State Historical Society of Iowa

Squatters along the Highway near Bakersfield, California, November 1935

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Squatters along highway near Bakersfield, California.
Courtesy of Library of Congress, Lange, Dorothea, "Squatters along highway near Bakersfield, California. Penniless refugees from dust bowl..." November 1935

Description 

This Dorothea Lange photograph shows squatters along a highway near Bakersfield, California. They are penniless refugees from Dust Bowl. The photograph's description reads that 22 are in this family and they are without water and looking for work in cotton.

Source-Dependent Questions

  • What does encampment without shelter mean?
  • Why might someone who is without a home be called a squatter?

Citation Information 

Lange, Dorothea, "Squatters along highway near Bakersfield, California. Penniless refugees from dust bowl. Twenty-two in family, thirty-nine evictions, now encamped near Bakersfield without shelter, without water and looking for work in the cotton," November 1935. Courtesy of Library of Congress