What Caused the Dust Bowl?
The Dust Bowl was caused by a number of things, mainly economic and agricultural factors, including federal land policies, changes in weather, farm economics, and other factors revolving around the culture of the region. After the Civil War, several federal land acts enticed pioneers to move westward as farming in the Great Plains was incentivized.
Dust Clouds Over Lamar, Colorado, During The Height Of The Great Drought Of 1934. Photo By Granger/Shutterstock
The Homestead Act of 1862 provided settlers with 160 acres of public land. It was followed by the Kinkaid Act of 1904 and then the Enlarged Homestead Act of 1909. All these acts led to a massive flood of new and inexperienced farmers in the region. Many of these late 19th and early 20th century settlers lived by a superstition in which “rain follows the plow.”