Explore 10 surprising facts about the environmental disaster that ravaged the southern Plains in the 1930s.

1. One monster dust storm reached the Atlantic Ocean. While “black blizzards” constantly menaced Plains states in the 1930s, a massive dust storm 2 miles high traveled 2,000 miles before hitting the East Coast on May 11, 1934. For five hours, a fog of prairie dirt enshrouded landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty and the U.S. Capitol, inside which lawmakers were debating a soil conservation bill. For East Coasters, the storm was a mere inconvenience—“Housewives kept busy,” read a New York Times subhead—compared to the tribulations endured by Dust Bowl residents.

For more, please visit this link: http://www.history.com/news/10-things-you-may-not-know-about-the-dust-bowl?cmpid=Social_FBPAGE_HISTORY_20160712_512364655&linkId=26361466