Isn’t the Great Depression an oxymoron? How can something so bleak be considered “Great”? But I guess that’s due to the misuse of the word. Anyways…

The thirties were a time of despair, with Canada’s economy plummeting and the stock market crashing. The whole country was in a depression: The Great Depression. Black Tuesday marked the beginning of this horrible decade. On Tuesday, October 29th, 1929, the New York Stock exchange dropped 12%. It didn’t go back to normal for another ten years.

Of course two years after this sudden economic crash, the prairies went into a terrible drought. What great timing…but the fact that two years into the depression a natural disaster worsen the county’s condition further made me wonder: How much worse did the drought make the depression?

The 1920s were fairly prosperous for Canadian farmers, with successful wheat farming and favourable weather. But in the late 20s the price of wheat plummeted with the economy, as wheat was overproduced globally. Of course, even if the wheat industry hadn’t taken a hit then, with the upcoming drought it wouldn’t have gotten a chance to prosper further. In 1931 the Great Plains went into a drought that wouldn’t end for nearly a decade. While it was more like a series of droughts, there wasn’t enough time for the farms to recover between the multiple waves of dryness.

The damage began with the soil drying out and all the crops dying but it didn’t end there. This drought, that some scientists believe is the worst drought North America has experienced in 300 years, not only killed crops, but also the plants which kept the top soil in place. This allowed the top soil to loosen, which meant that wind could caused severe dust storms. These storms blew dust everywhere, covering houses and suffocating livestock. They dumped mounds of soil over everything, and even gave children pneumonia. During dust storms visibility was limited to approximately one meter, although it’s not like anyone would have being going out during them. These storms created big black clouds of dust that forced people inside and stirred everything up.

In 1933 alone there were 139 days of storms. The Dust Bowl only added to the disparity of the depression, putting the prairies in even more of a crisis than the rest of the country already was. By the end of the drought many people had left the prairies to escape the dust and their unsuccessful farms. Those who did stay struggled to make a living, in fact, 2/3 of the farmers were forced to line up for monthly aid.

The drought didn’t only affect the prairies though, but also Canada as a whole. Canada is heavily reliant on trading, one of their main exports being wheat. Of course, the wheat industry failing caused Canada’s economic conditions to worsen. Saskatchewan’s provincial income fell by 90%,The drought meant that not only could Canadians not afford food, but they also couldn’t produce it.

This is a newspaper article I created to answer my question help you to further understand the impact the drought had on Canada.

While the depression itself had a terrible impact on Canada’s economy, the Dust Bowl greatly contributed to the tough times the country went through. Let’s just hope that a drought of that magnitude doesn’t hit the prairies again, and if it does I sure hope we aren’t already in a depression.