The Rust Belt: Industrial Decline in the Great Lakes Region
- Eli Mirek
- Feb 5
- 3 min read
Hi everyone, and happy February! It is the month of love and gratefulness for the people in your life, so I encourage you all to tell the people around you how much you love them. Something I really love is driving on I-294 or on the Skyway and looking at the old factories, abandoned brick buildings, and decaying structures. I think they are very fascinating, and they always evoke feelings I find difficulty explaining.
These buildings are a part of the Rust Belt, a region of the Great Lakes that used to be home to a huge steel, iron, and coal industry. Once known as the Steel Belt (or Factory Belt), the Rust Belt once brought in millions of dollars to U.S. economy and provided jobs for thousands of people, especially European immigrants and African Americans migrating north during the Great Migration. It began to develop in the 1850s and grew fast due to the abundance of natural resources around the Great Lakes, especially iron and coal. These natural resources allowed factories to run without waiting for these materials to be imported or have to spend money on importing them. Another very important reason why the Rust Belt grew and expanded is because of the accessible lakes, rivers, and railroads that allowed manufactures to transport their goods across the country. For example, steel factories could transport steel easily to manufacturing cities like Chicago and Detroit where automobiles, farm equipment, weapons, machinery, and more could be built.
The main states that are included in the Rust Belt are Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, northern Illinois, southeast Wisconsin, and Upstate New York. The early development of large Midwestern cities, like Chicago, Detroit, Milwaukee, Cleveland, and Cincinnati are thanks to the Rust Belt during its peak production years. The Rust Belt also impacted the development of non-Midwestern cities like Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Rochester, Baltimore, and Buffalo.
The Rust Belt started to see decline starting in the 1950s, after World War II. Many factors contributed to this decline, one of them being the relocation of operations to the South because of lower labor costs and weak unions (Wallenfeldt 2025). In addition, after WWII, the US economy began increase rapidly, so manufactures had a false sense of security in their operations. Many failed to "update industrial machinery and infrastructure, which also contributed to a decline in competitiveness with foreign rivals" because of this (Wallenfeldt 2025). Finally, many suspect that the popularity of free trade with other nations also decreased operations in the Rust Belt because it was cheaper to trade with other countries.
The decline of the Rust Belt proved detrimental to the economy in the region. People lost jobs, cities lost people, and these huge factories were abandoned. Poverty increased, and many towns and cities still struggle today. For example, I know many of you have heard of Gary, Indiana. More examples include Flint, Michigan and Youngstown, Ohio. Bruce Springsteen actually wrote a song about Youngstown (called "Youngstown" because obviously) after the shutdown of Campbell Works, one of Ohio's largest corporations at the time. The day Campbell Works closed in 1977 is extremely important to the history of the Rust Belt and is known as "Black Monday."
The story of the Rust Belt is sad. HOWEVER, driving past these huge metal and brick structures is so emotional for me, especially if I'm listening to some dark, ambient music. I love it; it transports me somewhere I can't explain. Some place deep in my mind. To end this blog, I wanted to include some pictures of these deteriorating, dying buildings and structures that I find so special.
That's all I have for you all today! I enjoyed learning about the Rust Belt, and I hope you did too. Happy Valentine's Day!
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