The Rubber Capital of the World
Origin and Growth
in the early 1900s, cars are brought to market and changed America forever. My home town of Akron, Ohio became the epicenter for tire production, a critical wear-item for cars. Akron quickly became a boomtown, exploding in population 5x from about 40 thousand in 1900 to over 200 thousand by 1920. This sort of growth isn’t even seen anymore in present-day America. Imagine an entire metro area designed and built to make tires, because that was literally Akron.
With the growth came an economy. Infrastructure. Factories, roads, houses, stores, neighborhoods. Akron was on the up and up, and continued to grow to 300 thousand. Akron becomes known for producing other plastic and rubber products, while nearby Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Youngstown were more focused on metal products. Akron had skyscrapers, mansions, nightlife, everything you’d dream of in a city. But the golden days were short-lived.
Downfall and Demise
Akron, like most Rust Belt cities, made a very simple and critical error in city planning: They were a single industry city. Without support from others, single industry cities are bound to fail eventually. America’s capitalistic economy works in cycles, and once a recessionary period hit, it was the beginning of the end for Akron. Corruption and greed took the throne while globalization wiped out Akron’s sole industry.
By the end of the 1990s, Akron had hit rock bottom. Downtown was no longer safe, public schools were horrible, and the population had dropped nearly 1/3rd. The city stubbornly held onto its polymer dominance, it was the only thing they had going for them! I’ve heard that the police regularly used tear gas downtown in the 90s. Many would blame corruption for the failure of Akron, but corruption was mearly a catalyst to events that were bound to happen.
Aftermath
Today, Akron is one of the cheapest metro areas in America to buy property. The cost of living to income ratio is insanely good, and your dollar goes a long way. Any career makes enough to be able to buy a house, namely because no one wants to move to Akron. With a coming resurgance of nationalism, maybe Akron will gain second wind in the polymer industry. Time will tell.
Single Industry is a Recipe for Disaster
A First in America
The Rust Belt is the first economic region in America to see massive widespread failure. While there are many reasons for the cause, the ultimate issue was due to lack of diverse industry. The cities thrived on post war demand, but failed to innovate and stay progressive as a city. Never before in history has America seen such a large decline in population.
With the automobile and interstate, it was easier than ever for Americans to move wherever they wanted. With better prospects in new cities to the West, why stay in the Rust Belt?
Recession is a Given
For every boom, there’s bound to be a bust. With a single industry, this means recession will wipe out the sole job market. With no jobs, people are forced to move, and the city can’t bring in tax money to recover. You can point fingers at specific issues, but at the end of the day, the result is roughly the same.
Some companies, such as Goodyear, seemed aware of this. Goodyear had tried to branch out with an Aerospace divison, but also chose to diversify locations by opening plants in up-and-coming Arizona. With multiple industries, the chance of recession is less likely to affect all of them. For example, COVID hurt the tourism industry, but helped digital industries thrive, and the financial sector seems relatively unharmed.
Back it with Education
Industries need employees for their jobs. Without a strong backbone in education, new industries simply cannot thrive long-term. In the manufacturing sector, most jobs were unskilled labor. This allowed people to easily move elsewhere and get different jobs. With skilled labor, employees are investing in industry, helping it grow and making moving away from it far more difficult.
History Repeats Itself
While this is the first major case of city failure in America, it is bound to not be the last. The Rust Belt was a bold and exciting region that helped push America to grow quickly. Rapid city growth is a recipe for innovation, but also for disaster if not handled properly. If America aims to stabilize and regulate city growth, we will be on path to become more like Europe. The goal shoudn’t be to never have a boomtown again, but rather limit the damage it can cause afterwards.