The life and slow death of a former Pennsylvania steel town

[Sam's Drunk Dog]

The Washington Post is running a two part series on Aliquippa. Here is part 1.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in- ... urg-shine/

[Algernon]

Just saw this.

Home.... Man. *sigh*

[Algernon]

Just read it. I've been to every single on of those places and recognize the picture of the houses in plan 12.

I've been in the plan 12 market to buy blunt wraps when I was a teen.... Dozens and dozens of times

[ExPatriatePen]

The Washington Post is running a two part series on Aliquippa. Here is part 1.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in- ... urg-shine/

That's such an old old old story... And while I like some of the photos and out-takes, so much of it is anecdotal. I can't help but think that there's a much much much larger and more important story that absolutely needs to be told.

A story about education, a story about corporate responsibility, a story about dysfunctional government, a story about racial partitioning.

Many other Steel Towns, and towns centered around other failed industries, have reinvented themselves. There's no reason Aliquippa should have been any different.

Part of the issue is the geography in Pittsburgh. The hills, valley, rivers and the road systems (Parkways), allow these towns to be by-passed and avoided and kept out of the public eye. Partitioned if you will. I owned a home that was literally a couple hundred yards from the Aliquippa line. (Godric's first home which was technically in Hopewell, even though it had an Aliquippa zip code). It was perched across the street from a massive cliff/hillside at the bottom of that cliff were the old mills and Aliquippa. Yet we did not have ANY crime. As close as we were to 'Quip, the residents seldom came into our neighborhood, primarily because of the topology.

I bring this up because in my opinion, it allows the rest of the area to partition off these economically challenged neighborhoods because terrain factors limit the amount the problems of those neighborhoods will slowly creep into adjacent communities.

As a businessman, I'm certainly not looking to move high tech jobs into that area. But if you could find labor intensive jobs, the area might have a chance. There's the rub, there aren't many labor intensive jobs left in our economy.

Call center operations would be another great option, but an important aspect of call centers is the ability to be polite courteous and have a good command of standard English.
If you go down into communities like Aliquippa or Duquesne, you'll find that to be a challenge.

It's nice to see these articles, but it would be nicer to study these blighted areas and come up with solutions.

[Freddy Rumsen]

Much like the dead coal towns in southern West Virginia there is just no reason for there to be there anymore.

In previous generations these places would be ghost towns and the population moved to a different area merely by immigration to work. However, government interference perpetuates and retards the natural cycle.

[Factorial]

Much like the dead coal towns in southern West Virginia there is just no reason for there to be there anymore.

In previous generations these places would be ghost towns and the population moved to a different area merely by immigration to work. However, government interference perpetuates and retards the natural cycle.

By government interference, do you mean providing a minimal level of support (food stamps, energy assistance, etc.) allows the least motivated to continue to "get by" and not be forced to migrate to greener pastures for survial?

[Freddy Rumsen]

Much like the dead coal towns in southern West Virginia there is just no reason for there to be there anymore.

In previous generations these places would be ghost towns and the population moved to a different area merely by immigration to work. However, government interference perpetuates and retards the natural cycle.

By government interference, do you mean providing a minimal level of support (food stamps, energy assistance, etc.) allows the least motivated to continue to "get by" and not be forced to migrate to greener pastures for survival?

Pretty much.

When you go to Welch, West Virginia there are three ways to make money.

1) Retail
2) Government
3) Drugs

As a case in point this week is the 30th Anniversary of the 1985 flood in West Virginia. One of the hidden blessings of that flood is that it destroyed the town of Cass, WV. In 1950 Cass had a population ~10,000, but when they logged out the mountains everyone left for other work.

In 1985 there were maybe 800 people living there, but with a infrastructure for 10,000. Thankfully the flood did some much needed urban renewal and going there today you'd have no idea Cass used to be that big.

[AuthorTony]

Cass is pretty cool to visit now, especially the scenic railroad and the train graveyard.

[Freddy Rumsen]

Cass is pretty cool to visit now, especially the scenic railroad and the train graveyard.

This is quite true. I graduated high school about 15 miles from there in Dunsmore, WV.

[Algernon]

Much like the dead coal towns in southern West Virginia there is just no reason for there to be there anymore.

In previous generations these places would be ghost towns and the population moved to a different area merely by immigration to work. However, government interference perpetuates and retards the natural cycle.

I strongly resent that first paragraph

It's a pretty strong culture center to be honest. Lots of American Italian, Irish, polish history.

the truth is, this area could easily be growing like cranberry twp but the exodus of US airlines and then subsequent sale of that company made the area lose practically all the decent wage paying jobs it had

What's wrong with aliquippa is that it's a microcosm of what's going on around the country.

There is no natural order and expiration date on community. The middle class disappearing in Aliquippa isn't completely different from the middle class disappearing from San Francisco. Laugh if you want but it's true.

I would love to do what I do out here in LA, there in aliquippa but it just wouldn't ever happen. Aliquippa barely has sidewalks ffs

[dodint]

Source of the post I strongly resent that first paragraph

Source of the post I would love to do what I do out here in LA, there in aliquippa but it just wouldn't ever happen.

These are contradictory statements. The second line is the point.

[slappybrown]

The Washington Post is running a two part series on Aliquippa. Here is part 1.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in- ... urg-shine/

Do you have part 2? (Per my Ohio-river related interests)

[relantel]

Cass is pretty cool to visit now, especially the scenic railroad and the train graveyard.

That's a top notch operation. Probably just below Strasburg levels.

[MrKennethTKangaroo]

The Washington Post is running a two part series on Aliquippa. Here is part 1.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in- ... urg-shine/

Do you have part 2? (Per my Ohio-river related interests)

All you have to do is dig up a thread on the Allegheny and you'll have a three-river-thread-bumping trifecta

[Sam's Drunk Dog]

I actually had meant to look up the second part of this but forgot, so the necroposting is actually useful.

Part 2:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in- ... teel-town/

[slappybrown]

Thread exists on a topic I am interested in, and I post in it /=/ necroposting. I am sorry that my intellectual curiosity bothers you.

Thank you for part 2, however.