![]() More than 80 years later, when passing through the countryside of these disaster-stricken areas, travelers can not help but notice the many dilapidated homesteads once occupied by hopeful settlers. The panhandle of Texas and that of Oklahoma were the most seriously hit regions of the Dust Bowl, with the adjacent sections of New Mexico, Colorado and Kansas not far behind. Prevailing winds had stripped the topsoil from their land, rendering their farms useless. More than 100-million acres of arid farmland became unfit for agricultural production, displacing tens of thousands of homesteader. #Retrospect 8 0 serial number seriesA disaster of great proportions was unavoidable-when a series of droughts plagued the crop and grazing lands of the High Plains regions, the result was what we know as the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. The westward migration during the 1800s led to serious abuse of our fragile Short Grass Prairie. Settlers cleared forests to create farmland and moved on when their soil lost its productivity. In early years, land was considered a limitless resource. Our fertile soils had an important impact on the development and prosperity of our nation. #Retrospect 8 0 serial number how toLittle was known at that time about the environmental conditions of the Great Plains and how to implement conservation practices. Repeated periods of reduced precipitation, followed by soil and wind erosion, became early warning signs. It worked well east of the Mississippi where annual rainfall was-and is-much higher. Eventually, farming practices such as deep plowing, and continuous tillage destroyed the protective root system of the native grasses-roots that in the past maintained moisture and served as anchors for this fragile environment.Īt that time, dry-land farming was the norm on the prairie. Through the years, more land was put into production due to agricultural mechanization. The rich soil was capable of producing big crops during wet seasons, but was also subject to severe wind erosion. The Homestead Act of 1862, signed by President Lincoln during the Civil War, had resulted in a massive expansion of the United State’s western territories, drawing waves of European settlers to claim up to 160 acres of federal land for homesteading. Thousands of acres of the Short Grass Prairie, once virgin land, fell under cultivation. By Karin Deneke - More than eight decades ago, a serious transformation took place on the grasslands of the Midwest, commonly known as the Great Plains. ![]()
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