The Dust Bowl

In 1935, one third of the deaths in Ford County, Kansas were a result of dust pneumonia. Dust pneumonia is a disease caused by the inhalation of extreme amounts of dust and dirt particles from the air into the lungs. This epidemic of respiratory disease was a result of a period of extreme wind, heat, and drought coined the Dust Bowl. The Dust Bowl was a decade long period from 1931 to 1939 in the Southern Plains that wreaked havoc on the daily lives of numerous farmers. The once fertile land became barren and uncultivable. The farmers were ignorant to any farming techniques to revitalize their now unfruitful fields. An extreme change in the climate and conditions people take so much for granted can cause a change in people's attitudes toward the environment. The Dust Bowl of the 1930’s wreaked havoc on the lives of the environmentally ignorant farmers of the Southern Plains; soil conservationists and environmental experts expressed and encouraged innovative conservation techni...