These are dramatic climactic changes as recorded in the first five years of 1930s by S.A. Olsness, transcribed by Kristina Gray from S.A.’s diaries:

Jan 1930 – below zero temps, lowest -28, coldest since 1916

Feb. 1930 – Snowstorm in ND, 1 ft. snow, record temp in MO 81 degrees

March 1930 – very warm temps, 71 degrees on 15^th, driest in 56 years

April 1930 – much high winds, drought in SW, pastures suffer, getting dry

May 1930 – more high winds, gale like winds, 87 degrees 25^th of May, no rain since 14^th

June 1930 – on 12^th copious rains 2.05 inches, 24^th severe heat wave in U.S.

July 1930 – on 9^th 97 degrees, people dying; on 15^th – 91 degrees, on the 25^th 90 degrees and above for 13 days, 114 degrees in IN, IL, KY.

August 1930 – hot spell, 9^th, record breaking heat period, 14^th – serious drought in US, 18^th rain 3” but too late for crops

Sept. 1930 – snow today, climate change on 1^st; on 26^th 22 degrees

Oct. 1930 – 14^th – 56 year record for rain; frost, windy

Nov. 1930 – 7^th- Indian summer; twister in OK on 19^th; 24^th  12” snow storm; 48 mph gale on 26^th; worst snowstorm since 1908 on 30^th

Dec. 1930 – ND Capitol fire on 28^th – strong winds

Jan. 1931 – Sept weather up to 12^th; weather alarmingly warm

Feb. 1931 – calm, spring-like weather all month, people golfing

March 1931 – lamblike 1^st and 31^st but -6 degrees and snowstorm on 26^th, climactic somersault

April 1931 – superb but windy; 19^th grouchy, rainy weather

May 1931 – 25^th done with spring seeding; Watertown, SD 9” rain, great rain, dry in WY

June 1931 – Draught in ND, east MT on 9^th; 19^th – hot day; 28^th 104 degrees; 29^th – longest siege of heat, extreme heat; 30^th death toll – 500 people

July 1931 – 6^th rains revive pastures; struggling crops; desperate conditions; 25^th hot 106 degrees; 27^th terrific heat

Aug. 1931 – 1^st – 100s pray for rain in SD; 7^th – 5,200 hail claims; 12^th – poor crops; 18^th – forest fires in WA; 19^th – drought and grasshoppers in ND

Sept 1931 – SAO is sick doesn’t record much

Oct. 1931 – 21^st beautiful weather; 29^th – northern storm; 31^st spell is broken, good raining

Nov. 1931 – very mild Norwegian like winter, very clement

Dec. 1931 – 14^th – severe storms in Europe; Arkansas storm; 30^th 5” snow

Jan. 1932 – 7^th cold at 15 degrees; 15^th East Coast very warm, worry about Olympics; 25^th H2O in streets; 27^th cold spell starts with sub-zero temps to 6^th of Feb.

Feb. 1932 – subzero temps 6^th nice snow and 12 degrees; 11^th severe NW wind; 23^rd H2O in streets; 27^th record climate of 65 degrees; 28^th skating rinks are pools

March 1932 – 5^th – cold snap w/strong NW winds; 7^th subzero temps;  20^th beautiful 40 degrees; 27^th- extremely moody; 28^th at 50 degrees

April 1932 – First five days highs in the 60s; rain from 16^th to the 31^st

May 1932 – 1 – 1^st bright day in 2 weeks; 22^nd too windy for golf; 26^th snow

June 1932 – 3^rd ideal temps, green; 4^th Mexico earthquake; 6^th California earthquake; 27^th and 29^th perfect and brilliant weather; 31^st copious rains

July 1932 – 4^th grouchy weather; 6^th showers, windy, 10^th perfect; 14^th fine weather; 15^th hot at Peace Gardens; 17^th sweltering hot; 18^th nation-wide heat wave 103 degrees; 20^th heat wave broke w/rain; 24^th scorching hot day; 27^th high winds but nights dead calm; 29^th no rain for weeks, south wind; 31^st hot temps and high winds

August 1932 – 8^th perfect weather; 14^th hot dry, will it rain? 15^th TX cyclone; 18^th flood in OK; 23^rd scorching hot; 24^th violent weather w/rain & hail; 25^th dusty; 31^st 67% eclipse of sun

Sept. 1932 – 4^th NW winds; 11^th ideal day for golf; 14^th autumn leaves; 18^th tirade of winds; 20^th cool; 22^nd frost on pumpkin; 23^rd Jack Frost; 30^th bone dry!; 31^st windy & dry

Oct. 1932 – 2^nd grouchy day w/NW winds; 7^th rain & sleet; 9^th freezing snow; 13^th fine day; 30^th autumn gloom; 31^st sunny day in 2-3 weeks, played golf

Nov. 1932 – 1^st 30 degrees windy; 3^rd 46 degrees; 5^th perfect day, sunny; 6^th cloudy & raw; 7^th inclement NW wind; 8^th 2” of snow; 11^th Fargo gets 10”snow; 20^th “neuter gender” weather; 23^rd & 24^th golf again!; 29^th Indian Summer

Dec. 1932 – 3^rd high winds; 4^th fine day; 8^th – 20 below zero; 11^th same temperature in  Alaska and  San Francisco; 15-17^th persistent, beautiful and calm; 28^th no snow; 31^st steady and mild 

Jan. 1933 – 6^th rain; 10^th NW high raging winds; 11^th 2 girls die in MN in snowstorm; 31^st ideal spring day

Feb. 1933 – 8^th – 50 below zero, cold wave worst weather in 32 years; 10^th storm w/high wind raging at 30 mph

March 1933 – 4^th wet and heavy snow; 8^th 35à70 mph strong NW wind; subzero temps; 11-13^th earthquake in CA; tornado in TN; 25^th sun melts snow; 26^th dark forecasts; 27-31^st golf

April 1933 – 2^nd golf bad weather; 6^th snow flurries; 16^th glorious weather; 21^st warmer; 26^th started seeding on ND farm

May 1933 – 5^th Louisiana tornado; 10^th KY & TN tornado; 13^th green garb in ND; 16^th MO floods; 23^rd tornado in ND; 26^th windstorm losses great; 31^st late growing in IA

June 1933 – 5^th hot in Chicago; 16^th hot high 102, crops suffering; 17^th hottest 3 days in 59 years; 18^th 100 temp, night winds; 20^th grasshoppers, drought, heat wave; 22-27^th heat wave, sweltering, continuous heat, hot weather and drought; 29^th golf

July 1933 – 5^th grasshoppers reigning; 9^th heat, excessive humidity; 11^th rainfall and hail cyclone;13^th highest temps in Norway 32 degrees Cel = 89 degrees Fah.; 16^th withering fields, rain 2” below normal in ND; 27^th Sahara Desert or Death Valley; 28^th extreme 100-101; 29^th breaking high temps, no rain; 30^th NE wind, hot

Aug 1933 – 5^th Dry asSahara!; 9^th Who said ND is cold? It’s a dry state; 20^th same eternal heat, high SE wind

Sept. 1933 – 1^st so extreme is drought; 6^th hurricane storm in TX; 7^th forest fires in northern MN; 11^th 10” rain flood in South Dakota; 16^th rainfall in ND at last; 19^th wind velocity 74 mph; 20^th beautiful weather; 23^rd stiff gale winds

Oct. 1933 – 1^st not having clothes torn off with fierce gale winds; 4^th brush fire in CA; 15^th inclement weather; 22^nd fall, leaves fluttering

Nov. 1933 – 4^th football games cancelled due to snowstorm; 12^th 64 mph gale winds like hurricane; 13^th heavy storm damage; 21^st Norway reports abundant fruit; 24^th superb golf weather

Dec. 1933 – 3^rd salubrious weather; 18^th severe storms; 20^th CA 100 degrees while ND has 5 degrees below zero; 23^rd blizzard; 24^th 29 below zero; 25-28^th very cold 20-30 below zero; 29^th cold spell breaks; 30^th above zero; 31^st cold wave [again] 

Jan. 1934 – 13^th mild, calm and sunny; 14^th Chinook winds, H2O running in streets; 18^th death toll in  India’s earthquake 2,500; 29^th 71 degree temp drop in Bemidji -10 below zero in Bismark

Feb. 1934 – 1^st golf; 2^nd ideal weather, sunny; 10^th 54 degrees; 11^th brilliant morning golf; 14^th perpetual nice weather; 26^th coldest night in year -23 degrees below zero; 28^th spring day

March 1934 – 11^th 35à65 by afternoon; 12^th High of 69 degrees; 22^nd baby snowstorm; 25^th grouchy weather April 1934  10^th worst dust storm – gale NW winds; 11^th soil drifting in gales; 12^th dust storms seeding delayed; 13^th golf ideal spring day; 14^th hideous NW dust storm; 18^th winds howling success with NW dirt storm, soil drifts; 19^th desert-like dust fills the air; 20^th respite from everlasting winds, beautiful day; 21^st storm barrage at 60 mph, 1878 swifter wind, dust clouds22^nd Egyptian darkness; 24^th Frost on the pumpkin and incessant high windMay 1934 – 2^nd 17 drops of rain; 5 – NW cry for rain; 6^th dry wind; 7^th hot wind from SE; 9^th high winds; 10^th high gale winds for 3 days, no rain; 11^th “cat came back” high winds, serious drought; 12^th winds incessant; 15^th calm, warm, bone dry; 18^th continuous heat; 19^th light rain; 20^th rain to settle dust; 21^st fire in Chicago, greatest since 1871; 22^nd earth cryeth for rain; 26^th dust storm; 27^th record heat 101 degrees – everlasting fire! 28^th some rain in ND; 29^th ample rain in Norway; 30^th excessive heat, high winds; 31^st light rain in places 100-110 degrees.

June 1934 – 1^st terrific heat, high wind; 2^nd where is the rain? 3^rd very little volume of water fell; 4^th some rain; 5^th back of drought is broken, rain at last; 6^th snow fell, rain; 7^th flood of H2O on parched land; 8^th rain fell; 11^th storms and flood in San Salvador; 15^th northern lights; 18^th perfect June weather; 19^th sprinkle of rain; 22^nd perfect day – rain in excess so far for June; 24^th crops near total failure

July 1934 – 2^nd grand day, rain needed; 5^th cool weather; 9^th superb climate; 16^th heat wave in Midwest states; 18^th extreme heat wave hits ND; 22^nd intense heat 95 – extreme heat; 31^st scorching day

Aug. 1934 – 5^th eternal heat; 7^th good rains; 9^th considerable wind damage in ND; 10^th heavy rains in drought stricken states CO, NE, IA, KY and IN; 13^th first real electric storm display, first rain of consequence since July 5^th; 15^th pleasant enough if you like sunshine and dry all the time; 17^th forecast for cooler reversed H=102; 18^th About face! Wind shifts around to NW reach high velocity enveloping
Bismarck in dust clouds; 21^st cooler weather; 27^th continuous drought damage to crops; 29^th threshing done in
Sheyenne

Sept. 1934 – clear and cold, frost, brisk NW wind; 5^th rain during night to lay the dust; 7^th clear and dry as tinder, dry, dry. Water level in MO River near record low for all time; 14^th cold blasts of the north fling themselves over the plains this a.m.!; 16^th cold spell is broken by gentle SW breezes; 24^th blizzard in Rockies and western provinces, snow depth 8-9”; 25^th light snow in SW ND; 26^th jitters to see the plains in the chill garb; 30^th finest day in weeks! Sept. goes out like a lamb but low in precipitation

Oct. 1934 1^st – records show 140,000 acres of farm land taken over by foreclosure by ND bank; 2^nd golf; 5^th pleasant am turned into veritable inferno of gale from W, NW, dust making air thick and sun obscure; 6^th most perfect day! Verily the wind blew so fast and furious yesterday that it finished in one day what usually lasts three days! 7^th temp around 80, calm, fair; [golf all month]; 17^th GRFKS reports 2.98” of rain, the heaviest on record for at least 10 years and believed to be a record Oct. rain since University weather station was established 43 years ago [started in 1891]; 31^st Oct. has been a friendly month as to climates. Copious rains have visited large sections of our state and temp. has been higher on average than for Sept, no high winds.

Nov. 1934 – 6^th perfect weather; 10^th quite snappy but modifying and fair; 12^th most perfect day!; 14^th weather growing better and better; 15^th same matchless weather; 19^th rain, calm and peaceful; what a relief from the dreadful monotony of sterile dryness!; [golfed most all of month.]

Dec. 1934 – 3^rd MN has 15” snow, none in  Chicago; FL climate is balmy, calm, excellent; 16^th sleet and slippery roads in ND; 22^nd squall and high winds; 23^rd stormy weather, crackling cold 14 below or more; 24^th continues cold; 26^th Ouch! 34 below 0 in Devils  Lake!; 28^th 2-3” snow fall, total 5”; 29^th SE breeze, mostly fair and moderate temps; 30^th temp moderate;   Dec. 31^st …weather which is the outstanding freak feature of the year.  I have seen several arid seasons in North Dakota such as 1889, 1890, 1900 and 1910 but never anything to equal to this.  For the Bismarck District, the annual, normal precipitation should be 16.22, while 1934 shows only 8.55 or half normal – crop failure nearly total.  No feed, nor hay was raised in many sections of the State.