, Texas, eastern Colorado, and eastern Now Mesico. The acreage ‘under piow n 1929 inte more kted Dust Bom fatea is estimated at 44,0000 acres. Me Teaching Tips: ‘Discuss the Document Analysis questions: 1s thi document a primary ora secondary source? Explain your thinking. “Arguable. The source is primary In that i ie from the period ae from a government ‘document ft sacondaty in that he acreage data had tobe drawn from other 2. How many acres of crops were harvested in ‘the Paine states in 1879? In 16902 In 10297 10 milion acres: $0 milion acres; 100+ millon act '8, What generaizaton can you make about the information inthis chart? “The numberof acre famed on the Plains Increased about tenfold botwoen 1879 fand 1929 and the increase was largely ‘ie to machines. 4. How doas this chart help answer the ques: tion, "What caused the Dust Bou? There goams tobe a strong connection between machines, gassland tumed over bythe plow, and dst storms. + Discuss the fact that he chat deals with the entire {Great Plains, nt just the Dust Bowl regions Teasonable to infer thal harvested acreage inthe ‘Dust Bow region increased a the same rate as the rains in ganera? (This s an interesting question. DDocumens frequent do vot provi a perfect ft wih the question. A student who recognizes the Imperfect ft between document and queston Is ‘tnking)Dust Bout min. Document D Source ret Pins eight ie Cokie Repor of Aust 27, 1856. Weston US Goverrnent Peng Note: Tis commiee was formed atthe requet of Present Frankin oosevk ACREAGE OF HARVESTED CROPS IN 8 GREAT PLAINS STATES EF hel) bitte ee a clatter] EACH DIVISION REPRESENTS 10 MILLION ACRES ‘osname oto rant This page may bo ropredied for assem we‘bust Bow! kin-@ Document E: Rainfall Content Notes: + John Westy Powell was one of the fst o warn ‘Amercans that farming beyond the TOoth mercian ‘was unwise. There simpy was not enough antl Vo also argued againet he continued astrouton (of 160 ore homesteadsin the gon. He Supported enlarged tac of four square miles (2.860 acres), nat for arming but fr smal ranching ‘operations. He was citczed inthe 1880s for being pessmistc and undemecrate: However, a hall ‘Sentury iter, during the years of the Dust Bow, Powel was seen a8 a lever headed prophet +The 100th meridian cus though the middle of Kansas and Oklahoma. Tho rainfall charts support Powells early findings tht ranall west ofthe {oath meridian averaged under 20 Inches pr yea. One reason thal Powel and cthrs had trouble Convincing sodbustars to slay away trom farming the Southern Plains wae tat the rainfall averages were just tat ~ averages. Thore were years that were wet 1923 was unusual high and there were ‘oeasional stings of wel yoars tha lured families Int te region +The Depression era dkought that overuheimod the Plaine ray Bogan in 1833. During tho net eight years the average rafal in Dahart was 12.4 inches. ‘Teaching Tips: ‘Discuss the Document Analysis questions: 1. According to John Wesley Powell, how much ‘annual rafal was necessary 1 Grow crops In ard regione te the Southorn Great Plains? 20 inches 2.To the nearest inch, what was the average annual antl ofthe five Dust Bow towns? 17 laches 8, From 1931 10 1940, how many years was Daiharts rant boiow roxmal? nine years 4. How do these charts togethor help answer the question, "What caused the Dust Bou" “The main idea is two-ol:1) 9 normal times, the Southern Plains does not got fnough rainfall to suppor farming 2) the 30s was even worse, + Menton ha, throughout the Depression years, ‘most farmars inthe Dust Bow region tried to putin {2 erop every year, hoping that the ought would break, There were afew years where some farmers ‘ot absolutely no harvest +The term Dust Bow” was possibly fst used by an [AP reporter rom Denver. Ina cspatch sent to the Washington Evening Staron Apt 15, 1935, Robert Geiger wrote "Thee tle word, achingly familar tna Wester farmer's tongue, ule io he dust bw! of the continent if trains”Dust Bow Min. Document @ see ri et nde tr eyelet Normal Annual Precipitation for Five Dust Bow! Towns Town Normal Precipitation (inches) ‘Clovis. New Mexico 164 Boise Cty, Oklahoma (pantandle) 17.00 Dathart, Texas (panhandle) 1787 Burlington, Colorado 1638 Goodland, Kansas 18.02 Note: John isle Powel tho gras Westrn explore, detrital 20 inches fan ‘Snualy was he minum or soos arming on he Pisa Bu, Ne sald, at 20 inches agree wil nt be andor suas om Season 6 cesson” SERRESCIIGLET™ [Acta Preciptaon fr Dam Gouniy Toran tne inne aoa (County Seat, Dalhart) 1923 Shain @ toot sa toate 1582s i383 tole ot 88 re 133988 oar ae 1838 tos 9s is iat _ This page may be reproduc for ltr vse