| a semiarid region E of the Rocky Mountains, in the U.S. and Canada. |
Grassland prairie region of North America, extending from Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, in Canada, south through the west-central United States into Texas.
Note: Now characterized by huge ranches and farms, the Great Plains were long inhabited by Native Americans.
Note: In the 1930s, areas of the Great Plains were known collectively as the Dust Bowl. Poor agricultural practices led to depletion of topsoil, which was blown away in huge dust storms. The area was called the Great American Desert well into the nineteenth century.