The Dust Bowl is an important piece of American history that had many contributing factors, such as The Great Depression, poor farming practices, and the promise of wealth. Farmers moved to the Midwest in search of arable land and set up huge wheat and grain farms. Things were working fine for a few years, but eventually the lack of water resources and the overworking of the field, led the entire region to be dominated by large clouds of dust. Almost all of the pioneer farmers, despite US government aid, were forced to migrate from the Midwest.
Included Films:
Rain For The Earth
Rain For The Earth
Produced: 1937
Length: 10 Minutes
Clouds, rolling seas of anger roll across vast territories and drop their tragic burden of dust. The earth is not the good earth without rain; rain for the earth, rain to bring up the falling water tables, rains to make the crops grow, rain for the grass that ties the earth into place. Rain for the Earth, is a stark account of the Dust Bowl era which was so tragic for the United States during the late 1930s. Whirling dust blowing hard against man, house, animal, and indifferent plain sets the stage for the narrator to explain how the lack of rain is affecting crops, farmers, and the economy and how little the government is able to help. Relief programs do little in the face of natures wrath. A harrowing look at a time characterized by few possessions, less material wealth, and a strong hope that tomorrow would see a better day, this is a fascinating glimpse into the strength of our dependency on natures mercy.
The Plow That Broke The Plains
The Plow That Broke The Plains
Produced: 1936
Length: 25 Minutes
This film is part of the 1999 National Film Registry of artistically, culturally, and socially significant films. It takes a realistic look at how farming in the Midwest turned the land into an uninhabitable cloud of dust, later coined The Dust Bowl.
Farmers War Against Dust & Fight To Save Wheat Crops
Farmers War Against Dust & Fight To Save Wheat Crops
Produced: 1937
Length: 10 Minutes
Newsreel footage of the farmers struggle against dust in the Midwest. This was sponsored by an engine company who claims that their new engine and well drilling system will save the farmers of the Midwest.
