Ironless: Can't see change without change

1937 Flood IrontonRemove the name Schuylerville from “The Loss of Community” and replace it with Ironton, Ohio and you will have the epitome of my hometown along the Ohio River. While reading the physical description and history of the Hudson River town, I felt as if I was reading a description of my hometown on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ironton,_Ohio. With a population now around 11,500, Ironton is located in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains along the Ohio River Valley. At the turn of the 20th century, it was the leading producer in the iron industry, hence the name ‘Iron-ton’. Ironton’s proximity to the Ohio River allowed for easy transportation of the commodity, which was being purchased in the United States, Europe, and Russia to build warships. The industry brought wealth into the region, as new industries opened in soap, nail, leather, cement, tile, and much more. For nearly 50 years, it was nicknamed “Little Chicago.” A downtown area quickly developed, and the town was booming.

However, the iron ore became less accessible. As the industry was forced to mine deeper and deeper, production costs were outweighing the profits. And the town’s proximity to the river also became its downfall. Two floods destroyed the majority of the town, leaving the town in ruins. By the time the Great Depression was over, most of the industries were forced to close its doors. A large portion of the population was left unemployed. Laborers struggled to find jobs and many were forced to relocate.

Not only had the economy plummeted, the physical landscape of the region was being transformed by a federal mandate. Levees were constructed along the whole length of the town, completely separating the town from the riverfront it used to embrace. When looking out from second-street, you no longer saw across the river into Kentucky. Instead you so I giant heap of mud still waiting to sprout grass. The town was brown all over.

Since the economic plummet, no new industries have emerged. Thankfully the community has prevailed. Perhaps it’s due to the large amount of churches. Or perhaps it’s due to the fact that many of the surrounding towns remain dry in terms of alcohol sales and Ironton is the only way to get their liquor. Most likely, it’s due to the community’s commitment to its local businesses and the businesses’ commitment to the community. It is still ‘interdependent’ and is still ‘loved and competently cared for by its people’ (186).

Last year, I a completed a research project on the redevelopment of the downtown area of the neighboring town across the river called Ashland, Kentucky: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashland,_Kentucky. Like Ironton, Ashland was devastated by the collapse of the labor industry and flooding. However, unlike Ironton, Ashland has developed a large portion of land into commercial enterprises throughout the 1980s onward. This was primarily done by outside corporations: Wal-Mart, JC Penny, Goody’s, Belk, Big Lots, Kroger, and a handful of food chain restaurants. The land developed was not in the already existent downtown area, but rather land on the out skirts of town. Like the majority of small town America, this left the downtown vacant for years—in this case the majority of my childhood. I can remember when the last department store relocated into the mall. For over a decade, the downtown area was vacated and looked like a ghost town falling to pieces. It was only recent that a motion was passed to redevelop a section of the downtown into an art district.

In my study, I analyzed the reactions different generations had to the redevelopment of the downtown into an art district. The generations were broken up into two groups: the generations that grew up through the 1980s experienced the downtown in its prosperity and then in its abandonment with the growth of the mall; and the generations that grew up from the 1990s onward that only knew the abandoned downtown. Those who grew up through the 1980s generally spoke fondly toward the redevelopment, appreciating that it was going to finally have another use. Those who grew up after the 1990s however usually spoke with resentment toward the redevelopment. They saw the project as a waste of time and money, and didn’t see it ever prospering.

I contributed the contrast in the different generations’ opinions to the different cultural identities they have developed. Generations up through 1980 understand Ashland as a culture of change, from prosperity to abandonment, and now into redevelopment. Generations from the 1990s onward understand Ashland as a culture abandoned and forgotten and know only the mall located on the outskirts of town that was there before they were born. These generations are unable to envision change because they have yet to experience it. 

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