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Persistant winter very much like ’47

Elwynn Taylor keeps a keen eye on the weather. He also has a good memory for anomalies and how they affect crop growth. With help from what written records are available, Taylor, the Iowa State University Extension Service’s weatherman, noticed that this year’s strange hanging-on of winter is by no means unique. Something eerily similar happened in 1947, at the time the meanest, driest year since the Dustbowl, which would have been famous even without John Steinbeck’s help. Taylor, who was but a young whippersnapper in ‘47, reminisced at the urging of Brownfield’s John Perkins. Part of that recorded conversation is below.

AUDIO: Elwynn Taylor (3 min. MP3)