History

April 14, 1935 marked the culmination of the period known as The Dust Bowl. This was our country’s worst ecological disasters in history. It was a defining moment in time when America’s government and its farmers realized that food production and westward settlement could not take place at the expense of our most valuable resources. Black Sunday, generated enough electricity in the air to power all of New York City, people were left blind from the grit in their eyes, and died within yards of their houses as they became lost and disoriented in the thick air. It was this same storm that left a layer of Panhandle dust across the desk of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Shortly thereafter, Congress unanimously passed legislation declaring soil and water conservation a national policy and priority, during what was also the worst economic period in our history. Because nearly three-fourths of the continental United States was privately owned, Congress realized that only active, voluntary support from landowners would guarantee the success of conservation work on private land. There needed to be a liaison to bridge the gap of mistrust between the farmer and the government.

By 1937 more than three-fourths of the topsoil had been lost from 8,543,000 acres and as a result, President Roosevelt wrote the governors of all the states recommending legislation that would allow local landowners to form soil conservation districts (NRCD’s). The Soil Conservation Service was also created (NRCS). Funding was made available for large-scale projects to be put into place immediately to save what soil was left of the Great Plains. At once, the Soil Conservation Service and the Conservation Districts began implementing conservation practices and educating farmers about soil conservation methods.