Editing Youngstown, Ohio (section)

==History==

===Founding===
[[File:Image David Tod, Abbots History of Ohio.jpg|left|upright|thumb|Governor [[David Tod]]]]

Youngstown was named for New York native [[John Young (pioneer)|John Young]], who surveyed the area in 1796 and settled there soon afterward.<ref name="vind-yo-10-15-24">{{cite news |title=Knowing Youngstown: John Young's Land Purchase |work=The Youngstown Daily Vindicator |page=7hi |date=October 15, 1924}}</ref> On February 9, 1797, Young purchased the township of {{convert|15,560|acre|abbr=on}} from the [[Connecticut Western Reserve|Western Reserve Land Company]] for $16,085.<ref>Aley (1975), pp. 28–29.</ref> The 1797 establishment of Youngstown was officially recorded on August 19, 1802.<ref>Blue ''et al.'' (1995), pp. 15–16.</ref>

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.<ref name=officialoh>{{cite book|title=The Official Ohio Lands Book |last=Knepper |first=George W |year=2002 |pages=23–26 |publisher=Auditor of the State of Ohio |url=https://ohioauditor.gov/publications/OhioLandsBook.pdf}}</ref><ref name=up>{{cite book|title=History of the Western Reserve |volume=1 |pages=10–11 |first=Harriet Taylor |last=Upton |editor-first=Harry Gardner |editor-last=Cutler |publisher=Lewis Publishing Company |location=New York |year=1910 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xEsbLFoBttYC&pg=PA10}}</ref> Upon cession, Connecticut retained the [[Title (property)|title]] to the land in the Western Reserve, which it sold to the [[Connecticut Land Company]] for $1,200,000.<ref name=officialoh/><ref name=up/><ref name=ohsub>{{cite book |title=Ohio Lands and Their Subdivision |last=Peters|first=William E.|year=1918 |publisher=W.E. Peters|page=[https://archive.org/details/ohiolandstheirsu00pete/page/n164 153]|url=https://archive.org/details/ohiolandstheirsu00pete}}</ref> While many of the area's early settlers came from Connecticut, Youngstown attracted many [[Scots-Irish American|Scots-Irish]] settlers from neighboring [[Pennsylvania]].<ref>Blue ''et al.'' (1995), pp. 16–17.</ref> The first European Americans to settle permanently in the area were Pittsburgh native James Hillman and wife Catherine Dougherty.<ref>Blue ''et al.'' (1995), p. 15.</ref> By 1798, Youngstown was the home of several families who were concentrated near where Mill Creek meets the [[Mahoning River]].<ref name="Blue13">Blue ''et al.'' (1995), p. 13.</ref> [[Boardman Township, Ohio|Boardman Township]] was founded in 1798 by [[Elijah Boardman]], a member of the Connecticut Land Company. Also founded in 1798 was [[Austintown, Ohio|Austintown]] by John McCollum who was a settler from [[New Jersey]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Sanderson |first=Thomas |title=20th Century History of Youngstown and Mahoning County, Ohio |url=https://archive.org/details/20thcenturyhisto00sand_0 |year=1907 |publisher=Biographical Publishing Company |pages=[https://archive.org/details/20thcenturyhisto00sand_0/page/n174 169]–180}}</ref>

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 the smaller settlement of Warren as its administrative center, or [[county seat]].<ref>Blue ''et al.'' (1995), pp. 17–18.</ref> In 1813, Trumbull County was divided into townships, with Youngstown Township comprising much of what became Mahoning County.<ref>Blue ''et al.'' (1995), p. 18.</ref> 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, Ohio|Canfield]].<ref>Aley (1975), pp. 98–99.</ref> Youngstown has been Mahoning County's county seat to this day.<ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |access-date=June 7, 2011 |title=Find a County |publisher= National Association of Counties |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |archive-date=May 31, 2011}}</ref>

===Growth and industrialization===
The discovery of coal by 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.<ref>Blue ''et al.'' (1995), pp. 33–35.</ref> Local industrialist [[David Tod]], who became Ohio governor during the [[American Civil War|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 the path for further economic growth.<ref>Blue ''et al.'' (1995), pp. 35–36.</ref>

Youngstown's industrial development changed the face of the Mahoning Valley. The community's burgeoning coal industry drew hundreds of immigrants from [[Welsh Americans|Wales]], [[German Americans|Germany]], and [[Irish Americans|Ireland]]. With the establishment of steel mills in the late 19th century, Youngstown became a popular destination for immigrants from [[Eastern Europe]], [[Italian Americans|Italy]], and [[Greek Americans|Greece]].<ref>Blue ''et al.'' (1995), p. 69.</ref>

[[File:RepublicIron&SteelWorks YoungstownOH 1900s.jpg|thumb|left|[[Republic Steel|Republic Iron and Steel Works]], early 1900s]]
In the early 20th century, the community saw an influx of immigrants from non-European countries including what is modern day [[Lebanon]], [[Israel]], [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]], and [[Syria]].<ref>Blue ''et al.'' (1995), pp. 80–82.</ref> By the 1920s, this dramatic demographic shift produced a nativist backlash, and the Mahoning Valley became a center of [[Ku Klux Klan]] activity.<ref>Jenkins (1990), p. 19.</ref> The situation reached a climax in 1924, when street clashes between Klan members and [[Italian American|Italian]] and [[Irish American|Irish]] Americans in neighboring [[Niles, Ohio|Niles]] led Ohio Governor [[A. Victor Donahey]] to declare martial law.<ref>Jenkins (1990), p. 137.</ref> By 1928 the Klan was in steep decline; and three years later, the organization sold its Canfield, Ohio, meeting area, Kountry Klub Field.<ref>Aley (1975), p. 259.</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web |title=Christmas is a time of celebration, joy and inclusion |url=http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2014/christmas-is-a-time-of-celebration-joy-and-inclusion.cfm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180731032015/http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2014/christmas-is-a-time-of-celebration-joy-and-inclusion.cfm |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 31, 2018 |website= catholicnews.com |access-date=July 30, 2018}}</ref>

The growth of industry attracted people from within 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.<ref name= "Aley46">Aley (1975), p. 46.</ref> In the 1880s, local attorney [[William R. Stewart]] was the second African American elected to the [[Ohio House of Representatives]].<ref>Aley (1975), p. 47.</ref> A large influx of African Americans in 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.<ref>Brody (1960), pp. 254–255.</ref> This move inflamed racist sentiment among local Whites, and for decades, African-American steelworkers experienced discrimination in the workplace.<ref>Bruno (1999), pp. 155–156.</ref><ref>Linkon and Russo (2002), p. 42.</ref> Migration from the South rose dramatically in the 1940s, when the mechanization of southern agriculture brought an end to the [[sharecropping]] system, leading onetime farm laborers to seek industrial jobs.<ref>Lemann (1991), pp. 3–58.</ref>

[[File:YoungstownOhio1910s.jpg|thumb|Youngstown, 1910s: Central Square and Viaduct (view looking south)]]
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 a competitive disadvantage to the iron and steel producers in Cleveland, [[Buffalo, New York|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.<ref name="Transport costs">{{cite magazine |date=December 1, 1935 |title=Republic II: Corrigan, McKinney |magazine=Fortune |volume=XII |page=142}}</ref>

The city had a healthy position within the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]] in terms of transportation connections. An airport built in 1930 hosted [[Capital Airlines (United States)|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 (railway)|mainline]] to Chicago with the ''[[Capitol Limited (B&O train)|Capital Limited]]''. Likewise, Youngstown was on the [[Erie Railroad]] mainline, on its Chicago-Jersey City circuit, with trains such as the ''[[Atlantic Express and Pacific Express|Atlantic Express/Pacific Express]]'' and the ''[[Lake Cities (Erie Railroad train)|Lake Cities]].'' The city was on the New York Central's Pittsburgh-Buffalo circuit and the Pennsylvania Railroad's Pittsburgh-Cleveland circuit.<ref>{{cite book | title = Official Guide of the Railways| date = September 1955| publisher = }} sections: Capital Airlines; United Airlines; Baltimore and Ohio Railroad; Erie Railroad</ref><ref>{{cite book| url= http://streamlinermemories.info/NYC/NYC51-6TT.pdf | title= New York Central Railroad timetable| date= June 17, 1951| series= Tables 57, 58, 59| publisher = | via= streamlinermemories.info| accessdate= }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | title = Pennsylvania Railroad timetable| date= January 18, 1954| series= Tables 5, 23 | url= http://streamlinermemories.info/PRR/PRR54-1TT.pdf| publisher = | via= streamlinermemories.info| accessdate= }}</ref>

===Post-World War II decline===
The city's population became more diverse after the end of [[World War II]], when a seemingly robust steel industry attracted thousands of workers.<ref>Linkon and Russo (2002), pp. 41–42.</ref> In the 1950s, the [[Hispanics in the United States|Latino]] population grew significantly; and by the 1970s, [[St. Rose of Lima]] 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.<ref name="Aley46"/> 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 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.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cityofyoungstownoh.com/about_youngstown/youngstown_2010/plan/plan.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161110092218/http://www.cityofyoungstownoh.com/about_youngstown/youngstown_2010/plan/plan.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 10, 2016 |title=Youngstown 2010 Plan |publisher=Youngstown 2010 |access-date=November 15, 2022 }}</ref>

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 [[strike action|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 was met.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ohio Governor Turns Down Bid for Troops |publisher=Scranton Pennsylvania Tribune |date=September 8, 1967}}{{page needed|date=February 2021}}</ref>  By Saturday, the day they were ordered back to their jobs by a [[Ohio Courts of Common Pleas|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.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ordered to Return to Work |publisher=Akron Beacon Journal |date=September 9, 1967}}{{page needed|date=February 2021}}</ref>  Apart from a fruitless six-day "sick call" of police in Detroit in June 1967, Youngstown's 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."<ref>{{cite news |title=A Crack in the Wall |publisher=Sheboygan Press |date=September 13, 1967}}</ref>

The [[Economy of Youngstown, Ohio|industrial economy]] that drew various groups to the area collapsed in the late 1970s, culminating with the September 19, 1977, closure of the [[Youngstown Sheet and Tube]] [[Campbell, Ohio|Campbell Works]] after financial downturn due to changes in the steel manufacturing process and international competition.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://money.cnn.com/2008/04/08/real_estate/radical_city_plan/index.htm?postversion=2008042410 |title=The incredible shrinking city |author=Christie, Les |publisher=CNN Money |date=April 24, 2008 |access-date=November 15, 2022 }}</ref> In response to subsequent challenges, the city has taken well-publicized steps to diversify economically, while building on some traditional strengths.<ref name="nasser">{{cite news |first=Haya El |last=Nasser |title=As older cities shrink, some reinvent themselves |work=USA Today |date=December 26, 2006 |access-date=February 14, 2007 |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-12-26-shrinking-cities-cover_x.htm}}</ref>

===Modern developments===
[[File:Nathaniel R. Jones Federal Building & U.S. Courthouse.jpg|thumb|The [[Nathaniel R. Jones]] Federal Building and [[United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit|U.S. Courthouse]] was built during an era of new downtown construction in the early 2000s.]]
Downtown Youngstown has seen modest levels of new construction. In the 2000s, additions included the [[Nathaniel R. Jones]] Federal Building and [[United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit|U.S. Courthouse]] in 2002, designed by [[Robert A. M. Stern|Robert A. M. Stern Architects]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?programId=11433&channelId=-16863&ooid=18005&contentId=17873&pageTypeId=8195&contentType=GSA_BASIC&programPage=%2Fep%2Fprogram%2FgsaBasic.jsp&P=PL |title=Frank J. Battisti and Nathaniel R. Jones Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse |publisher=U.S. General Services Administration |access-date=February 18, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060929175051/http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?programId=11433&channelId=-16863&ooid=18005&contentId=17873&pageTypeId=8195&contentType=GSA_BASIC&programPage=%2Fep%2Fprogram%2FgsaBasic.jsp&P=PL |archive-date=September 29, 2006 |url-status=dead }}</ref> 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 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, 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.<ref name="skolnick2">{{cite news |first=David |last=Skolnick |title=City is looking up expert says |work=The Vindicator |date=May 4, 2006 |access-date=February 14, 2007 |url=http://www.cityofyoungstownoh.com/about_youngstown/youngstown_2010/news_information/media/vindicator_stories/vindy_050406.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141031205914/http://www.cityofyoungstownoh.com/about_youngstown/youngstown_2010/news_information/media/vindicator_stories/vindy_050406.htm |archive-date=October 31, 2014 }}</ref>

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.<ref name="vindy-yo-09-21-06">{{cite news |title=City unveils its new logo |work=The Vindicator |date=September 21, 2006 |access-date=March 14, 2007 |url=http://www4.vindy.com/content/local_regional/294084836390455.php |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080112064547/http://www4.vindy.com/content/local_regional/294084836390455.php |archive-date=January 12, 2008 }}</ref> New construction has dovetailed with efforts to cultivate business growth. One of 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.<ref name="shilling"/>

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 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.<ref name="schatz">{{cite book |last=Schatz |first=Laura |title=Decline-Oriented Urban Governance in Youngstown, Ohio (chapter in The City After Abandonment) |year=2013 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |location=Philadelphia}}</ref> 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 is consistent with efforts in other metropolitan areas to address the phenomenon of urban depopulation.<ref name="nasser"/> ''Youngstown 2010'' received an award for public outreach from the [[American Planning Association]] in 2007.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.planning.org/newsreleases/2006/dec19-8.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090607085427/http://www.planning.org/newsreleases/2006/dec19-8.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 7, 2009 |title='Youngstown 2010' Plan Honored with Award for Public Outreach |website=Planning.org |access-date=December 4, 2015 }}</ref>

On May 28, 2024, [[Realty Building explosion|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.<ref>{{cite web |author=Bartos |first1=Madeline |last2=Shinn |first2=Megan |last3=Borrasso |first3=Jennifer |last4=Pintar |first4=Barry |date=May 29, 2024 |title=Explosion in downtown Youngstown, Ohio, leaves one dead and multiple injured |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/pittsburgh/news/youngstown-explosion-realty-building-east-federal-street/ |access-date=July 9, 2024 |publisher=[[KDKA-TV]]}}</ref> The explosion was suspected to have been caused by a [[Methane leak|natural gas leak]].