All the past we leave behind,We debouch upon a newer mightier world, varied world,Fresh and strong the world we seize, world of labor and

the march,Pioneers! O pioneers!

Walt Whitman (17-20)

Aerial overview of central Oklahoma showing sections and quarter sections

Dustbowl: Creation of the Homestead Act

• Passage of the Homestead Act• Settlement of the Southern Plains• Events of the Dust Bowl• Changes initiated by Roosevelt • Risk of agriculture in Southern Plains today

Drive for land ownership

"The true foundation of republican government is the equal right of every citizen in his person and property and in their management." --Thomas Jefferson to Samuel Kercheval, 1816.

Passage of the Homestead Act of 1862

Eligibility•Any head of household ≥ 21 yrs•Must never have borne arms against the US government or given aid to those who had•Citizen status or intent to become a citizen

Requirements•File a claim on 160 acre parcel and pay filing fee of $10•Pay commission to a land agent of $2•Build a home within 6 months and “prove up” over five years•File to become owner of the property with fee of $6

Types of wind erosion and depositionTypes of wind erosion and deposition•Surface creep•Saltation•Suspension

Solutions

• Removing marginal lands from cultivation• Changing methods for land that could be farmed• Establishing of soil conservation districts• Paying for keeping land fallow• Establishing shelterbelts

Southern Plains agriculture today

Conditions today•Land taken out of conservation reserve to reach profits of high corn prices•Ogallala Aquifer depletion with little recharge•Current drought and potential of lasting climate change