Editing Ore City, Texas (section)

== Economy ==
{{See also|List of shopping malls in the Longview metropolitan area}}
Ore City, Texas, part of the [[Longview metropolitan area, Texas|Longview metropolitan area]], has an economy that's traditionally tied to its small-town roots in [[agriculture]], [[timber]], and [[tourism]] related to nearby [[Lake O' the Pines]]. Located in [[East Texas]] and near the more developed regions of Longview and Marshall, Ore City is relatively modest in scale and maintains a completely [[rural]] economic profile. It doesn't experience the kind of industrial or tech-driven growth seen in larger Texas cities but is more reliant on local businesses, [[agriculture]], and nearby employment centers.

During the iron boom in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Ore City had a prime opportunity to diversify its economy but ultimately struggled to do so. The town's economy relied heavily on the iron industry, and when iron ore was discovered nearby, it led to a surge of mining and related activities. However, this boom didn't last long, and local economic strategies were almost solely focused on exploiting this one resource, with limited investment in other sectors like infrastructure, services, or secondary industries that could support long-term economic stability.

One major issue was that Ore City lacked the transportation and logistics infrastructure that could have supported broader industrial diversification. Without significant rail connections or investment in better roads, it was challenging to attract new industries to the area. As a result, when the iron ore deposits began to dwindle or became too costly to extract, the town found itself with limited economic fallback options.

Furthermore, the town's reliance on iron prevented it from developing the agricultural or manufacturing industries that nearby regions were investing in. Many residents, whose livelihoods depended on mining, faced [[unemployment]] and hardship as demand for local iron faded. Without significant efforts to diversify, Ore City was left vulnerable to economic downturns, a trend that continues to impact its economic development today.<ref>{{cite web |title=Upshur County History |url=https://www.historicupshurmuseum.com/upshur-county-history |website=Historic Upshur Museum |access-date=October 27, 2024}}</ref>