Letters from the Dust Bowl

by Caroline Henderson, Alvin O. Turner (Editor)

Overview

In May 1936 Secretary of Agriculture Henry A. Wallace wrote to Caroline Henderson to praise her contributions to American "understanding of some of our farm problems." His comments reflected the national attention aroused by Henderson’s articles, which had been published in Atlantic Monthly since 1931. Even today, Henderson’s articles are frequently cited for her vivid descriptions of the dust storms that ravaged the Plains.

Caroline Henderson was a Mount Holyoke graduate who moved to Oklahoma’s panhandle to homestead and teach in 1907. This collection of Henderson’s letters and articles published from 1908 to1966 presents an intimate portrait of a woman’s life in the Great Plains. Her writing mirrors her love of the land and the literature that sustained her as she struggled for survival.

Alvin O. Turner has collected and edited Henderson’s published materials together with her private correspondence. Accompanying biographical sketch, chapter introductions, and annotations provide details on Henderson’s life and context for her frequent literary allusions and comments on contemporary issues.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780806135403
Publisher:	University of Oklahoma Press
Publication date:	04/01/2003
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	296
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.69(d)

About the Author

Caroline Henderson (1877—1965) wrote numerous articles for the Atlantic Monthly.


Alvin O. Turner, Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma, is coauthor of Oklahoma at the Crossroads and author of Index to Historic Record in Canadian County, Oklahoma.

Table of Contents

	List of Illustrations	ix
	Preface	xi
	Introduction	3
1.	Beginnings, 1908-1914	31
2.	Hopeful Years, 1914-1928	63
3.	Clouded Horizons, 1929-1934	93
4.	Dust to Eat, 1935-1937	137
5.	Slow and Partial Recovery, 1938-1951	167
6.	When Hope Has Gone, 1952-1966	205
	Epilogue	241
	Notes	245
	Bibliography	261
	Index	269