Editing Molenbeek-Saint-Jean (section)

===20th century===
Until the early 20th century, Molenbeek was a booming [[suburb]] which attracted a large [[Working class|working-class]] population. Remarkable new urban developments and [[Garden city movement|garden cities]] such as the Cité Diongre were built at the beginning of the century to house the influx of newcomers.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cité Diongre – Inventaire du patrimoine architectural |url=https://monument.heritage.brussels/fr/buildings/38245 |access-date=2023-11-16 |website=monument.heritage.brussels |language=fr}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |date=2020 |title=Étude de cas. Le quartier rural de Molenbeek-Saint-Jean 1869-1930 |url=https://www.lafonderie.be/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/II._Le_quartier_rural_1869-1930.pdf |access-date=4 June 2023}}</ref> The [[Church of St. John the Baptist, Molenbeek|Church of St. John the Baptist]] was also rebuilt between 1930 and 1932 in [[Art Deco in Brussels|Art Deco]] style to accommodate this growing populace.{{sfn|Demanet|De Zuttere|2023|p=38–39}}<ref name=":5" /> The [[deindustrialization|industrial decline]], however, which had already started before [[World War I]], accelerated after the [[Great Depression]] and [[World War II]].<ref name=":4" />

Following the industrial decline after the war, the old districts bordering the [[City of Brussels]] began to decrease in population. Much of the original Belgian working-class population, when its financial means allowed it, left the lower Molenbeek for Brussels' newly developing suburbs. In this lower part of the town, new immigrant populations moved in, leading to the present-day urban fabric. The [[Population decline|depopulation]] was not addressed until the 1960s through the construction of new residential areas in the then-rural west of the municipality. In the 1990s, this expansion was halted, leaving some woods and meadows in Molenbeek, such as the semi-natural site of the Scheutbos.<ref name=":6">{{cite web|url=http://www.scheutbos.be/|title=Scheutbos: grand espace vert bruxellois|website=scheutbos.be|access-date=2019-09-01}}</ref><ref name=":3" />

[[File:Tour L'Ecluse 1080BXL.jpg|right|thumb|L'Écluse Tower on the {{lang|fr|Boulevard Louis Mettewie|italic=no}}/{{lang|nl|Louis Mettewielaan|italic=no}}]]

Where Molenbeek was once a centre of intense industrial activity, concentrated around the canal and the railway, most of those industries have disappeared to make way for large-scale [[urban renewal]] following the modernist [[Athens Charter]], such as the L'Écluse Tower along the {{lang|fr|Boulevard Louis Mettewie|italic=no}}/{{lang|nl|Louis Mettewielaan|italic=no}} in the upper town and the Brunfaut Tower near the canal. In addition, clearance work for the extension of the [[Brussels metro|metro]] in the 1970s and 1980s led to further destruction. In spite of this, Molenbeek has maintained its character to this day. This industrial past is still remembered in [[La Fonderie, Brussels Museum of Industry and Labour|Brussels' Museum of Industry and Labour]], a museum of social and industrial history built on the site of the former [[foundry]] of the ''Compagnie des Bronzes de Bruxelles''.{{sfn|Demanet|De Zuttere|2023|p=18–19}}<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2023-09-14 |title=La Fonderie - Brussels Museum of Industry and Work |url=https://www.brusselsmuseums.be/en/museums/la-fonderie-brussels-museum-of-industry-and-work |access-date=2023-11-16 |website=Brussels Museums |language=en}}</ref>