The Youngstown Indians were a Minor League Baseball club that competed during the 1909 season in the Ohio–Pennsylvania League . The team showed great promise at the outset of the season but finished with a disappointing 46–78 record, placing last in the league. The league championship that year went to an Akron franchise, which closed the season with an 81–40 record.
126-691: The short-lived Youngstown Indians team succeeded other minor league clubs in Youngstown, Ohio , including the championship Youngstown Ohio Works and Youngstown Champs . The 1907 sale of the Ohio Works team to investors in Zanesville, Ohio , paved the way for the establishment of the Champs. Like the Ohio Works club, which won two consecutive league championships, the Champs were sponsored by local industrial leader Joseph A. McDonald and his brother, Thomas. The Champs won
252-567: A $ 250 million New Urbanist revitalization of the Smoky Hollow neighborhood developed about 400 new residential units, university student housing, retail space, and a park. In 2005, Federal Street, a major downtown thoroughfare that was closed off to create a pedestrian-oriented plaza, reopened to traffic. The downtown area has seen the razing of structurally unsound buildings and the expansion or restoration of others. New construction has dovetailed with efforts to cultivate business growth. One of
378-569: A competitive disadvantage to the iron and steel producers in Cleveland, Buffalo , Chicago and Detroit —all on Great Lake shores. Compared to these four cities, Youngstown had a higher cost of transporting raw materials to the mills, according to a Harvard Business Review report published in January 1933. Higher transportation costs are one reason why Youngstown mills began their decline slightly earlier than manufacturing in other cities. The city had
504-672: A former thriving Factory Belt into a Rust Belt as a part of a bigger transitional trend that he called the Great Disruption : "People associate the information age with the advent of the Internet in the 1990s, but the shift from the industrial era started more than a generation earlier, with the deindustrialization of the Rust Belt in the United States and comparable movements away from manufacturing in other industrialized countries. … The decline
630-529: A general tariff rate of 25% on all Chinese products to halt the deindustrialization of the United States and the offshoring of American industries and factories to China. Paul Krugman notes: “There is no doubt that increased imports, particularly from China, have reduced manufacturing employment..., the complete elimination of the U.S. manufacturing trade deficit would add about two million manufacturing jobs. In 2010, he expects Chinese surpluses to destroy 1.4 million American jobs by 2011. He therefore proposes taxing
756-750: A grant from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development allowed for the demolition of Westlake Terrace, a sprawling and dilapidated public housing project. Today, the site features a blend of senior housing, rental townhouses and for-sale single-family homes. Low real-estate prices and the efforts of the Youngstown Central Area Improvement Corporation have contributed to the purchase of several long-abandoned downtown buildings (many by outside investors) and their restoration and conversion into specialty shops, restaurants, and eventually condominiums. In addition,
882-536: A growing trend of reshoring , or inshoring , of manufacturing when a growing number of American companies were moving their production facilities from overseas back home. Rust Belt states can ultimately benefit from this process of international insourcing . There have also been attempts to reinvent properties in the Rust Belt in order to reverse its economic decline. Buildings with compartmentalization unsuitable for today's uses were acquired and renewed to facilitate new businesses. These business activities suggest that
1008-649: A healthy position within the Midwest in terms of transportation connections. An airport built in 1930 hosted Capital and United Airlines flights through the region and to New York prior to the jet age of the latter 1950s. It was on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad mainline to Chicago with the Capital Limited . Likewise, Youngstown was on the Erie Railroad mainline, on its Chicago-Jersey City circuit, with trains such as
1134-401: A left-leaning think tank, has claimed that free trade created a large trade deficit in the United States for decades which lead to the closure of many factories and cost the United States millions of jobs in the manufacturing sector. Trade deficits lead to significant wage losses, not only for workers in the manufacturing sector, but also for all workers throughout the economy who do not have
1260-467: A mix of rain, sleet, and snow with occasional heavy snowfall and icing. January is the coldest month with an average mean temperature of 26.8 °F (−2.9 °C), with temperatures on average dropping to or below 0 °F (−18 °C) on 4.1 days and staying at or below freezing on 43 days per year. Snowfall averages 67.8 inches (172 cm) per season, somewhat less than the snowbelt areas closer to Lake Erie . The snowiest month on record
1386-502: A score of successful business ventures in Akron resides in the refurbished B.F. Goodrich tire factory. Additive manufacturing, or 3D printing , creates another promising avenue for the manufacturing resurgence. Such companies as MakerGear from Beachwood, Ohio , or ExOne Company from North Huntingdon, Pennsylvania , are designing and manufacturing industrial and consumer products using 3-D imaging systems. In 2013, The Economist reported
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#17328851076671512-518: A uniform plain, with valleys such as that caused by the Mahoning River traversing the plain. Lakes created by glaciers that dammed small streams were eventually drained, leaving behind fertile terrain. Central Youngstown consists of the original city layout designed by John Young , including Downtown Youngstown . Downtown Youngstown is the site of most of the city's government buildings and banks. A number of entertainment venues are also located in
1638-482: A university degree. For example, in 2011, 100 million full-time, full-year workers without a university degree suffered an average loss of $ 1,800 (~$ 2,438 in 2023) on their annual salary. According to the Economic Policy Institute, the workers who lost their jobs in the manufacturing sector and who have to accept a reduction in their wages to find work in other sectors, are creating competition, that reduces
1764-606: A very important advantage in international trade. In addition, industrial jobs lost by imports from China are significantly better paid than jobs created by exports to China. So even if imports were equal to exports, workers would still lose out on their wages. According to the Economic Policy Institute, the manufacturing sector is a sector with very high productivity growth, which promotes high wages and good benefits for its workers. Indeed, this sector accounts for more than two thirds of private sector research and development and employs more than twice as many scientists and engineers as
1890-518: A very important driver of economic growth. Paul Krugman notes that free trade leads to trade deficits, deindustrialization and lower real wages for less-educated workers due to competition from low-cost imports. Indeed, wages are falling more than import prices, and the problem is getting worse as trade with low-wage countries becomes more frequent. He also notes that free trade has a significant effect on deindustrialization and income inequality in developed countries. In 2010, Paul Krugman called for
2016-724: A wave of industrial consolidations that placed much of the Mahoning Valley's industry in the hands of national corporations. In the late 1930s, the community's steel sector again gained national attention when Youngstown became a site of the so-called "Little Steel Strike", an effort by the Steel Workers Organizing Committee , a precursor to United Steelworkers , to secure contract agreements with smaller steel companies. On June 21, 1937, strike-related violence in Youngstown resulted in two deaths and 42 injuries. Despite
2142-570: Is Youngstown State University (YSU), an urban public campus that serves about 15,000 students, just north of downtown. Youngstown is the site of several steel and metalworking operations, though not to the extent of the past. The largest industrial employers within the city limits are Vallourec Star Steel Company, in the Brier Hill district, and Trivium Packaging. Steelite , a British ceramics manufacturer, has its U.S. headquarters based in Youngstown. Youngstown's downtown, which once underscored
2268-477: Is a midwestern city located at the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains . The city was named for John Young , an early settler from Whitestown, New York , who established the community's first sawmill and gristmill . It was an early industrial city of the late 19th and early 20th centuries and became known as a center of steel production. With the movement of jobs offshore as the steel industry in
2394-580: Is considered Central Youngstown. The area is the smallest division of Youngstown, as well as its least populous, but also its least residential by zoning. It is surrounded by the I-680 and Madison Avenue Expressway highway system. The North Side consists of the Brier Hill , Crandall Park, North Heights , and Wick Park neighborhoods and the northern section of the Riverbend Industrial Park. Brier Hill
2520-557: Is consistent with efforts in other metropolitan areas to address the phenomenon of urban depopulation. Youngstown 2010 received an award for public outreach from the American Planning Association in 2007. On May 28, 2024, an explosion destroyed most of the first floor of the Realty Building in downtown Youngstown and severely damaged the floors above it, killing one bank employee and injuring seven. The explosion
2646-981: Is indeed the loser of globalization or free trade" (the diminution of international trade regulations as well as tariffs, taxes) and "China, with its large emerging middle class, is among the big beneficiaries of globalization". "Thanks to globalization, in terms of purchasing-power parity, China actually has already become the largest economy in the world in September 2015". Studies by David Autor, David Dorn and Gordon Hanson show that free trade with China cost Americans around one million manufacturing workers between 1991 and 2007.Competition from Chinese imports has led to manufacturing job losses and declining wages. They also found that offsetting job gains in other industries never materialized. Closed companies no longer order goods and services from local non-manufacturing firms and former industrial workers may be unemployed for years or permanently. Increased import exposure reduces wages in
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#17328851076672772-458: Is now again well known around the world as a center of polymer research with four hundred polymer-related manufacturing and distribution companies operating in the area. The turnaround was accomplished in part by a partnership between Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company , which chose to stay, the University of Akron , and the city mayor's office. The Akron Global Business Accelerator that jump-started
2898-614: Is readily measurable in statistics on crime, fatherless children, broken trust, reduced opportunities for and outcomes from education, and the like". Problems associated with the Rust Belt persist even today, particularly around the eastern Great Lakes states, and many once-booming manufacturing metropolises dramatically slowed down. From 1970 to 2006, Cleveland, Detroit, Buffalo, and Pittsburgh lost about 45% of their population and median household incomes fell: in Cleveland and Detroit by about 30%, in Buffalo by 20%, and Pittsburgh by 10%. During
3024-496: Is the economic, social, and population decline facing the fictional Western Pennsylvanian town of Buell, itself brought about by thorough de-industrialization typical of the region. The 21st century evolution of this region of the U.S. is also depicted through the fictional town of New Canaan, Ohio, in Stephen Markley 's 2018 bestseller novel, Ohio . The town is described through both the teenage glamour of high school lens in
3150-455: Is the most distorted exchange rate policy any major nation has ever followed”. He notes that an undervalued renminbi is tantamount to high tariffs or export subsidies. A cheaper currency improves employment and competitiveness, as it makes imports more expensive while making domestic products more attractive. In 1999, Francis Fukuyama wrote that the social and cultural consequences of deindustrialization and manufacturing decline that turned
3276-433: Is the subject of the popular Billy Joel song, " Allentown ," originally released on The Nylon Curtain album in 1982. The song uses Allentown as a metaphor for the resilience of working class Americans in distressed industrial cities during the recession of the early 1980s. The Rust Belt is the setting for Philipp Meyer's 2009 novel American Rust and its 2021 television adaptation . A core plot device of both
3402-427: Is used to refer to a set of economic and social conditions rather than to an overall geographical region of the U.S., the Rust Belt has no precise boundaries. The extent to which a community may have been described as a "Rust Belt city" depends on how great a role industrial manufacturing played in its local economy in the past and how it does now, as well as on perceptions of the economic viability and living standards of
3528-408: Is widely regarded as the death knell of the old area steel industry in Youngstown. In the wake of the steel plant shutdowns, the community lost an estimated 40,000 manufacturing jobs, 400 satellite businesses, $ 414 million in personal income, and from 33 to 75 percent of the school tax revenues. The Youngstown area has yet to fully recover from the loss of jobs in the steel sector. The blow dealt to
3654-706: The Atlantic Express/Pacific Express and the Lake Cities . The city was on the New York Central's Pittsburgh-Buffalo circuit and the Pennsylvania Railroad's Pittsburgh-Cleveland circuit. The city's population became more diverse after the end of World War II , when a seemingly robust steel industry attracted thousands of workers. In the 1950s, the Latino population grew significantly; and by
3780-602: The 2020 census , it had a population of 60,068, making it the eleventh-most populous city in Ohio. It is a principal city of the Youngstown–Warren metropolitan area , which had 430,591 residents in 2020 and is the seventh-largest metro area in Ohio. Youngstown is situated on the Mahoning River in Northeast Ohio , 58 miles (93 km) southeast of Cleveland and 61 miles (100 km) northwest of Pittsburgh . Youngstown
3906-669: The General Motors Lordstown Assembly , which was the area's largest industrial employer in the decades following the decline of the steel industry. Once one of the nation's largest auto plants in terms of square feet, the Lordstown facility was home to production of the Chevrolet Impala, Vega, and Cavalier . The Lordstown Assembly was shuttered in March 2019 and is currently owned by Foxconn . The city's largest employer
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4032-650: The Great Migration who were drawn by jobs and better economic opportunity. Following several "boom" periods from the late-19th to the mid-20th century , cities in this area struggled to adapt to a variety of adverse economic and social conditions. From 1979 to 1982, known as the Volcker shock , the U.S. Federal Reserve decided to raise the base interest rate in the United States to 19%. High-interest rates attracted wealthy foreign "hot money" into U.S. banks and caused
4158-550: The National Robotics Engineering Center and Robotics Institute , Aethon Inc., American Robot Corporation, Automatika , Quantapoint , Blue Belt Technologies, and Seegrid are creating state-of-the-art robotic technology applications. Akron , a former "Rubber Capital of the World" that lost 35,000 jobs after major tire and rubber manufacturers Goodrich , Firestone , and General Tire closed their production lines,
4284-460: The U.S. dollar to appreciate. This made U.S. products more expensive for foreigners to buy and also made imports much cheaper for Americans to purchase. The misaligned exchange rate was not rectified until 1986, by which time Japanese imports, in particular, had made rapid inroads into U.S. markets. From 1987 to 1999, the U.S. stock market went into a stratospheric rise, and this continued to pull wealthy foreign money into U.S. banks, which biased
4410-701: The Youngstown Phantoms , who play in the United States Hockey League . Previously, it was home to the Youngstown Steelhounds hockey team, who played in the CHL . The venue also hosts "on ice" musical shows and concerts. Historically, one of the area's most popular attractions was Idora Park in the Idora neighborhood of Youngstown's south side. An urban amusement park , it operated from 1899 until it
4536-665: The Youngstown State University campus. Established by industrialist Joseph G. Butler Jr. , in 1919, it was the first museum in the country dedicated to American art. Across the street from the Butler Institute stands the McDonough Museum of Art , YSU's University Art Museum and the Mahoning Valley's center for contemporary art. The McDonough, established in 1991, features changing exhibitions by regional, national and international artists and provides public access to
4662-590: The Youngstown Steelmen , the team competed in the Ohio–Pennsylvania League during the 1910 and 1911 seasons. The Steelmen joined the Central League in 1912, and that year, narrowly lost the pennant to a rival franchise from Fort Wayne, Indiana , placing second in the league. Youngstown, Ohio Youngstown is a city in and the county seat of Mahoning County, Ohio , United States. At
4788-660: The service sector when the economy recovered. In 1984, an incremental expansion of the U.S. trade deficit with China began combined with growing trade deficits with Japan , South Korea , and Taiwan . As a result, the traditional manufacturing workers in the region have experienced economic upheaval. This effect has devastated government budgets across the U.S. and increased corporate borrowing to fund retiree benefits. Some economists believe that GDP and employment can be dragged down by large long-run trade deficits. In early 2017, Joseph Stiglitz wrote that "the American middle class
4914-535: The title to the land in the Western Reserve, which it sold to the Connecticut Land Company for $ 1,200,000. While many of the area's early settlers came from Connecticut, Youngstown attracted many Scots-Irish settlers from neighboring Pennsylvania . The first European Americans to settle permanently in the area were Pittsburgh native James Hillman and wife Catherine Dougherty. By 1798, Youngstown
5040-538: The 1907 championship of the Ohio–Pennsylvania League, but the following year, their season was cut short when the owners of the Youngstown franchise "threw up the sponge in mid-season". In 1909, the newly established Youngstown Indians secured the backing of a stock company in New Castle, Pennsylvania , and were managed by W.R. Terry. The challenges facing the Youngstown Indians reflected perennial difficulties within
5166-587: The 1920s, Youngstown was the birthplace of the Good Humor brand of ice cream novelties, and the popular franchise of Handel's Homemade Ice Cream & Yogurt was established there in the 1940s. In the 1950s, Youngstown-born developer Edward J. DeBartolo Sr. established one of the country's first modern shopping plazas in the suburban Boardman. The fast-food chain, Arby's , opened the first of its restaurants in Boardman in 1964, and Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips
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5292-676: The 1930s until the 1950s progressing southward, apart from the early Steelton neighborhood and industrial Salt Springs neighborhood. It shares Mill Creek Park with the South Side and lies southwest of the Mahoning River. Youngstown has a humid continental climate ( Köppen Dfb / Dfa ), typical of the Midwestern United States , with four distinct seasons and lies within USDA hardiness zone 6a. Winters are cold and dry but typically bring
5418-485: The 1940s, when the mechanization of southern agriculture brought an end to the sharecropping system, leading onetime farm laborers to seek industrial jobs. Youngstown's local iron ore deposits were exhausted by the early 20th century. Since the city is landlocked (the Mahoning River is not navigable), ore from Michigan and Minnesota had to arrive by rail from Cleveland and other Great Lakes port cities where large bulk carriers were unloaded. This put Youngstown at
5544-506: The 1960s, the expansion of worldwide free trade agreements have been less favorable to U.S. workers. Imported goods such as steel cost much less to produce in Third World countries with cheap foreign labor (see steel crisis ). The introduction of pollution regulation in the late 1960's, combined with rapidly increasing U.S. energy costs (see 1970s energy crisis ) caused much U.S. heavy industry to begin moving to other countries. Beginning with
5670-505: The 1970s, St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church and the First Spanish Baptist Church of Ohio were among the largest religious institutions for Spanish-speaking residents in the Youngstown metropolitan area. In 1951, city planners projected that Youngstown would grow to 200,000 to 250,000 in population due to continuously strong demand for domestic steel in western Europe , Japan , and South Korea , and so 12,000 acres on
5796-553: The 1980s, presidential candidates have devoted much of their time to the economic concerns of the Rust Belt region, which includes several populous swing states , including Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. These states were crucial to Donald Trump 's victories in the 2016 and 2024 presidential elections , as well as his defeat by Democrat Joe Biden in 2020 . In the 20th century, local economies in these states specialized in large-scale manufacturing of finished medium to heavy industrial and consumer products, as well as
5922-596: The 2000s, additions included the Nathaniel R. Jones Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse in 2002, designed by Robert A. M. Stern Architects , the Mahoning County Children's Services Center and George Voinovich Government Center in 2004, and both the Covelli Centre and Ohio Seventh District Court of Appeals in 2006. In 2004, construction began on a 60-home upscale development called Arlington Heights, and
6048-497: The East Side closest to Downtown Youngstown were among the earliest developed in the city. However, much of the East Side is undeveloped fields and forests, as the land was annexed in the 1950s as part of a zoning effort for future development that never occurred. Altogether the most recently developed side of Youngstown, the neighborhoods of Belle Vista, Cornersburg, Garden District, Kirkmere, Rocky Ridge, and Schenley were built from
6174-590: The Factory Belt with its manufacturing cities: Chicago, Buffalo, Detroit, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Toledo, Cleveland, St. Louis, Youngstown, and Pittsburgh, among others. This region for decades served as a magnet for immigrants from Austria-Hungary , Poland , and Russia , as well as Yugoslavia , Italy , and the Levant in some areas, who provided the industrial facilities with inexpensive labor. These migrants drawn by labor were also accompanied by African Americans during
6300-500: The Great Lakes and Northern New York. At the center of this expanse lies an area stretching from northern Indiana and southern Michigan in the west to Upstate New York in the east, where local tax revenues as of 2004 relied more heavily on manufacturing than on any other sector. Prior to World War II , the cities in the Rust Belt region were among the largest in the U.S. However, by the 20th century's end their population had fallen
6426-495: The Klan was in steep decline; and three years later, the organization sold its Canfield, Ohio, meeting area, Kountry Klub Field. Despite the prevalence of Irish Americans in Youngstown, their presence wasn't always evident. When radio personality Pete Gabriel (who was Greek) came to Youngstown, he found out that there was no St. Patrick's Day parade there at the time, so he started one. The growth of industry attracted people from within
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#17328851076676552-505: The Oakland Center for the Arts was re-established with a new focus on youth and kids theatre. Well known theatrical personalities from the Youngstown area include comedic actor Joe Flynn , screen actress Elizabeth Hartman , singer and Broadway performer Maureen McGovern , and television and screen actor Ed O'Neill . The Butler Institute of American Art is on the northeastern edge of
6678-413: The Ohio–Pennsylvania League, including weak financial support for teams and uneven ticket sales. The Spalding Guide' s Youngstown-based correspondent, W. A. Mason, noted that support for the league in that city had eroded because of the local club's poor performance. "Youngstown had the tailend team and the fans had been used to winning ball", Mason wrote. He added, however, that the league, "taking together
6804-593: The Rust Belt include Baltimore , Buffalo , Chicago , Cincinnati , Cleveland , Detroit , Milwaukee , Philadelphia , Pittsburgh , Rochester , and St. Louis . New England was also hit hard by industrial decline, but cities closer to the East Coast , including in the Boston , New York , and Washington metropolitan areas , adapted by diversifying or transforming their economies to shift focus towards services , advanced manufacturing, and high-tech industries. Since
6930-502: The Rust Belt is synonymous with the Great Lakes region of the United States. The Rust Belt experienced industrial decline starting in the 1950s and 1960s, with manufacturing peaking as a percentage of the U.S. GDP in 1953 and declining ever since. Demand for coal declined as industry turned to oil and natural gas , and American steel was undercut by German and Japanese firms. High labor costs encouraged companies to move production to
7056-508: The Rust Belt, including biotechnology , the polymer industry, infotech , and nanotech . Information technology is seen as representing an opportunity for the Rust Belt's revitalization. Among the successful recent examples is the Detroit Aircraft Corporation , which specializes in unmanned aerial systems integration, testing and aerial cinematography services. In Pittsburgh, robotics research centers and companies such as
7182-470: The September 19, 1977, closure of the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Campbell Works after financial downturn due to changes in the steel manufacturing process and international competition. In response to subsequent challenges, the city has taken well-publicized steps to diversify economically, while building on some traditional strengths. Downtown Youngstown has seen modest levels of new construction. In
7308-493: The Sun Belt or overseas. The American automotive industry declined as consumers turned to fuel-efficient, imported vehicles after the 1973 oil crisis raised the cost of gasoline, and when foreign manufacturers opened factories in the United States, they largely avoided the strongly unionized Rust Belt. Families moved away, leaving cities with falling tax revenues , declining infrastructure, and abandoned buildings. Notable cities in
7434-519: The U.S. beginning in the 1980s when it was commonly contrasted with the Sun Belt , which was then surging. Common definitions of the region stretch from Upstate New York and western Pennsylvania to southeastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois , including large parts of Ohio , Indiana , and Michigan . Some definitions of the Rust Belt also include parts of Iowa , Kentucky , Maryland , Minnesota , Missouri , New Jersey and West Virginia . Much of
7560-415: The U.S. is borrowing to fund consumption of imports while accumulating unsustainable amounts of debt. On June 26, 2009, Jeff Immelt , CEO of General Electric , called for the U.S. to increase its manufacturing base employment to 20% of the workforce, commenting that the U.S. has outsourced too much in some areas and can no longer rely on the financial sector and consumer spending to drive demand. Since
7686-473: The United States fell into decline in the 1970s, the city became exemplary of the Rust Belt . Youngstown has seen declines in population of nearly 65 percent within its city limits and about 15 percent in the metro area since 1960. Downtown Youngstown has seen various revitalization efforts in the 21st century, including the Covelli Centre and Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre . Other notable institutions in
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#17328851076677812-577: The United States and from Latin America . By the late 19th century, African Americans were well represented in Youngstown, and the first local congregation of the African Methodist Episcopal Church was established in 1871. In the 1880s, local attorney William R. Stewart was the second African American elected to the Ohio House of Representatives . A large influx of African Americans in
7938-630: The YBI was the top University Associated Incubator in North America, and came in second to the Guinness Enterprise Centre in Dublin . A number of products and enterprises introduced in Youngstown became national household names. Among them is Youngstown-based Schwebel's Bakery , which was established in neighboring Campbell in the 20th century. The company now distributes bread products nationally. In
8064-471: The Youngstown Champs. Toward the end of the season, Wright took the extraordinary step of backing the Youngstown Indians, when their New Castle owners "gave it up". This move preserved the eight-team league, which also included teams from Akron, East Liverpool , McKeesport , New Castle , Canton , and Steubenville . At the close of the 1909 season, the club came under the co-ownership of former Indians manager Terry and business partner Paul Powers. Renamed as
8190-475: The Youngstown area developed a thriving steel industry, starting with the area's blast furnace in 1803 by James and Daniel Heaton. By the mid-19th century, Youngstown was the site of several iron industrial plants, and because of easy rail connections to adjacent states, the iron industry continued to expand in the 1890s despite the depletion of local natural resources. At the turn of the 20th century, local industrialists began to convert to steel manufacturing, amid
8316-487: The area for more than 80 years, despite intermittent financial problems. Believed by some observers to be the nation's oldest continuously operating community theater, the Youngstown Playhouse was the only community theater in Ohio to ever receive major institutional support from the Ohio Arts Council . The Oakland Center for the Arts , formerly in the downtown area, was a well-known venue for locally produced plays before it closed in 2015 due to poor management. In late 2016.
8442-425: The area's more successful business ventures in recent years has been the Youngstown Business Incubator , which fosters the growth of fledgling technology-based companies. In line with these efforts to change the community's image, the city government, in partnership with Youngstown State University, has organized an ambitious urban renewal plan known as Youngstown 2010 . The stated goals of Youngstown 2010 include
8568-408: The cities along the Great Lakes shores with then-unprecedented speed. Chicago was a rural trading post in the 1840s but grew to be as big as Paris by the time of the 1893 Columbian Exposition . Early signs of the difficulty in the northern states were evident early in the 20th century before the "boom years" were even over. Lowell, Massachusetts , once the center of textile production in the U.S.,
8694-443: The city include the Butler Institute of American Art , Mill Creek Park , Stambaugh Auditorium , and Youngstown State University . Youngstown's first new downtown hotel since 1974—the DoubleTree by Hilton —opened in 2018 in the historic Stambaugh Building, adapted for this use. Youngstown was named for New York native John Young , who surveyed the area in 1796 and settled there soon afterward. On February 9, 1797, Young purchased
8820-629: The city's East Side were annexed and extended utilities in expectation of future housing projects, in addition to aggressive re-zoning for expanded commercial spaces throughout the city. At 11:30 on Wednesday, September 6, 1967, only 9 of the 50 scheduled patrolmen arrived for work at the Youngstown Police Department. The others were not on strike . That was prevented by Ohio state law. The patrolmen, eventually numbering 300, along with another 300 city-employed firefighters, were instead attending "continuous professional meetings", and would be until their demand for an immediate across-the-board raise of $ 1200
8946-501: The city's north side, has served for decades as a site of concerts and is often rented for private events. The facility also hosts the Stambaugh Youth Concert Band. Bruce Springsteen , who sang about the decline of Youngstown's steel industry and its adverse effects on local workers in his ballad " Youngstown ", played at Stambaugh Auditorium on January 12, 1996, as part of his solo Ghost of Tom Joad Tour . The Youngstown Playhouse , Mahoning County's primary community theater, has served
9072-421: The city's population was under the age of 18, 10.8% was from age 18 to 24, 24.3% was from age 25 to 44, 26.2% was from age 45 to 64, and 15.8% was age 65 or older. The median age was 38 years old. For every 100 females, there were 96.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95 males. Endowed with large deposits of coal and iron as well as "old growth" hardwood forests needed to produce charcoal,
9198-609: The city's sports-related attractions is the Covelli Centre , which was funded primarily through a $ 26 million federal grant secured in 2000 by then-Congressman Jim Traficant . Located on the site of an abandoned steel mill, the large, high-tech facility opened in October 2005. It was formerly called the Chevrolet Center, and during planning it was known as the Youngstown Convocation Center. The centre's main tenants are
9324-583: The community in the early 19th century paved the way for the Youngstown area's inclusion on the network of the famed Erie Canal . The Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal Company was organized in 1835, and the canal was completed in 1840. Local industrialist David Tod , who became Ohio governor during the Civil War , persuaded Lake Erie steamboat owners that coal mined in the Mahoning Valley could fuel their vessels if canal transportation were available between Youngstown and Cleveland. The railroad's arrival in 1856 smoothed
9450-502: The community saw an influx of immigrants from non-European countries including what is modern day Lebanon , Israel , Palestine , and Syria . By the 1920s, this dramatic demographic shift produced a nativist backlash, and the Mahoning Valley became a center of Ku Klux Klan activity. The situation reached a climax in 1924, when street clashes between Klan members and Italian and Irish Americans in neighboring Niles led Ohio Governor A. Victor Donahey to declare martial law. By 1928
9576-440: The community's economic difficulties, is a site of new business growth. The Youngstown Business Incubator (YBI), in the heart of downtown, houses several start-up technology companies that have received office space, furnishings, and access to utilities. Some Incubator-supported companies have earned recognition, and a few are starting to outgrow their current space. Inc. Magazine rated one such company– Turning Technologies –as
9702-544: The community's industrial economy in the 1970s was slightly mitigated by the auto production plants in the metropolitan area. In the late 1980s, the Avanti , an automobile with a fiberglass body originally designed by Studebaker to compete with the Corvette , was manufactured in an industrial complex on Youngstown's Albert Street. This company moved away after just a few years. A mainstay of Youngstown's industrial economy had long been
9828-466: The creation of a "cleaner, greener, and better planned and organized Youngstown". In January 2005, the organization unveiled a master plan prepared by Urban Strategies Inc. of Toronto , which had taken shape during an extensive process of public consultation and meetings that gathered input from citizens. The plan, which included platforms such as the acceptance of a reduced population and an improved image and quality of life, received national attention and
9954-512: The creative class through arts and downtown renewal, encouraging the knowledge economy type of entrepreneurship, and other steps. This includes growing new industrial base with a pool of skilled labor, rebuilding the infrastructure and infrasystems, creating research and development-focused university-business partnerships, and close cooperation between central, state and local government, and business. New types of research and development-intensive nontraditional manufacturing have emerged recently in
10080-432: The dollar and has much lower prevailing wages, forcing domestic wages to drift downward. Some economists are concerned that long-run effects of high trade deficits and outsourcing are a cause of economic problems in the U.S. with high external debt (amount owed to foreign lenders) and a serious deterioration in the United States net international investment position (NIIP) (−24% of GDP). Some economists contend that
10206-628: The downtown area. There are further sub-neighborhoods in the South Side as well, such as Indian Village, Handel's , Boulevard Park, Cochran Park, Powerstown, and Gibsonville that have distinct identities within their larger neighborhoods. The South Side shares Mill Creek Park with the West Side. The East Side is the largest of the city's regions by area and consists of the East High, East Side, Hazelton , Landsdowne, Lincoln Knolls, Scienceville and Sharon Line/McGuffey Heights communities. The neighborhoods on
10332-689: The downtown, including the Covelli Centre , Powers Auditorium , the DeYor Performing Arts Center, and Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre . In addition, the downtown sits to the immediate south of notable cultural and educational resources, including Youngstown State University , the Butler Institute of American Art , and the McDonough Museum of Contemporary Art. The Arlington , Mahoning Commons, Riverbend, Smoky Hollow and University neighborhoods that surround downtown compromise what
10458-539: The early 20th century owed much to developments in the industrial sector. During the national Steel Strike of 1919 , local industrialists recruited thousands of workers from the Southern United States , many of whom were Black. This move inflamed racist sentiment among local Whites, and for decades, African-American steelworkers experienced discrimination in the workplace. Migration from the South rose dramatically in
10584-523: The end of World War II, with the onset of the outward migration of residents to newer suburban communities, and the declining role of manufacturing in the American economy. Outsourcing of manufacturing jobs in tradeable goods has been an important issue in the region. One source has been globalization and the expansion of worldwide free trade agreements. Anti-globalization groups argue that trade with developing countries has resulted in stiff competition from countries such as China which pegs its currency to
10710-457: The exchange rate against manufactured goods. Related issues include the decline of the iron and steel industry , the movement of manufacturing to the southeastern states with their lower labor costs, the layoffs due to the rise of automation in industrial processes, the decreased need for labor in making steel products, new organizational methods such as just-in-time manufacturing which allowed factories to maintain production with fewer workers,
10836-507: The fastest-growing privately held software company in the United States and 18th fastest-growing privately held company overall. To keep such companies downtown, the YBI secured approval to demolish a row of nearby vacant buildings to clear space for expansion. In 2014, the YBI was ranked as the top university-associated business incubator in the world by the Swedish University Business Incubator Index. In 2015,
10962-662: The first founded on the South Side during the 19th century and were completely annexed by 1910 as Youngstown industrialized. Later neighborhoods, such as Fosterville , Newport, Lansingville , Buckeye Plat, and Cottage Grove came into being as industry and population expanded throughout the first half of the 20th century, being annexed in 1929 from the remainder of Youngstown Township. The Pleasant Grove and Brownlee Woods neighborhoods further south were also annexed in 1929 from Boardman Township . These neighborhoods were generally well connected to each together and were defined by economic class as they became increasingly suburban further from
11088-508: The gate receipts and the moneys received from the sale and drafting of players", proved to be a "moneymaker" for the first time since its establishment. Despite its improved financial situation, the Ohio–Pennsylvania League narrowly escaped the prospect of dissolution late in the 1909 season. As the Spalding Guide reports, the league's unraveling was prevented only by the guidance of the league president, Sam L. Wright, who had earlier managed
11214-586: The historical range is 54.01 in (1,372 mm) in 2011 to 23.79 in (604 mm) in 1963. Between 1960 and 2010, the city's population declined by over 60%. The Mahoning Valley metropolitan area had 541,243 residents as of the 2020 census. According to the 2020 Census , Youngstown had 28,303 households. The population density was 1770.5/sq mi. The city's racial makeup was 47.8% White , 41.1% African American , 0.3% Native American , 0.7% Asian , 0.0% Pacific Islander , and 7.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.9% of
11340-413: The households had children under the age of 18. Of these, 25.6% were married couples living together, 24.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.6% were non-families. Meanwhile, 37.8% of all households comprised a single person, and 14.5% of households comprised a person over 65 years of age living alone. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 3.02. 22.8% of
11466-452: The industrial heartland of the country, with its economies largely based on automobile and steel production , coal mining , and processing of raw materials . The term "Rust Belt" is a dysphemism to describe an industry that has " rusted out", referring to the impact of deindustrialization , economic decline , population loss , and urban decay which is attributable to an area's shrinking industrial sector. The term gained popularity in
11592-410: The internationalization of American business, and the liberalization of foreign trade policies due to globalization . Cities struggling with these conditions shared several difficulties, including population loss , lack of education, declining tax revenues, high unemployment and crime, drugs, swelling welfare rolls, deficit spending, and poor municipal credit ratings. Since the term "Rust Belt"
11718-484: The late 2000s, American manufacturing recovered faster from the Great Recession of 2008 than the other sectors of the economy, and a number of initiatives, both public and private, are encouraging the development of alternative fuel, nano and other technologies. Along with the neighboring Golden Horseshoe of southern Ontario , the Rust Belt composes one of the world's major manufacturing regions. Delving into
11844-399: The mid-1990s, several Rust Belt metropolitan areas experienced a suspension in negative growth, indicated by stabilizing unemployment, wages, and populations. During the first decade of the 21st century, however, a negative trend still persisted: Detroit, Michigan lost 25.7% of its population; Gary, Indiana, 22%; Youngstown, Ohio, 18.9%; Flint, Michigan, 18.7%; and Cleveland, Ohio, 14.5%. In
11970-683: The most in the country. The linking of the former Northwest Territory with the once-rapidly industrializing East Coast was effected through several large-scale infrastructural projects , most notably the Erie Canal in 1825, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1830, the Allegheny Portage Railroad in 1834, and the consolidation of the New York Central Railroad following the end of the American Civil War in 1875. A gate
12096-477: The most recent year to not reach that mark is 2014. July is the warmest month with an average mean temperature of 71.5 °F (22 °C). The all-time record high temperature in Youngstown of 103 °F (39 °C) was established on July 10, 1936, which occurred during the Dust Bowl , and the all-time record low temperature of −22 °F (−30 °C) was set on January 19, 1994. The first and last freezes of
12222-616: The non-manufacturing sector due to lower demand for non-manufacturing goods and increased labor supply from workers who have lost their manufacturing jobs. Other work by this team of economists, with Daron Acemoglu and Brendan Price, estimates that competition from Chinese imports cost the U.S. as many as 2.4 million jobs in total between 1999 and 2011. Avraham Ebenstein, Margaret McMillan, Ann Harrison also pointed out in their article “Why are American Workers getting Poorer? China, Trade and Offshoring” these negative effects of trade with China on American workers. The Economic Policy Institute ,
12348-482: The past and musing on the future of Rust Belt states, a 2010 Brookings Institution report suggests that the Great Lakes region has a sizable potential for transformation, citing already existing global trade networks, clean energy/low carbon capacity, developed innovation infrastructure, and higher educational network. Different strategies were proposed in order to reverse the fortunes of the former Factory Belt including building casinos and convention centers, retaining
12474-421: The path for further economic growth. Youngstown's industrial development changed the face of the Mahoning Valley. The community's burgeoning coal industry drew hundreds of immigrants from Wales , Germany , and Ireland . With the establishment of steel mills in the late 19th century, Youngstown became a popular destination for immigrants from Eastern Europe , Italy , and Greece . In the early 20th century,
12600-401: The population. The median household income was $ 30,129. According to the 2010 Census , Youngstown had 26,839 households and 15,150 families. The population density was 755.2/km (1958.5/sq mi). There were 33,123 housing units at an average density of 968.5 per square mile (373.9/km ). Youngstown's vacant-housing rate in 2010 was twenty times the national average. The city's racial makeup
12726-534: The present day. News media occasionally refer to a patchwork of defunct centers of heavy industry and manufacturing across the Great Lakes and Midwestern United States as the snow belt , the manufacturing belt, or the factory belt because of their vibrant industrial economies in the past. This includes most of the cities of the Midwest as far west as the Mississippi River , including St. Louis, and many of those in
12852-602: The products of certain countries to force them to readjust their currencies. Krugman writes that China pursues a mercantilist and predatory policy and keeps its currency undervalued to accumulate trade surpluses using capital flow controls. The Chinese government sells renminbi and buys foreign currency to keep the renminbi low, giving China's manufacturing sector a cost advantage over its competitors. China's surpluses drain US demand, destroy US industry and slow economic recovery in other countries with which China trades. Krugman writes: “This
12978-588: The proximity to the Great Lakes waterways, and abundance of paved roads, water canals, and railroads. After the transportation infrastructure linked the iron ore found in the so-called Iron Range of northern Minnesota , Wisconsin and Upper Michigan with the coking coal mined from the Appalachian Basin in Western Pennsylvania and Western Virginia , the Steel Belt was born. Soon it developed into
13104-532: The recession of 1970–71, a new pattern of deindustrializing economy emerged. Competitive devaluation combined with each successive downturn saw traditional U.S. manufacturing workers experiencing lay-offs. In general, in the Factory Belt employment in the manufacturing sector declined by 32.9% between 1969 and 1996. Wealth-producing primary and secondary sector jobs such as those in manufacturing and computer software were often replaced by much-lower-paying wealth-consuming jobs such as those in retail and government in
13230-414: The rest of the economy. The manufacturing sector therefore provides a very important stimulus to overall economic growth. Manufacturing is also associated with well-paid service jobs such as accounting, business management, research and development and legal services. Deindustrialisation is therefore also leading to a significant loss of these service jobs. Deindustrialization thus means the disappearance of
13356-467: The revival is taking place in the once-stagnant area. The CHIPS and Science Act , which became effective in August 2022, was designed to rebuild the manufacturing sector with thousands of jobs and research programs in states like Ohio focusing on making products like semiconductors due to the global chip shortage of the early 2020s . The Rust Belt is depicted in various films, television shows, and songs. It
13482-439: The same time, Youngstown never became economically diversified, as did larger industrial cities such as Chicago, Pittsburgh, Akron, or Cleveland. Hence, when economic changes forced the closure of plants throughout the 1970s, the city was left with few substantial economic alternatives. The September 19, 1977, announcement of the closure of a large portion of Youngstown Sheet and Tube , an event still referred to as "Black Monday",
13608-619: The season on average fall on October 14 and May 6, respectively, allowing a growing season of 160 days; however, freezing temperatures have been observed in every month except July. The normal annual mean temperature is 49.9 °F (9.9 °C). Normal yearly precipitation based on the 30-year average from 1991 to 2020 is 41.19 inches (1,046 mm), falling on an average of 168 days per year. Monthly precipitation has ranged from 10.66 in (271 mm) in June 1986 to 0.16 in (4.1 mm) in October 1924, while for annual precipitation
13734-524: The smaller settlement of Warren as its administrative center, or county seat . In 1813, Trumbull County was divided into townships, with Youngstown Township comprising much of what became Mahoning County. The village of Youngstown was incorporated in 1848, and in 1867 Youngstown was chartered as a city. It became the county seat in 1876, when the administrative center of Mahoning County was moved from neighboring Canfield . Youngstown has been Mahoning County's county seat to this day. The discovery of coal by
13860-620: The township of 15,560 acres (6,300 ha) from the Western Reserve Land Company for $ 16,085. The 1797 establishment of Youngstown was officially recorded on August 19, 1802. The area that includes present-day Youngstown was part of the Connecticut Western Reserve , a section of the Northwest Territory that Connecticut initially did not cede to the federal government. Upon cession, Connecticut retained
13986-470: The transportation and processing of the raw materials required for heavy industry. The area was referred to as the Manufacturing Belt, Factory Belt, or Steel Belt as distinct from the agricultural Midwestern states forming the so-called Corn Belt and Great Plains states that are often called the "breadbasket of America". The flourishing industrial manufacturing in the region was caused in part by
14112-429: The violence, historian William Lawson observed that the strike transformed industrial unions from "basically local and ineffective organizations into all-encompassing, nationwide collective bargaining representatives of American workers". Between the 1920s and 1960s, the city was known as an important industrial hub that featured the massive furnaces and foundries of such companies as Republic Steel and U.S. Steel . At
14238-439: The wages of workers already employed in these other sectors. The threat of offshoring of production facilities leads workers to accept wage cuts to keep their jobs. According to the Economic Policy Institute, trade agreements have not reduced trade deficits but rather increased them. The growing trade deficit with China comes from China's manipulation of its currency , dumping policies, subsidies, trade barriers that give it
14364-565: The work of students, faculty and alumni from the Department of Art. The Clarence R. Smith Mineral Museum, also on the YSU campus, is operated by the university's geology department and housed in a campus building. Rust Belt The Rust Belt , formerly the Steel Belt , is an area of industrial decline in the United States . From the late 19th century to late 20th century, the region formed
14490-550: Was 47.0% White , 45.2% African American , 0.4% Native American , 0.4% Asian , 0.02% Pacific Islander , 3.3% of some other race, and 3.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.3% of the population. The European ancestry included had 10.8% Italian , 10.8% Irish , 10.0% German , and 4.2% English ancestries. Among the Hispanic population, 5.7% were Puerto Rican , 1.9% Mexican , 0.1% Cuban , and 0.7% some other Hispanic or Latino. Records suggest 28.6% of
14616-514: Was 53.1 inches (135 cm) in December 2010, while winter snowfall amounts have ranged from 118.7 in (301 cm) in 2010–11 to 25.2 in (64 cm) in 1948–49. Springs generally see a transition to fewer weather systems that produce heavier rainfall. Summers are typically very warm and humid with temperatures exceeding 90 °F (32 °C) on 7.7 days per year on average; the annual count has been as high as 40 days in 1943, while
14742-554: Was closed after a large fire destroyed many of its premier rides in 1984. The community's culture center is Powers Auditorium , a former Warner Brothers movie palace that serves as the area's primary music hall and a home for the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra . This downtown landmark is one of five auditoriums within the city. Ford Recital Hall was built in 2006 as an addition to newly renovated Powers Auditorium. Imposing and neo-classical Stambaugh Auditorium , on
14868-539: Was considered one of the city's cultural hotbeds due to many Welsh , Irish , Italian , and African American migrants settling in it, but primarily was once viewed as the city's " Little Italy " as reflected by the Brier Hill-style pizza . Each year, at the end of August, the Brier Hill Fest attracts thousands of visitors from Northeast Ohio and Western Pennsylvania . The historic Crandall Park neighborhood
14994-611: Was described in the magazine Harper's as a "depressed industrial desert" as early as 1931, as its textile concerns were being uprooted and sent southward, primarily to the Carolinas . In the first half of the 20th century, the Great Depression followed by American entry into World War II was followed by a rapid return to economic growth, during which much of the industrial North reached its peak population and industrial output. The northern cities experienced changes that followed
15120-662: Was headquartered in Youngstown in the late 1970s. More recently, the city's downtown hosted the corporate headquarters of the now-defunct pharmacy chain store Phar-Mor , which was established by Youngstown native Mickey Monus . Despite the impact of regional economic decline, Youngstown offers an array of cultural and recreational resources. Youngstown's newest venue is the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre ; an outdoor venue opened in 2019 upon former industrial grounds in Downtown that hosts various musicians. One of
15246-499: Was met. By Saturday, the day they were ordered back to their jobs by a Common Pleas Court judge, citizens were reported as disturbed, rather than badly frightened, by the risks of police and fire services operating at about 30% normal headcounts. A car fire was the worst single incident. When ending the strike the judge also ordered the pay raise. Apart from a fruitless six-day "sick call" of police in Detroit in June 1967, Youngstown's
15372-534: Was once home to the city's wealthiest families, and many of the mansions of industrial executives are still including in the Crandall Park-Fifth Avenue Historic District. Youngstown's South Side is, and historically has been, the city's densest and most populous division, with numerous neighborhoods from each of the city's periods of expansion. The older neighborhoods in this district, Oak Hill, Erie, Warren , and Lower Gibson, were among
15498-458: Was opened between a variety of burgeoning industries on the interior North American continent and the markets of large East Coast cities and Western Europe . Coal, iron ore, and other raw materials were shipped in from surrounding regions which emerged as major ports on the Great Lakes and served as transportation hubs for the region with proximity to railroad lines. Coming in the other direction were millions of European immigrants, who populated
15624-606: Was suspected to have been caused by a natural gas leak . According to the United States Census Bureau , the city has an area of 34.60 square miles (89.61 km ), of which 33.96 square miles (87.96 km ) is land and 0.64 square miles (1.66 km ) is water. Youngstown is in the Mahoning Valley on the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau . At the end of the last ice age , the glaciers left behind
15750-470: Was the first major police strike since the Boston Police Strike in 1919. As the editorial writers at The Sheboygan Press of Sheboygan, Wisconsin put it, "So we have seen the first successful strike by policemen and firemen. It is a precedent over which there should be little rejoicing." The industrial economy that drew various groups to the area collapsed in the late 1970s, culminating with
15876-622: Was the home of several families who were concentrated near where Mill Creek meets the Mahoning River . Boardman Township was founded in 1798 by Elijah Boardman , a member of the Connecticut Land Company. Also founded in 1798 was Austintown by John McCollum who was a settler from New Jersey . As the Western Reserve's population grew, the need for administrative districts became apparent. In 1800, territorial governor Arthur St. Clair established Trumbull County (named in honor of Connecticut Governor Jonathan Trumbull ), and designated
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