Source H There is no use pretending any longer. The land is finished. For three years the winds have blown the topsoil clean away, and what is left will not...

This question asks whether the source accurately describes the experience of farmers during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. To reach the top level (6-7 marks), assess the source's accuracy and identify both what it captures well and what it misses.

What does the source describe?

The letter, written by an Oklahoma farmer in June 1935, describes:

• Three years of wind erosion - topsoil blown away, land that will not grow crops even with rain.
• A dust storm that turned the sky black at midday, with dust drifting against the house "like snow."
• Starving cattle and a nearly dry well.
• The family loading their truck and leaving for California, hoping to find work picking fruit in the San Joaquin Valley.
• Half the families in the county had already left.

Is this accurate?

The source accurately reflects many documented aspects of the Dust Bowl (approximately 1931-1939):

• The Dust Bowl was caused by a combination of severe drought and decades of over-farming that destroyed the natural grassland on the Great Plains. Without grass roots to hold the soil, topsoil was blown away by strong winds.
• Massive dust storms, known as "black blizzards," are well documented. The most famous was Black Sunday (April 14, 1935), when a single storm carried an estimated 300,000 tons of topsoil. The farmer's description of the sky turning black at midday is consistent with these events.
• An estimated 2.5 million people left the Plains states during the 1930s, many heading to California. These migrants were often called "Okies" (regardless of their state of origin). The migration to the San Joaquin Valley for agricultural work is well documented.
• The loss of livestock and water sources described in the letter matches contemporary accounts and photographs.

What does the source leave out?

• It does not mention government responses. The federal government took significant action during the Dust Bowl: the Soil Conservation Service (established 1935) promoted farming techniques to prevent further erosion; the Resettlement Administration helped some families relocate; and New Deal relief programs provided food and employment.
• It does not describe what migrants actually found in California. Many who arrived discovered harsh conditions: low wages, overcrowded labor camps, hostility from local residents who resented the influx of poor migrants, and exploitation by large agricultural employers. John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath (1939) depicted these experiences and brought national attention to the migrants' suffering.
• The source represents one family's experience in one county. Not all Great Plains farmers migrated - some stayed and adapted their farming practices, and some areas were less severely affected than others.
• It does not explain the human causes of the Dust Bowl. The crisis was not purely natural - it resulted from farming practices (deep plowing, removal of grassland) that had been encouraged by government homesteading policies and high wheat prices during World War I.

Reaching a judgment:

The source accurately captures the personal experience of Dust Bowl conditions for a farming family in Oklahoma: the environmental devastation, the loss of livelihood, and the decision to migrate westward. The specific details (dust storms, failed crops, starving cattle, mass departure) are all well supported by the historical record. However, it is a personal, emotional account from one family at one moment, and it does not provide a complete picture of the Dust Bowl's causes, the government response, or what awaited migrants in California. It is accurate for what it describes but limited in scope.

Exam technique: "Does this source accurately describe..." questions require you to test each specific claim against your own knowledge. Confirm what is accurate, identify what is missing, and consider whether the source's perspective (in this case, a personal letter from someone in the middle of the crisis) affects how complete and balanced its description is. Personal letters are valuable for capturing lived experience but naturally focus on individual circumstances rather than broader patterns.